1 hr ago
Trump Departs on Qatar-Gifted Air Force One After Slide Deployment
An emergency slide came out of the airplane Donald Trump was about to use.
Workers checked the slide and removed it, delaying the flight for a short time.
Trump then flew from Washington to Dallas on the plane.
He said he believed the airplane was safe.
The aircraft is a Boeing 747-8 that Qatar gave to the United States.
It has been changed for presidential use.
The plane will receive more security work beginning in October.
Some people have raised questions about whether a foreign government should give such an expensive gift to a president.
An emergency evacuation slide deployed before Donald Trump boarded the Qatar-gifted Boeing 747-8.
The deployment briefly delayed Trump's flight from Washington to Dallas on Wednesday.
Trump said he believed the aircraft was safe because he would not otherwise fly on it.
The aircraft is scheduled for security upgrades beginning in October, expected to take about 60 days.
The gift, valued at several hundred million dollars, has prompted ethical and constitutional questions.
- Who
- U.S. President Donald Trump and inspectors handling the aircraft.
- What
- An emergency evacuation slide deployed on the Qatar-gifted presidential aircraft, briefly delaying Trump's departure.
- Where
- The incident occurred at Joint Base Andrews near Washington, before the flight to Dallas, Texas.
- When
- Wednesday, before Trump's flight to Dallas; further security upgrades are scheduled to begin in October.
- Why
- The slide deployment prompted an inspection; the aircraft is also scheduled for security upgrades because additional security work is planned.
Safety and Ethics Concerns
Trump's Confidence and Continued Use
Aircraft safety
Safety and Ethics Concerns
The deployed slide and earlier questions about the aircraft's safety raised concerns, while the Air Force did not immediately comment.
Trump's Confidence and Continued Use
Trump said he was confident the plane was safe, stating that he would not be aboard if he believed otherwise.
Foreign-government gift
Safety and Ethics Concerns
The aircraft's value and origin have raised ethical and constitutional questions about gifts a U.S. president may receive from foreign governments.
Trump's Confidence and Continued Use
Trump accepted the aircraft, used it for presidential travel, and has indicated that he intends to preserve it for a future presidential museum.
Key facts
- Aircraft
- Qatar-gifted Boeing 747-8 used as a presidential aircraft.
- Incident
- An emergency inflatable evacuation slide deployed and was removed.
- Delay
- Inspectors said checking the slide would take about 15 minutes.
- Flight
- Trump departed Washington for Dallas aboard the aircraft.
- Emergency equipment
- The Boeing 747-8 typically has 12 emergency inflatable evacuation slides.
- Planned upgrades
- Security work is scheduled to begin in October and is expected to take about 60 days.
- Gift value
- The aircraft was described as being worth several hundred million dollars.
Quotes
Donald Trump
U.S. president responding to a question about whether the aircraft was safe to fly
“They're checking the slide over here, and I think it's going to take 15 minutes.”
NDTV
“Yeah, I am, or I wouldn’t be on it.”
theprint.in
NDTV
Sources
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