U.S. President Donald Trump's Air Force One was forced to return to Joint Base Andrews shortly after takeoff at 10:20 p.m. after the crew reported a “minor electrical issue,” the White House said.
The crew returned to the base “out of an abundance of caution”, according to White House secretary Karoline Leavitt.
According to the press pool aboard the aircraft, the light in the press cabin went out briefly after takeoff. The passengers, however, were given no explanation.
Leavitt proceeded to make a joke about a Qatari jet sounding much better right now.
From the press pool on AF1:
— Jonathan Karl (@jonkarl) January 21, 2026
After takeoff, the crew on AF1 identified “a minor electrical issue” and, out of an abundance of caution, we are turning around, landing at Joint Base Andrews and boarding new aircraft, per press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
(Note from your pooler:…
In may the US accepted a luxury Boeing 747 jetliner as a gift from Qatar. The white house has asked the Air Force to rapidly upgrade the gift for use on Air Force One.
Trump was on his way to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
The aircraft landed back at the airport at around 11:07 pm.
The passengers and Trump's crew were then split into groups before they resumed travel to Zurich on two smaller planes. The crew on the plane had to make the transition quickly and were seen pulling dozens of suitcases off the plane and placing them on trucks, CNN reported.
This is not the first time one of Trump's trips has been delayed due to aircraft issues.
In September last year, during a visit to the UK A helicopter the the US president was travelling in had to land at a local airfield after it experienced a hydraulic issue.
There were also other safety incidents involving Air Force One.
Last February, an AF 1 carrying Marco Rubio had to return to Washington because of a mechanical issue.
The two specially configured Boeing planes, which are currently in use by the president, have been used for decades, according to the US Air Force. The air force ones involves two 747-8 aircraft converted into specialised jets with advanced communications systems and defence.
Boeing has been working on replacing the two ageing aircraft with them, but has been beset by delays which could last until 2028.
