President Donald Trump’s departure for the Republican midterm convention in Dallas on Wednesday is briefly delayed after an emergency inflatable slide deploys on a Qatar-gifted Boeing 747 used as Air Force One. Multiple outlets report the slide activates while the aircraft is parked on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews, and ground crews remove or address the issue before the president boards.
Trump tells reporters the slide is being checked and says he is confident the plane is safe. One report says the check takes about 15 minutes; others describe the delay as brief and note that Trump boards after the situation is handled. The Hill specifies that the slide inflates from a door on the right-hand side of the aircraft. Some outlets also note the slide appears to deploy accidentally shortly before Trump was scheduled to board.
The coverage generally aligns on what happened and when, with differences mainly in how they describe timing details and the mechanics of where the slide deploys. All accounts frame the incident as a temporary operational setback rather than an injury or broader aviation emergency.
