
Donald Trump’s big, beautiful new plane from the government of Qatar has arrived – but the US president says it’s too big to be his personal perk.
The problem for the US president is not the smack of impropriety that comes with accepting a luxury 747 jumbo jet from the Gulf state and intended as a replacement Air Force One – Trump has already brushed off any criticism on that front.
Now that it’s arrived in the US, Trump says it’s too big to be his plane. The Qataris have given the president a Boeing 747-8, a stretch model of the jumbo that is more than 18ft longer than the much older 747-200B that flies as the current Air Force One.
“Frankly, it’s much too big,” Trump told reporters during a question-and-answer media session in the Oval Office at the White House on Wednesday afternoon, as he tried to explain why he regarded it as a gift to the nation rather than a perk for him as an individual.