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Trump Secretly Flew From Turkey Amid Iran Threat, Report Says
By Aurax Radio | August 11, 2026 | 2 min read
President Donald Trump secretly left Turkey aboard a smaller military aircraft after an Iranian assassination threat prompted an elaborate security operation that used Air Force One as a decoy, according to reporting by The Washington Post. The operation concealed Trump's whereabouts from the public, journalists and some White House personnel during his departure from a NATO summit in Ankara last month.
A U.S. Air Force C-32A similar to the aircraft used to secretly transport President Donald Trump from Turkey to Britain.
Trump had publicly appeared to board the older Boeing 747 that had previously served as Air Force One after the July 8 NATO summit, while the newer Boeing 747-8 gifted by Qatar had already departed Turkey. Instead, according to the Post's reporting and material reviewed by the newspaper, Trump and several aides were transferred from the legacy Air Force One through an airport catering truck to a smaller Air Force C-32A waiting nearby. The truck was positioned alongside the aircraft and raised to the level of an aircraft door, allowing Trump to leave without being seen by people boarding the presidential jet. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth later joined Trump aboard the C-32A, which flew to Royal Air Force Mildenhall in Britain under the call sign "Reach 18." Journalists traveling on the decoy Air Force One were reportedly instructed to close the aircraft's window shades, while the plane continued to Britain separately.
The operation followed a reported intelligence warning of a specific Iranian threat against Trump or his aircraft, amid continuing hostilities between Washington and Tehran. The security concerns also came shortly after Trump began using the Qatar-provided 747-8 as his primary presidential aircraft; the newer plane had undergone upgrades but, according to earlier reporting, did not initially contain all of the defensive countermeasures found on the legacy presidential aircraft. The White House has defended the security of the newer aircraft and has said presidential travel is protected against threats, while officials have declined to publicly confirm operational details of the Turkey departure. The use of a decoy aircraft is unusual but not without precedent: U.S. presidents have previously used alternative aircraft or concealed travel arrangements when facing elevated security risks. The incident has also renewed questions about presidential aviation security, particularly as the Trump administration continues to operate amid heightened tensions with Iran.
Sources: The Washington Post, The Associated Press, ABC News and CNN.
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