Trump admits Air Force One jet from Qatar needs upgrades

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on Jul 20, 2026

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President Trump is admitting his luxe new Air Force One plane will be taken out of service for a new round of retrofitting.

After Trump was forced to ditch the Qatar-donated jet in Turkey over concerns about its safety, he told reporters that the Boeing 747 would need to be “maxed out," implying it must be upgraded to meet expectations to protect the commander-in-chief.

“It has a lot of capability,” Trump said. “But as I understand it, in about a month or so, they’re gonna send it to have it be maxed out.”

Trump didn’t specify what upgrades are needed but the $400 million jet reportedly lacks the anti-missile defense capabilities that the older presidential jets are equipped with. He said the retrofitting would take about a month.

Trump this month started flying aboard the new jumbo jet, which has far more comforts and luxury accessories, after accepting the plane as a gift from the oil-rich Middle East ally.

He flew on the new jet to Turkey for a NATO summit but was unexpectedly forced to ride back to Britain on the older backup plane after the war with Iran flared up.

The Air Force One planes that are specially built by Boeing are designed to be a virtual White House in the sky to protect against missiles and even a potential nuclear strike. They can refuel in midair and include a flying hospital suite where a president could be treated.

Boeing is building two new presidential jets to replace the aging ones currently in service, but Trump grew frustrated by production delays and jumped at Qatar’s offer to give him their plane, which it had unsuccessfully tried to sell for years.

Despite being loaded with plush carpeting, more comfortable seating for his entourage and ample gold trimming, the Qatari plane has already cost hundreds of millions to retrofit, and it’s still not as safe as the old planes according to several reports including one from the New York Times earlier this month that led the Justice Department to issue subpoenas to several of its reporters.

Trump aides have said the plane will be gifted to his presidential foundation after he leaves office instead of being kept by the U.S. government, an arrangement that critics say raises obvious conflict of interest questions.

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