Trump's hugely anticipated Davos speech looks set for a delay after Air Force One had to turn around
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
- Air Force One returned to Joint Base Andrews after a "minor electrical issue."
- Scott Bessent said Trump would instead arrive about three hours late.
- Flight-tracking data suggests he could arrive an hour before his speech, but there could be additional delays.
President Donald Trump's highly anticipated Davos speech looks likely to be delayed after Air Force One turned around mid-flight.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters in Davos that Trump would likely arrive about three hours late.
Four hours before he was due to speak onstage, his replacement plane was over the eastern Atlantic Ocean, flight-tracking data shows. The Boeing C-32A was about 1,000 miles from Zurich Airport and traveling at a groundspeed of some 560 miles per hour, per ADS-B Exchange.
If, like many high-profile World Economic Forum attendees, Trump travels by helicopter from Zurich airport, it would take about another 30 to 40 minutes to reach Davos.
That could put him in the Swiss Alps just before 1.30 p.m. CET, and he is scheduled to speak at 2:30 p.m. CET.
However, there will likely be further added time due to security and other preparations.
In a statement to Business Insider, the World Economic Forum said it is "in close contact with the US delegation and will provide an update should there be any changes to the President's schedule or related programme arrangements."
Trump's original flight was forced to turn around on Tuesday night after a "minor electrical issue," according to a White House pool report.
Flight-tracking data showed Air Force One U-turned about 30 minutes into its journey from Joint Base Andrews.
It landed back there about 1 hour and 20 minutes after taking off. The replacement plane departed about an hour later.
Air Force One is usually operated by a Boeing VC-25A, a militarized version of the double-decker 747 airliner. The one Trump originally departed on is over 30 years old.
He's instead flying on a Boeing C-32A, a modified 757 airliner, and usually used as the Vice President's Air Force Two, or when the President is visiting somewhere with too short a runway for the larger jet.
This isn't the first time that Trump's travel plans have been delayed by an aircraft issue.
And at the end of Trump's visit to the UK last September, a helicopter was taking him from the Prime Minister's country house to London Stansted Airport, where Air Force One was parked.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said a "minor hydraulic issue" forced Marine One to divert to London Luton Airport. Another helicopter carried Trump the remaining 25 miles, and he was only delayed about 20 minutes.