US President Donald Trump faced a delay departing for Texas on Wednesday when an emergency evacuation slide accidentally deployed on his aircraft, the Qatari-gifted Boeing currently serving as Air Force One.
The incident occurred at Joint Base Andrews, the military facility in Maryland located just outside Washington that serves as the home base for the presidential airlift fleet. A source close to the matter said the US Air Force, which operates the aircraft, accidentally deployed the slide.
Trump waited for an unusually long period aboard Marine One, the US Marine Corps helicopter used to transport the president on short trips from the White House, after arriving at the base.
Speaking to reporters travelling with him to Dallas, the president said crews were inspecting the slide and estimated the delay would last about 15 minutes. Asked whether he felt secure flying on the Qatari aircraft, Trump said he would not use the plane if he did not consider it safe.
Journalists at the base saw the inflatable evacuation slide extending from one side of the aircraft. Ground crews had also positioned one of the former presidential aircraft nearby on the tarmac with its boarding stairs extended as a potential backup.
Security concerns and upgrades
The security of the gifted Boeing has been a recurring issue for the administration. In July, during a NATO summit in Turkey, Trump abandoned plans to fly out on the aircraft at the last minute because of unspecified security threats. In a complex decoy operation, he appeared to board the older presidential plane before secretly transferring to another aircraft using a catering supply truck.
The president recently announced that the Boeing will undergo further security modifications starting in October, a process he said will take longer than initially planned.
The Qatari royal family gifted the heavily customized jet to the United States last year, following Trump's public criticism of the ageing Boeing 747s that have operated as Air Force One since the administration of George H.W. Bush in 1990. Any US Air Force aircraft carrying the president adopts the call sign Air Force One.
Constitutional scrutiny
The unprecedented gift, valued at hundreds of millions of dollars, prompted intense ethical and constitutional scrutiny in Washington. The US Constitution's Foreign Emoluments Clause generally prohibits federal officeholders from accepting gifts, payments or titles from foreign states without the explicit consent of Congress.
The administration plans to use the Qatari Boeing as an interim presidential aircraft until two newly built Boeing planes are delivered to the military in the coming years. Trump has indicated he intends to keep the Qatari aircraft for display at his future presidential library and museum once its service ends.
Following Wednesday's checks on the tarmac, the aircraft took off for Dallas. Trump was scheduled to attend a Republican Party convention in the city ahead of November's midterm elections, which will determine control of the US Congress for the second half of his term.
