On the night of January 20, 2026, what was meant to be a routine presidential flight across the Atlantic turned into an unexpected detour for President Donald Trump and his entourage. Air Force One, the iconic blue-and-white Boeing 747-200B, was less than an hour into its journey from Maryland’s Joint Base Andrews to Zurich Airport when an electrical hiccup forced the crew to turn the aircraft around. The president, en route to address world leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, found himself back on familiar ground before the night was over.
According to UPI, President Trump boarded Air Force One at 9:34 p.m. EDT, accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Homeland Security Adviser Stephen Miller, and several others. The mood was business as usual—until, shortly after takeoff, the crew identified what Leavitt described as “a minor electrical issue.” Out of an abundance of caution, the decision was made to return to Joint Base Andrews. The plane touched down safely at 11:07 p.m., with two replacement aircraft waiting on the tarmac to ensure the president’s journey could resume without further delay.
Journalists traveling with the president reported that the lights in the press cabin briefly flickered out after takeoff, a detail corroborated by BBC. While the incident caused no injuries or panic, it was enough to warrant a change of plans. President Trump, ever the pragmatist, quickly transferred to another aircraft and resumed his journey to Switzerland, arriving in Zurich around 12:40 local time (11:40 GMT) on January 21—nearly three hours behind schedule. The delay, as noted by BBC, threatened to ripple through his tightly packed agenda, including high-stakes meetings with foreign leaders and a reception with business executives.
For the White House, the incident was both a logistical headache and a reminder of the aging Air Force One fleet’s vulnerabilities. The two Boeing 747-200B planes, which have served as presidential transports since 1990, are technological marvels of their era but are now showing their age. As Daily Mail points out, these aircraft have been upgraded over the years, yet the costs of maintaining their aging airframes and engines continue to mount. “The Qatari jet is sounding much better right now,” Leavitt joked to reporters on the ill-fated flight, referencing a luxury Boeing 747-8 donated by Qatar that is currently being retrofitted to serve as a temporary Air Force One. That aircraft is expected to be ready by February 2026.
The push for new presidential planes has spanned three administrations. In 2016, President Barack Obama awarded Boeing an initial contract to develop a new generation of Air Force Ones, recognizing that the current planes were already approaching three decades of service. President Trump, upon taking office, famously balked at the program’s ballooning costs, negotiating the price down with Boeing to $3.9 billion. Even so, delays have plagued the project, with the new VC-25B planes now slated for delivery in 2029 and a revised cost estimate of $5.3 billion, as reported by Daily Mail.
In the meantime, the White House has had to get creative. The Qatari royal family’s donation of a Boeing 747-8, accepted by the Pentagon and currently undergoing security upgrades, is set to bridge the gap until Boeing can deliver the new aircraft. The arrangement has not been without controversy. In May, Washington faced criticism for accepting the $400 million aircraft as an “unconditional” gift, with the U.S. government bearing all retrofitting costs. The White House has maintained that the donation is legal and has pledged to donate the plane to Trump’s presidential library once he leaves office.
Despite the age of the fleet, mechanical problems on Air Force One have been rare. The last notable incidents occurred during George W. Bush’s presidency: in 2006, six tires blew out upon landing in Vietnam, forcing Bush to use a backup Boeing 757 while staff flew on a United Airlines jet, according to CBS News; in 2004, a wing flap malfunctioned on a flight to Tennessee, CNN reported. Going further back, in 1984, President Ronald Reagan’s Boeing 707 lost cabin pressure due to a relay failure in an air vent. The pilot quickly descended to a safer altitude, and the plane landed without further incident in Washington, D.C.
Tuesday night’s electrical issue is a reminder that even the most advanced and secure aircraft aren’t immune to the passage of time or the occasional technical hiccup. For President Trump, the timing could hardly have been more inconvenient. His scheduled speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, set for 14:30 local time (13:30 GMT) on January 21, was still on the books, but the delay threatened to compress his schedule and complicate other planned meetings. As BBC noted, the president had intended to use his speech to press European leaders on his controversial proposal for the U.S. to acquire Greenland—a diplomatic gambit that has already drawn sharp rebukes from Greenland’s leaders, Denmark, and several NATO allies.
“We have to have Greenland,” Trump said on Tuesday, reiterating his belief that the island is essential for U.S. national security. He has not ruled out using military force to secure it, a stance that has only deepened the rift with European leaders. Several countries, including France, Sweden, and Germany, have responded by sending military personnel to Greenland for joint exercises and security operations. In turn, Trump has threatened additional trade tariffs against allies who oppose his plan, turning what was once a far-fetched idea into a simmering diplomatic dispute.
Air Force One, meanwhile, remains a symbol of American prestige and presidential power. Technically, the term refers to any Air Force aircraft carrying the U.S. president, but the two Boeing 747-200Bs have become icons in their own right. With accommodations for 26 crew members and 70 passengers, the planes feature a presidential suite, medical facilities, and a press section—amenities that speak to the complexity and demands of modern presidential travel. Yet, as Tuesday’s events showed, even the most carefully maintained machines can falter, especially as they near the end of their operational lives.
As President Trump continues his whirlwind diplomacy in Davos, the saga of Air Force One’s unexpected return serves as a stark reminder of the challenges facing presidential transport and the high stakes of global leadership. With new jets on the horizon and old ones showing their age, the journey from Maryland to Switzerland was more than just a flight—it was a testament to resilience, adaptation, and the relentless march of time.