As replacements for Air Force One, the planes used to transport the presidents of the United States, are running late, President Donald Trump might have found another solution allowing him to travel in style. The solution involves a $400 million gift from Qatar and raises several ethical questions.
According to CNN, the Trump administration is planning to accept a luxury plane gifted by the Qatari royal family. The aircraft would then be retrofitted and used as Air Force One during the president’s second term. On Sunday 11 May, Trump confirmed the Defence Department was planning to accept the gift “in a very public and transparent transaction”.
Currently, two Air Force Ones are being used by the presidents of the United States. They have been in the air since 1987 and are modified Boeing 747-8s, known as the VC-25B. Since the planes are getting older, the US Air Force has ordered replacements multiple years ago but delays at Boeing are causing issues and the new planes might not be put to use before 2029. Even though the contract initially was meant to bring in $3.9 billion for Boeing, the manufacturer has already reported $2.5 billion in losses.
BREAKING: CORRUPTION IN PLAIN SITE!
— Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) May 11, 2025
President Trump is reportedly accepting a gift (a bribe?) of a super luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet from the royal family of Qatar that he will use as the new Air Force One.
THIS IS BRIBERY IN PLAIN SITE!
Remember when he encouraged the… pic.twitter.com/UEf1orYVTD
Retrofitting and other alterations
Donald Trump has been known to have issues with the Air Force One and in February 2025, he even toured a private Boeing 747-8 in Palm Beach, showing he was looking to replace the Air Force One. That aircraft had previously been operated by the Qatar Amiri Flight and was luxuriously equipped.
“I’m not happy with the fact that it’s taking Boeing so long. I would not consider Airbus over Boeing. But I could buy that one that was used, and convert it. I could buy one from another country, perhaps,” Trump said at the time.
As the royal family of Qatar has offered to gift its 13-year-old super luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet to the Department of Defence, Trump’s wish might actually become a reality.
“The possible transfer of an aircraft for temporary use as Air Force One is currently under consideration between Qatar’s Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense, but the matter remains under review by the respective legal departments, and no decision has been made,” Ali Al-Ansari, Qatar’s media attaché to the US, said in a statement on Sunday 11 May.
If the deal went through, the plane would need to be retrofitted in order to make it fit as an Air Force One aircraft. According to Richard Aboulafia, managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory, an aerospace consulting firm, that is not exactly an easy task. The plane would not just need to be torn apart out of safety concerns from the Secret Service, but the Air Force One also needs to be adapted to make it able to protect travellers against missile attacks and resist the shock waves of a nuclear blast. Moreover, encrypted communications need to be assured and it should be possible to manage the military and federal government from aboard.
US @RepRitchie Torres (D-NY) letter of 11 May 2025 to 3 US Govt officials:
— Press Media (@PressMediaX) May 12, 2025
Can Donald J. Trump accept a $400 million Boeing 747-8 airplane bribery gift from Qatar?
Can the Trump Family receive tens of millions of dollars in interest from $2 billion deposits of a foreign govt? pic.twitter.com/UiByNzR1HC
Ethical concerns arise
Safety concerns aside, the possibility of a $400 million gift from a foreign royal family causes multiple ethical concerns. The unprecedented move is causing quite a lot of criticism, both from democrats and his own supporters.
“Nothing says ‘America First’ like Air Force One, brought to you by Qatar. It’s not just bribery, it’s premium foreign influence with extra legroom,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement.
According to Jordan Libowitz, spokesperson for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, presidents usually follow a rigorous playbook to make sure they stay in line with the Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause. This bans foreign payments to a sitting US president. However, Qatar officials consider it to be a gift from the Qatari Ministry of Defense to the Pentagon, meaning it would be a government-to-government transaction and not a personal one.
“Any gift given by a foreign government is always accepted in full compliance with all applicable laws. President Trump’s Administration is committed to full transparency,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to ABC News.
Trump is who he is. He’d sell our most sensitive intelligence to our enemies if he could personally profit from it. Of course Trump will accept a $400 million luxury jet from Qatar. Trump is a traitor. But here’s what’s worse. No Republican will say a thing. None of them will.👇 pic.twitter.com/3olL98mFpZ
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) May 12, 2025
That being said, a person familiar with the subject told CNN the plane would eventually be donated to Trump’s presidential library when he leaves office, which would mean he could continue to use it afterwards. According to Kathleen Clark, a government ethics expert at Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, the federal government is thus a simple pass-through for a personal gift to Trump.
ABC News sources said lawyers for the White House counsel’s office and the Department of Justice have drafted an analysis for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in which they conclude it would be legal for the Department of Defense to accept the plane as a gift. Moreover, they even state turning it over to the Trump library would not violate the laws against bribery or the emoluments clause. The president’s actions during his first term, during which he illegally profited from his business ventures while in public office, already caused legal disputes concerning the emoluments clause. The Supreme Court eventually dismissed the cases in 2021 as Trump was no longer in office.
