Air Force Diverted $934 Million From Nuclear Missile Program to Rush Retrofit of Qatar-Gifted Jet

The New York Times reported on July 28, 2025 that the Air Force quietly transferred $934 million earmarked for the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile modernization program to an unnamed classified project tied to converting Qatar's gifted Boeing 747-8 into a plane suitable for presidential use. The diversion followed weeks of pressure from Trump to accelerate the retrofit. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink had told a Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee in June that the service would redirect Sentinel funds 'excess to need' to help cover the conversion, while insisting the missile program remained 'fully funded' and would not be delayed. Meink separately told Congress cost estimates for the jet conversion were running 'on the order of $1 billion,' far above the administration's original public framing of the jet as a 'free' gift, though he argued many of those costs 'are costs that we'd have experienced anyway.' The Pentagon would not confirm the New York Times figure on the record, citing classification. Democrats and outside budget analysts said funneling money from a nuclear deterrence program to outfit a president's donated luxury jet exemplified the true, hidden cost of a gift Trump had repeatedly described as costing taxpayers nothing.

“I think there has been a number thrown around on the order of $1 billion... [some of those] are costs that we'd have experienced anyway.” — Air Force Secretary Troy Meink testifying to Congress about the true cost of converting the Qatari 747 into Air Force One.