Decoy Air Force One Without Trump Got Fighter Escort…Due to Iranian Assassination Intel

The information came from a senior Trump administration official speaking to Fox News, and several outlets translated the plane as 'bait' in their coverage.

Fox News added that the disclosure dispelled concerns among the press and the press pool about the earlier threat situation in Ankara, Turkey.

At the time, Trump explained that U.S. troops stationed in Britain wanted to see the new aircraft, so he sent it ahead.

At the time, nothing was known about what serious developments were underway behind the aircraft swap. Only a minor episode became public, in which reporters were told to pull down their window blinds during the trip from Turkey to Britain.

The reporters had been completely unaware of this.

The main reason Trump boarded a different plane was an assassination threat from Iran. The intelligence was reportedly provided by Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad. After receiving the intelligence, the Secret Service moved Trump, who had been scheduled to fly on the new plane, onto the old Air Force One.

Doubts were voiced about whether it had adequate missile-evasion capabilities or defensive facilities, and some speculated that this was why the older plane was used.

Ultimately, the decision to fly two planes was aimed at protecting Trump's safety.

Left-leaning media criticized Trump for using the plane carrying White House press corps reporters as 'bait.' NBC News reported that had Air Force One been shot down by an Iranian attack, the human toll would have been terrible, and advanced the claim that Trump had put reporters forward to save himself.

Left-leaning outlets are pursuing their own tactics.

It is built to withstand considerable shocks and carries specially designed equipment capable of detecting and evading missile targeting. The explanation is that the $400 million spent on refurbishment was not merely an interior upgrade. Moreover, because escort fighters were flying alongside, even if a missile were fired, the aircraft could have evaded it and landed safely. Based on this, counterarguments hold that the claim of having 'used it as bait' can be refuted.

Reporters were not the only ones on board; only Trump had transferred to a different plane.

Reporters reportedly knew during the flight to Britain that Trump was not aboard this aircraft. It was not that they were unaware. The press corps and officials were instructed to keep the window shades closed throughout the flight, so they did not see the fighters escorting outside, but that does not mean there were no fighters. According to a pool report distributed yesterday, there were almost no signs at the airport that anything unusual was happening. Press vehicles were positioned at the very back of the motorcade, and photographers did not capture Trump boarding from beneath the wing as usual. Because no photographic record was made of Trump boarding, it is likely that talk among reporters that Trump had not boarded the plane could easily have circulated.

White House staff and reporters boarded the plane as originally planned, and snack mix bags bearing the presidential seal were prepared. After boarding, however, reporters were told to lower the window blinds, and a Secret Service agent came to the press cabin to reinforce the instruction. When one photographer briefly opened a blind, he was immediately told to close it again, showing how strictly the situation was controlled. With the blinds drawn so that no one could look out and no one outside could look in, the aircraft flew on to Britain.

While visiting Geneva, Ohio, for the Freedom 250 Patriot Games, he told reporters, "That was entirely up to the Secret Service. If the Secret Service tells me to do something, I have to go along with it." He thus stressed that the president's security is not a matter he can decide on his own.

An example is that in emergencies such as an assassination shooting, bodyguards may forcibly evacuate the president.

With an understanding of these rules, one would know that when Secret Service agents say, "Mr. President, you cannot board this plane. Please follow us," refusal is not an option. Trump said, "They wanted me on a different plane, a different flight. The safety is the same, but in any case they wanted me to do it, so I did what they told me." He even added that, for him, taking a different plane instead of the new Air Force One was itself a source of doubt and concern about whether it was 'safe.'

Trump stressed that this episode resulted from Mossad intelligence and a Secret Service decision, and that he had not abandoned others to save himself. He argued that if such a situation arose, it should heighten alertness to how determined any assassination plot against him might be, and that the public should be told more about the terrorists seeking to harm the president's safety. Criticism has been raised against left-leaning media for seeking to use this situation to tarnish Trump.