Trump ‘decoy’ operation with Air Force One angers and baffles social media users

As US president Donald Trump’s war with Iran continues, the 80-year-old was reportedly taken to a different plane to that of Air Force One in secret via a catering truck, according to The Washington Post – with an unnamed US official telling the outlet that a credible threat to Trump involving the Middle Eastern country warranted the “deception operation” last month.

Trump was seen boarding the old Air Force One jet (that is, not the plane gifted to the US president by the Qatari government) to leave Ankara, Turkey on 8 July, and took to Truth Social that day to say that he would be taking the old plane to Mildenhall, England.

But the Post – citing material it had reviewed, a US official familiar with the operation and another who has knowledge of the president’s travel – reports that Trump was actually taken to a smaller plane (an Air Force C-32A) via a catering truck, with Air Force One serving as a “decoy”.

He was, however, seen disembarking from the old Air Force One upon arrival at Mildenhall, before boarding the Qatari Air Force One to make the trip home to the United States.

In CNN’s coverage of the story, footage was shown of Trump being asked on the Qatari Air Force One why reporters were told to lower their window blinds, to which the president replied: “Because you’re, you know, probably on a dangerous flight because of the sleazebags we have to deal with.”

When one reporter mentioned Iran, Trump interjected: “Well, I mean, if they asked you to close your windows, probably they feel that way. They didn’t ask me to close mine, but if they did, I would have done it.”

The decoy operation has since left social media users bewildered, with strategist Christopher Webb writing: “What the hell is going on?”

MeidasTouch said it was a “truly WILD story” and that “it actually seems Trump left and endangered the lives of everyone on board” the old Air Force One:

“Are you telling me Trump put staff and reporters on a plane he refused to get on, knowing full well there was a threat of it being shot down!?! And this guy is running our country,” wrote one X/Twitter user.

Wu Tang is for the Children said Trump’s team “didn’t care if anything happened to everyone on the regular AF1” and noted they acted on a threat despite the president previously claiming Iran’s military “had been obliterated”:

The White House has been approached by indy100 for comment.

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