Trump says security threat spurred secret plane swap in Turkey

The president spoke for the first time about a previously undisclosed flight after the NATO summit in July.

President Donald Trump confirmed Tuesday night that he secretly switched planes when he traveled back from Turkey in July, saying a security threat prompted the clandestine maneuver.

Trump told reporters that the “Secret Service and the military” made the decision.

“They wanted me to go on a different flight, a different plane,” he said. “I guess there was a threat out there.”

NBC News previously confirmed The Washington Post’s reporting that Trump surreptitiously moved to an unmarked jet using a catering truck on July 8 after having boarded Air Force One in front of cameras. He flew on the jet from Ankara to a base in the United Kingdom, while reporters and White House staff members believed he was on board Air Force One.

“I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk. I think it was at greater risk because that would be the plane I think that they would be more likely to go for,” Trump said Tuesday.