WASHINGTON — A former President Donald Trump was returning home from New Orleans for a speech on Saturday when his plane experienced an engine failure. Two people familiar with the matter said that the aircraft turned around and made an emergency landing.
One person said that Trump was returning home to Palm Beach, Florida on a plane he borrowed from a Republican donor. This confirmed a report in The Washington Post.
Trump spoke to a group at the Four Seasons Hotel, New Orleans, of Republican National Committee’s top fundraisers before the flight was aborted. Trump made repeated, baseless claims about the 2020 election and criticised President Joe Biden’s handling regarding Russia’s invasion in Ukraine.
According to a person familiar with the matter, the plane flew approximately 75 miles before it retraced its course and made an emergency landing at the New Orleans airport. Trump was able to return home safely aboard a plane donated by another donor.
Trump had reservations about air travel safety during his presidency.
He tweeted in 2019 that planes were becoming too complicated and that pilots weren’t needed anymore. The tweet followed the tragic crash of an Ethiopian Airlines flight, which killed 157 passengers.
