Trump hints at when new Air Force One from Qatar could take off
Speaking to reporters, the president suggested he could start flying in the luxury jumbo jet by early next year.
President Donald Trump suggested he could be flying on a refurbished Air Force One, gifted to the United States by the Middle Eastern country of Qatar, as soon as February of 2026.
Speaking to reporters on July 29, the president said he's still unsure exactly how much the luxury jumbo jet, which he announced in May, will fully cost.
"That's up to the military," he said. "I really haven't been involved. It's their plane."
Trump's assertion follows reporting in The New York Times on July 27 that a recent $934 million transfer of Pentagon funds likely includes money to pay for and renovate the new plane. Democrats and experts have estimated the entire price tag of the project, including renovations, could potentially exceed $1 billion.
The unprecedented gift of a Boeing 747, itself valued at $400 million, to the White House has been stirring controversy for months. The scrutiny from critics such as Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., the ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, has centered on a view of the arrangement as an overreach of presidential authority, with unclear implications for American foreign policy.
A memorandum of understanding signed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Qatari officials and viewed by Paste BN says the plane is an "unconditional donation." Qatari officials offered it without contingencies related to "any past, present or future official act or decision," according to the memo.
When he initially announced the gift, Trump said he would be "stupid" not to accept what he called a "free, very expensive airplane."
The president plans to use the jet while he's in office before donating it to his presidential foundation and library.
Contributing: Cybele Mayes-Osterman, Paste BN