Fact Check: Was Trump's plane swap in Turkey captured in the viral video?

WASHINGTON, DC: Reports about President Donald Trump’s secret transfer to a military jet during last month’s NATO summit in Turkey have drawn attention to the unusual security operation.

Officials reportedly moved Trump to another aircraft to protect him from a credible Iranian threat as White House staff, Secret Service agents, US military personnel and journalists remained on the decoy plane.

Amid the reports, a viral video surfaced claiming to show Trump secretly switching to a military jet. But is the footage real?

Claim: Video of Trump swapping planes in Turkey released

The footage spread online after Laura Loomer shared it on her X page with the caption, "Exclusive video footage of President Trump swapping planes in Turkey to dodge an Iranian assassination plot."

The 45-second clip claimed to show the alleged plane swap. It featured a large white passenger jet with red and gold stripes and a presidential seal. People, including members of the media carrying cameras, boarded the aircraft using airstairs in broad daylight.

The video then showed Donald Trump, wearing a dark blue suit and red tie, walking down the stairs of a similar aircraft. He crossed the tarmac with several agents in dark suits and sunglasses.

The footage later shifted inside what appeared to be a military cargo-style aircraft, with webbed seats, dim lighting and red cargo straps. Trump was shown sitting and smiling among armed soldiers wearing camouflage and tactical gear.

Within hours of being shared, the video received more than 324,000 views and sparked questions about whether the footage was real.

One user asked, "Did anyone from the @WhiteHouse or my president @POTUS approve this new story? And why not come up the next day and tell IRAN that they're going to pay for making my president change planes?"

Fact Check: False, the video is AI-generated

The claim is false. No authentic footage of President Donald Trump secretly swapping planes in Turkey has been released.

It is true that Trump reportedly switched planes after leaving the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, in July 2026. According to reports citing US officials, intelligence indicated a credible threat from Iran or an Iran-linked proxy. The threat reportedly included the possibility of a missile or shoulder-fired attack targeting Trump or Air Force One.

Trump publicly boarded the older VC-25A, commonly known as Air Force One, in front of cameras as a decoy. He then reportedly exited from the opposite side of the aircraft and entered an elevated airport catering truck or container. The vehicle transferred him to a smaller Air Force C-32A, a modified Boeing 757, for a secret flight.

Journalists and some White House staff reportedly remained on the decoy aircraft and were unaware that Trump was no longer on board. No public video of the actual transfer via the catering truck has been released, which is consistent with the covert nature of the operation.

The video Laura Loomer shared and described as “Exclusive video footage” does not show the plane swap. The footage appears to be AI-generated or heavily altered using AI.

Several details in the video raise questions about its authenticity. The aircraft features misspelled or garbled lettering, including “United” appearing incorrectly as something similar to “UNITEED.” The footage also contains visual signs commonly associated with AI-generated content, such as inconsistent clothing, duplicate-looking figures, unnatural movements, and mismatched aircraft details.

The post also received a Community Note stating, "This is AI. Note the misspelling of United on the plane."