Incident with evacuation slide delays Donald Trump's departure aboard Qatari Boeing

And yet another hassle. An incident delayed Donald Trump's departure on Wednesday aboard the Boeing offered by the Qatari royal family and used as Air Force One. The presidential plane took off late from Andrews Air Force Base, near Washington, after the accidental deployment of an evacuation slide.

While speaking with journalists who accompanied him for a trip to Dallas, Texas, Donald Trump explained that checks were underway. “They’re checking the slide and I think it’ll take 15 minutes,” he said. According to a source close to the matter, the device was “accidentally deployed” by the American Air Force, which operates Air Force One.

A long wait in Marine One

Before his departure, the American president remained for an unusually long time aboard his helicopter (Marine One) after arriving at Andrews Base. The journalists present were able to observe the inflatable slide deployed on one side of the Boeing, while the former presidential plane had also been positioned on the tarmac, with its gangways extended. Asked about the safety of the new device, Donald Trump replied: "Yes, otherwise I wouldn't take it."

The safety level of the Qatari Boeing is the subject of recurring questions. In July, during the NATO summit in Turkey, Donald Trump decided at the last moment to leave the country aboard this aircraft due to threats to his security. After pretending to board the old presidential Boeing, he finally secretly changed planes aboard a supply truck.

New security work to come

Donald Trump recently announced that new work to improve the safety of the Boeing would begin in October and would last longer than expected. The aircraft, already refitted by the American army, was offered last year by the Qatari royal family after criticism from the president concerning the two old copies of Air Force One, in service since 1990. This gift, valued at hundreds of millions of dollars, raised significant ethical and constitutional questions in the United States.

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The Boeing is to be used pending the delivery of two new presidential planes in the coming years. Donald Trump indicated that he then wanted to keep the Qatari device for his future presidential museum. After the checks carried out on Wednesday, Air Force One finally took off for Texas, where the president was to participate in a Republican convention before the midterm legislative elections scheduled for November.