Democrats say potential Qatari ‘gift’ of a new Air Force One raises ‘serious’ concerns

A model of the proposed paint scheme of the next generation of Air Force One is on display during a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the Oval Office of the White House June 20, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s plan to “temporarily” transform a Boeing 747 originally owned by Qatar’s royal family into a new Air Force One plane came under fire from congressional Democrats today as a “serious” potential conflict of interest and national security risk, with some vowing to take action against the move.

On Sunday, multiple news outlets reported the Trump administration planned to accept a 747 as a gift from the Qatari government and turn it into a presidential transport aircraft that could be flown by Trump during his current term. The arrangement, sources told The New York Times, would allow the administration to transfer ownership of the aircraft to Trump’s presidential library after he leaves office — potentially leaving the door open for Trump to use the plane for personal use after his presidency.

While the Qatari government said no final decision had been made, Trump appeared to confirm the outlines of the plan in a Sunday post on Truth Social, stating that “the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40 year old Air Force One.” The president was poised to formally announce the gift during his trip to Qatar this week, ABC News reported on Sunday.

Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that Trump accepting an 747 from Qatar without the consent of Congress would be a “clear violation” of the Emoluments Clause, a provision in the US Constitution prohibiting federal officials from accepting gifts or financial benefits from any foreign state without congressional approval.

“Even more alarming is the suggestion that this aircraft could be used as Air Force One, which would pose immense counterintelligence risks by granting a foreign nation potential access to sensitive systems and communications,” Reed said.

Connecticut Rep. Joe Courtney, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services seapower and projection forces subcommittee, which provides oversight of the Air Force One program, said the plan would be “completely unnecessary,” given a statement from a top Air Force acquisition official last week that the VC-25B program is on a path for a 2027 delivery.

“It is important to remember that Air Force One is not just some gold-plated luxury jet,” Courtney said. “It requires extensive, advanced security and communications capabilities. If President Trump chooses to go down this path, it would present significant, needless cost and delay issues for retrofitting the Qatari plane and distract the Air Force’s efforts speed up delivery of the actual new Air Force One fleet.”

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, a former Navy pilot who is the ranking Democrat on SASC’s air and land subcommittee, said it raises “serious counterintelligence concerns.”

“Every inch of this plane would need to be secured and upgraded to meet the standards that protect the President’s conversations and our national security,” he said. “We’re talking about sophisticated sensors, encrypted communications, missile defense systems, and secure electronics that must be hardened against cyber and other threats.”

Several Democratic senators indicated they could use legislative measures to try to thwart the deal from taking place.

Sens. Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Chris Coons of Delaware, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Chris Murphy of Connecticut, all members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, stated that they “will ask the Senate to reiterate a basic principle” that no public official uses their office for personal gain. (A senate aide confirmed to Breaking Defense that Schatz plans to introduce a resolution condemning Trump’s plan.)

“Any president who accepts this kind of gift, valued at $400 million, from a foreign government creates a clear conflict of interest, raises serious national security questions, invites foreign influence, and undermines public trust in our government,” the senators said in a joint statement.

Murphy added in posts on X that he would seek to block arms sales to any nation seeking to enrich Trump’s personal ventures, specifically calling out Qatar’s 747 gift and the United Arab Emirates’ investment in a Trump cryptocurrency.

“Normally, arms sales go forward without a vote,” he wrote. ” But any Senator can object and force a full debate and Senate vote. I will do that for any military deal with a nation that is paying off Trump personally.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York sent a letter on Sunday to the Defense Department inspector general, Government Accountability Office, and US Office of Government Ethics requesting that the organizations conduct investigations into the transfer.

When asked today about concerns the jet represents a personal gift, Trump insisted it was a gift not to him but to the Department of Defense and said, “They’re giving us a free jet. I could say no, no, no, don’t give us — I want to pay you $1 billion or $400 million or whatever it is — or I could say, ‘Thank you very much,’ you know?”

Questions about the Qatari plan come amidst a larger push from the Trump administration to receive the first of two new presidential transport planes from Boeing ahead of 2029 — an effort that has involved billionaire Elon Musk working with the aerospace giant to find cost and schedule-saving solutions. 

Darlene Costello, who is performing the duties of the Air Force’s acquisition czar, told a House panel last week that Boeing believes the first VC-25B could be delivered as early as 2027 if current technical requirements were further relaxed.

Since receiving a $3.9 billion fixed-price contract for VC-25B, Boeing has racked up billions in cost overruns on the program — which it is obligated to pay out of pocket — as it wrestles numerous technical hurdles involved in making the extensive structural modifications and mission systems upgrades needed to turn a 747 from a jumbo jetliner into a hardened military command post.

CNBC reported earlier this month that L3Harris was working with the US government to modify the Qatari jet, but it remains unclear how extensively it would need to be changed.

One senior US official told the New York Times that the hope is for the modified Qatari jet to be delivered by the end of the year — a timeline that likely precludes substantial structural modifications to the plane. Other limiting factors include the time needed to put L3Harris on contract and an unclear path for transferring funding to the new development effort. L3Harris declined to comment for this report.

Such technical concerns were raised by Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who served alongside US troops in Iraq. In a thread on X, she said the Qatari aircraft would be “incredibly vulnerable” to bugs, tracking devices and other spy equipment, noting that Qatar would have had access to the aircraft during its production stages.

“Remember the exploding beepers?” she asked in reference to a purported Israeli sabotage operation targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon. “Having access during the production of such a sensitive asset can have real consequences.”

UPDATED at 5/12/25 at 5:10 p.m. to include additional comments from lawmakers.