Trump: "New Air Force One Will Be Upgraded to the Highest Level Within a Month"

Trump Outlines Plans to Operate New Jet Gifted by Qatar
No Specific Details Given on Additional Features

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he would upgrade the new private jet gifted to him by Qatar.

According to The New York Times (NYT) on July 19 (local time), President Trump met with reporters after returning to Washington, D.C. from New Jersey. When asked about the missile defense system of the new private jet, he replied, "It will be upgraded to the highest level in about a month."

On the 9th (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump is getting off the new Air Force One. Photo by AFP Yonhap News

However, President Trump did not specify what new features would be added to the new aircraft.

The NYT interpreted President Trump’s remarks as acknowledging that the defense system of the new private jet does not yet meet the standard of the existing Air Force One.

Previously, on July 8, after attending the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, President Trump announced via his social media platform, Truth Social, that he would use the old Air Force One to travel from Türkiye to the United Kingdom, instead of the new Air Force One gifted by Qatar. Trump explained this decision as "to relive old memories." However, the NYT, citing an anonymous source, reported that it was because the new Air Force One lacks proper advanced missile defense capabilities and other countermeasures. It was also reported that the U.S. Secret Service (SS) recommended using the existing Air Force One on the return trip for safety reasons.

Following the report, the White House instructed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to investigate the circumstances surrounding the information leak, and the Department of Justice issued subpoenas requiring the NYT reporters who wrote the article to appear before a federal grand jury. The subpoenas issued to the reporters did not include specific details and simply cited "violations of federal criminal law." In response, the NYT filed a lawsuit seeking the cancellation of the subpoenas, arguing that the measure infringes on press freedom.

The National Press Club (NPC) also issued a statement condemning the action, saying, "It is not standard law enforcement practice for federal agents to show up at journalists' homes to serve subpoenas," and called it "a direct attack on press freedom, a core principle of the First Amendment." Earlier this year, the Department of Justice also attempted to issue subpoenas to reporters at The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and The Washington Post (WP), but withdrew all attempts after strong legal challenges from the media organizations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.