Members of Trump's cabinet remained on decoy plane, after president's quiet exit
The president boarded a different plane in Turkey during a Nato summit to evade an Iranian threat.
Two US Cabinet members were on a decoy plane as Donald Trump secretly left a different flight in Turkey last month, according to CBS News. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remained on a plane believed to be Air Force One and did not board the alternative aircraft provided for Trump due to security concerns regarding Iran.
After Trump entered the plane alongside officials and journalists on July 8, he hid on a catering truck to be covertly taken to a military aircraft. The term "Air Force One" refers to any plane the president is on, but in this case, the original aircraft retained the call sign, transforming into a decoy. According to CBS, Rubio and Bessent stayed on board the initial aircraft to uphold the presidential succession line if something happened to Trump.
Vice-President JD Vance would assume power, followed by the Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. The Secretary of State and Treasury Secretary come next in line, respectively. Other individuals who stayed on the designated Air Force One included White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and the White House Communications Director Steven Cheung.
The second aircraft carrying Trump out of Ankara also included Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The reason for the deception and the nature of the security threat remain undisclosed, with Trump attributing it to the US military and Secret Service, stating that he was instructed to board a separate flight. The motives and the level of awareness the cabinet secretaries and other officials had about the operation are unclear.
White House press pool members were not aware they were on a decoy flight. This incident echoes similar tactics used by former President Bill Clinton during his 2000 visit to Islamabad, where he flew on an unmarked executive jet with a decoy plane. The White House Correspondent's Association has not commented on the Turkey incident.
Written by urgent.news from BBC World's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
