Intelligence information regarding what was described as a "credible" Iranian threat to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump led to the execution of an exceptional security operation during his departure from Turkey last month, in which the U.S. presidential aircraft was used as a decoy, while Trump was secretly transferred aboard another military plane to Britain. According to an investigation published by The Washington Post, the previously undisclosed operation took place on July 8, without the knowledge of journalists and even some White House staffers, who believed they were traveling on the same plane carrying the president. The plan began at Ankara airport in a manner suggesting the trip was proceeding as usual. Trump boarded Air Force One in front of camera lenses—a Boeing 747 bearing the familiar presidential colors. Minutes later, however, the flight path was changed away from the media's view. According to a U.S. official and materials reviewed by The Washington Post, Trump and a number of his aides were secretly moved off the presidential aircraft via an airport catering truck, of the type usually used to transport meals and supplies to planes. The truck's container was raised to a door on the other side of the plane, away from the entrance used by the media, before moving toward a smaller C-32A military aircraft, a modified version of the Boeing 757 used to transport senior U.S. officials. A U.S. official described the presidential plane, on which journalists and some White House staffers remained, as serving as "camouflage" to hide the president's true location. According to the newspaper, the operation came after the detection of a threat linked to Iran that a U.S. official described as credible, while previous reports had indicated that intelligence officials detected a specific threat to carry out an attack against Trump or his plane, necessitating additional security measures. Trump was in Ankara to participate in a NATO summit, and the operation came a night after U.S. forces renewed strikes on Iran under his direction, following the collapse of negotiations between Washington and Tehran to end the months-long war. The plan succeeded in hiding the president's true location from the American public and a number of senior U.S. officials for hours. Secret code and hiding the flight path The camouflage measures did not stop at changing the plane. According to The Washington Post, the C-32A aircraft that flew Trump to Britain used the inconspicuous call sign "Reach 18" or "RCH18", instead of the "Air Force One" call sign associated with the plane the president is on. Nor did public data appear for tracking the military flight, while the old presidential plane continued its journey with staff and journalists on board, taking the call sign "AF1" during the trip, despite Trump not being on it. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth traveled with Trump to Britain on the same military plane, after boarding it separately in an attempt to make the trip look routine. After the planes arrived at Mildenhall Air Base in Britain, Trump reappeared before the cameras stepping off the old presidential plane, even though he had arrived in Britain aboard the C-32A. The newspaper said it is not clear how Trump moved between the two planes after landing, before appearing before the media. After greeting members of the U.S. forces, he boarded the new presidential aircraft that Qatar had gifted to the United States, and returned on it to Washington. Trump: I am first on Iran's "list" During the return flight to Washington, Trump spoke to reporters about the Iranian threat, without revealing the deception operation carried out during his departure from Turkey. When asked why journalists were asked to close the plane's window blinds in Turkey, he pointed to the danger of the trip, and said that he faces a continuous threat to his life and that he is "first" on Iran's "list". For his part, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said there are "many of America's enemies" targeting the president, stressing that the authorities use all available means to deal with these threats. He also defended the security level of the new presidential aircraft. The operation reveals, according to The Washington Post's details, the scale of the security concerns surrounding Trump's movements amid tensions with Iran, to the point of using one of the most famous planes in the world as a camouflage method to hide the president's true location.