When President Trump took a secret flight out of Turkey last month because of an Iranian threat, some of his top officials remained as passengers on the decoy plane, along with the traveling press who were kept in the dark about the situation.
Mr. Trump boarded Air Force One in Ankara in front of the cameras — but he then hid in a catering container and was taken to another plane on which he left the country. White House officials would not say who accompanied him on the secret flight.
But the original plane was carrying passengers including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was also on that plane, along with Stephen Miller, the president’s top domestic policy adviser, and Steven Cheung, the White House communications director.
Mr. Rubio had been aware of the threat, although it was unclear how many of the others were. At least some of the White House staff traveling on the plane were unaware, the officials said, as were the reporters.
A White House spokesman did not respond to an email seeking comment about the discussions that determined who would be on which plane, and who would travel with Mr. Trump. The email also asked for a full list of who traveled on the older Air Force One.
The Washington Post reported on Monday evening, and The New York Times confirmed, that Mr. Trump took a secret flight out of Turkey amid what was seen as a credible threat from Iranian proxies.
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