Trump's Dallas Trip Briefly Delayed by Air Force One Emergency Slide Deployment
President Trump's flight to Dallas was delayed after an emergency slide deployed on Air Force One; he later said it was a test.
President Donald Trump's departure for a Republican Party convention in Dallas was briefly delayed on Wednesday after an inflatable emergency slide deployed on the new Air Force One aircraft. The plane, a gift from Qatar, was undergoing pre-flight checks at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland when the slide inflated from the front right exit, opposite the door Trump typically uses.
Trump had arrived aboard Marine One and remained on the helicopter for about 20 minutes while Air Force personnel attended to the aircraft. Reporters traveling with him watched the older presidential plane taxi from a hangar and stop nearby, as the newer aircraft had been refurbished at taxpayer expense and painted in red, white, dark blue, and gold.
When Trump finally emerged, he said the slide was being tested, adding, "They want to make sure everything works perfectly." He expressed confidence in the aircraft's safety, stating he would not board if he were not satisfied. White House communications director Steven Cheung confirmed the slide was checked out but did not explain whether it deployed intentionally or by error. The Air Force did not respond to requests for comment.
After the slide was deflated and removed, Trump boarded the plane, which took off and landed safely in Dallas. This incident follows a July episode when Trump secretly used a third Air Force plane to return from a NATO summit in Turkey, citing a security threat, while the Qatari jet was flown separately as a decoy.