Donald Trump unexpectedly left Turkey on Wednesday aboard an older Air Force One rather than ‌the newly renovated Qatari-donated jet that brought him there, but later boarded the new plane in Britain for the flight to Washington.

The trip to Turkey for the NATO summit, the first international travel for the new plane, took place as hostilities escalated with Iran, a country that borders Turkey.

The unexpected plane switch followed months of scrutiny over the luxury gift intended to serve as a temporary replacement while Boeing struggled to deliver long-delayed next-generation Air Force One planes.

  • ShredderFeederA
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    3 days ago

    If the Quataris have a self-distruct button…now would be an awesome time to test it.

    • phutatorius@lemmy.zip
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      1 day ago

      Along with the Omanis, they’re some of the less odious of the Gulfies. Do Abu Dhabi or Dubai first. And Sharjah is just hoping nobody notices they’re there.

    • GuyFawkesV@lemmy.world
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      3 days ago

      No, about 24 hours ago would’ve been an awesome time. Now it’s just folks following (legal) orders to move a plane who don’t deserve it.

      • ShredderFeederA
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        3 days ago

        I read that he’s taking the new jet from the UK home… I say put it down where the titanic went down. Perfect.