Israel warned, but US doubted: how Trump's secret flight was arranged | Report

Israel provided the US with intelligence about a possible Iranian threat against Trump, but American officials questioned its credibility. Despite doubts, the Secret Service carried out a diversion operation: Trump boarded Air Force One in front of cameras, then was secretly transferred to a backup plane. The concern was that Iranian proxies in Turkey might try to fire a shoulder-fired missile at the aircraft. No evidence was found that the suspects had the missile or launcher.

Israel provided the US with intelligence about a possible Iranian threat against President Trump, but American officials questioned its credibility. Despite the doubts, the Secret Service carried out an unusual diversion operation: Trump boarded Air Force One in front of cameras, then was secretly transferred via a catering truck to a backup military plane. The concern was that Iranian proxies operating in Turkey might try to fire a shoulder-fired missile (MANPADS) at the presidential aircraft from an area near Ankara airport, about half a mile away. However, the Americans found no evidence that the suspects had the missile or launcher, and the Turks said there was no evidence of a threat. Some American officials even suspected that Israel was trying to influence Trump to escalate the war with Iran, but Israel denied this. Amid an active war with Iran and little time for verification, it was decided not to take any risks. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remained on the decoy plane, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was with Trump on the secret plane. The White House did not intend to reveal the operation, until the Washington Post exposed it.