President Donald Trump abruptly switched aircraft after departing a NATO summit in Türkiye this month following reports of a credible Iranian plot to assassinate him, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. Trump flew out of Ankara aboard the older Air Force One instead of the newer Qatari-donated Boeing 747-8, which lacks equivalent defensive capabilities, amid concerns over threats from Iranian proxy forces.
The aircraft switch underscores the heightened security environment surrounding the US president as hostilities between Washington and Tehran have escalated dramatically in recent months. The development comes against the backdrop of a collapsed truce, renewed US airstrikes on Iran, and the killing of Iran's longtime supreme leader in a targeted strike earlier this year.
The aircraft switch coincided with reports that Israel had shared intelligence with the US suggesting Iran was planning to target Trump. However, some US officials believed Israel was attempting to provoke Trump into intensifying strikes against Iran, according to the Times.
Trump later publicly stated that he was on Iran's hit list and warned that "thousands" of missiles would be fired at the country if Iran attempted to assassinate him.
The US and Israel conducted a bombing campaign that killed dozens of senior Iranian officials and military commanders. Among those killed was Iran's longtime supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, who died in a targeted strike on his compound in Tehran on February 28.
Iran's new leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, vowed this month to avenge his father, though he did not mention Trump by name. During funeral processions for the elder Khamenei and other officials, many protesters in Tehran called for Trump's death.
A fragile truce between the US and Iran collapsed this month as Washington resumed regular strikes on Iran in response to attacks on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The two countries had previously clashed over differing interpretations of a memorandum of understanding signed on June 17.
Officials reportedly believed there was a credible threat from "Iranian proxy forces" against the president's life, prompting the decision to switch aircraft. The newer Boeing 747-8, donated by Qatar, lacks the same defensive capabilities as the older Air Force One, according to the Times report.
The Times based its reporting on people familiar with the matter, and the intelligence assessment that prompted the switch was taken seriously enough to alter the president's travel arrangements at the last moment.
The security environment for the US president remains elevated as hostilities between Washington and Tehran continue. The US has resumed regular strikes on Iran following the collapse of the June truce, and no new diplomatic framework has been publicly announced. Further official confirmation regarding the specific threat assessment that triggered the aircraft switch is awaited.
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