Donald Trump sparked major concern after he snubbed the $400m (£294m) Qatari-gifted aircraft, which he used to travel to the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, and then mysteriously boarded his older Air Force One jet to fly from Turkey to England. The unexpected change in plans prompted questions about security fears, as the President confirmed it was a 'dangerous flight.'
Press Conference Exchange
During a press conference on Wednesday, July 9, the US leader was asked: 'What was the security concern that caused us to switch flights?' Trump responded: 'We sent this one in, so that the Air Force base, which is the same exact line.' After getting distracted from the subject and questioning 'a picture,' he added: 'So they came a little bit earlier, and we switched planes.'
Unsatisfied with his answer, the reporter probed: 'So, you're saying there wasn't any concerns?', with Trump responding: 'No, why would there be? Except we sent it a little early.'
Window Blinds Incident
While another unimpressed journalist asked: 'Do you know why they had us close our window blinds?' Trump sternly replied: 'No,' before backtracking with 'you're probably on a dangerous flight because of the sleazebags involved.'
'If they asked you to close your windows, then they're feeling that way. They didn't ask me to close mine; if they did, I would have done it,' he told reporters. 'These are sick people, I didn't know they did that, but I could see something like that.'
Military Strikes on Iran
This came after the president ordered the US military to carry out new attacks on Iranian targets, according to the US Central Command (CENTCOM). They said that the US have started 'additional strikes' after Iran's 'recent unjustified aggression' on civilian crews.
Speaking at the NATO summit held in Turkey on Tuesday, July 6, and Wednesday, Trump said: 'If we make a deal with Iran, I’m not sure that will stick because I found them to be very dishonourable. We hit them very hard last night, very, very hard.' He added that the US will 'probably hit them hard again tonight.'
Worrying Health Signs
In addition, Trump also showed what is considered his most worrying health sign yet after bouts of visible bruising, swelling and spells of falling asleep during important conferences. Fox News aired a concerning clip of the politician at the NATO summit. After his arrival, Turkey’s leader, Recep Erdogan, greets Trump, who appears to wander off unaware of where he is supposed to be, despite the fact that there was a microphone set up for the pair to greet the press.
Erdogan then grabbed his hand to pull him back in the correct direction, completely guiding him. In another clip, which aired later that day, Trump appeared to fall asleep as he and Erdogan sat opposite each other at a press conference. After about 40 seconds, he seems to jolt awake as Erdogan continues speaking.
