Trump set to receive $400M 'flying palace' gift from Qatar to replace Air Force One, DOJ says it's legal

WASHINGTON, DC: In what could be the priciest gift ever handed to the US by a foreign government, President Donald Trump is getting ready to accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet straight from the royal family of Qatar.

The jet is being described as a "flying palace" that will temporarily serve as Air Force One before eventually becoming a permanent feature of the Trump presidential library.

According to sources who spoke with ABC News, the flashy present is set to be announced next week when Trump touches down in Qatar on his first overseas visit of his second term. But a senior White House official insists that “the gift will not be presented or gifted while the president is in Qatar this week.”

Still, the commander-in-chief didn’t waste any time confirming the deal. In a Sunday night social media post, Trump said his administration was preparing to accept the aircraft in a “very public and transparent transaction” with the Department of Defense.

Trump reportedly toured the opulent jet back in February while it was parked at the West Palm Beach International Airport. Aviation insiders have dubbed it a "flying palace", thanks to its over-the-top luxury fittings.

DOJ says it is 'legally permissible' for Trump admin to take such a gift

Naturally, there are concerns whether it is even legal for Trump — or his foundation — to accept such a lavish gift from a foreign country. The answer seems to be yes. According to sources familiar with the internal deliberations, lawyers from the White House Counsel's Office and the Department of Justice gave the green light.

In fact, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth got a whole legal analysis from the team that determined it’s perfectly okay for the Department of Defense to accept the aircraft now and transfer it to Trump’s library foundation later. 

This is because the gift isn’t tied to any official act, and since it’s going to the Air Force first — and not straight into Trump’s personal hangar— it doesn’t violate the Constitution’s emoluments clause that bans US officials from accepting gifts from foreign powers.

Attorney General Pam Bondi and Trump’s top White House lawyer David Warrington backed the deal, concluding it would be “legally permissible” to make the donation contingent on handing the jet over to Trump’s presidential library foundation by the time he leaves office.

Bondi even prepped a legal memo for the White House counsel’s office last week, at Warrington’s request.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt backed up the administration’s clean-hands approach. “Any gift given by a foreign government is always accepted in full compliance with all applicable laws," she said, adding, “President Trump’s Administration is committed to full transparency.”

Qatar confirms 'temporary use' of its plane as Air Force One

Qatar’s media attache Ali Al-Ansari confirmed that the plane’s transfer for “temporary use” as Air Force One is currently under consideration by both Qatar’s Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense.

First, the 13-year-old aircraft will be handed over to the US Air Force. They’ll retrofit it with all the bells and whistles necessary for a presidential ride — including top-tier comms and security systems — before Trump hops on board.

Then, the real handoff will take place. According to ABC News sources, the plane will be officially transferred to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation no later than January 1, 2029, with all associated costs covered by the US Air Force.

Aviation experts estimate the value of this sky mansion at $400 million - and that’s before the upgrades. The aviation company L3Harris has already been tapped to turn this private jet into a presidential ride, as originally reported by the Wall Street Journal.

As mentioned, Trump called out the Democrats in his Sunday post, accusing them of demanding the administration pay “TOP DOLLAR” for the plane instead of just accepting it as a gift.

Trump is not waiting on Boeing for new Air Force One

Trump has his reasons for going all-in on the Qatar jet. 

Right now, Air Force One relies on two Boeing 747-200s that date all the way back to 1990. The government signed a deal with Boeing in 2018 to replace the aging birds, but that deal has suffered several delays and cost overruns.

As of last year, Boeing said the new planes wouldn’t be ready until 2029 - which is well after Trump’s expected time in office. Of course, that did not sit well with the president.

He immediately pulled in Elon Musk to help push Boeing and the Air Force to speed things up. There was a modest improvement —Boeing’s latest target delivery date is now 2027 — but that’s still not soon enough for the president. 

Trump wants a new plane this year, and Qatar’s royal gift might just fit the bill.

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