President Donald Trump said the Qatar-gifted Air Force One jet was “safe to fly” Wednesday after reporters spotted an emergency slide deployed from the aircraft shortly before his departure from Joint Base Andrews.
Trump said the slide was being checked as part of a routine safety inspection and that it would take about 15 minutes to address.
“They were checking it before, and they just wanted to make sure,” Trump told reporters on the tarmac after arriving aboard Marine One. “So they’ve, I guess, already put it up. They want to make sure everything works perfectly.”
“So they’re checking the slide over here, and I think it’s going to take 15 minutes,” he added. “They were doing a check on the slide, you know, the emergency.”
Asked whether he was sure the aircraft was safe to fly, Trump replied, “Yeah, I am, or I wouldn’t be on it.”
The White House press pool later observed Trump board the aircraft at 2:34 p.m. The reporters also watched the emergency slide as they boarded but did not see anyone descend it.
The incident temporarily delayed Trump’s departure for Dallas, where he is scheduled to address the Republican midterm convention. Reuters reported that Trump remained aboard Marine One for roughly 20 minutes while the slide was checked.
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The incident comes as the Qatari aircraft continues to face scrutiny over its security capabilities. Trump began using the Boeing 747 as a replacement for the aging Air Force One fleet after Qatar donated the aircraft to the United States in 2025. The aircraft underwent modifications for presidential use before Trump first flew aboard it on July 1.
The plane came under particular scrutiny in July after Trump switched to an older Air Force One during his return from a NATO summit in Turkey. U.S. officials later said the Secret Service had advised Trump to use the older aircraft after a credible threat from Iran.