A $70m aircraft the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is considering for deportation flights has a luxurious interior and will be used to transport Trump administration officials to engagements in comfort, according to a report published Friday.
NBC News obtained images of the Boeing 737-8 Max plane showing a bedroom with a queen bed, showers, a kitchen, four large flat-screen TVs and a bar.
According to the report, some DHS officials are privately questioning the necessity of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency buying the jet it currently leases. One official told NBC anonymously that the department’s stated plan to use the aircraft alternately as a ferry for senior government members and for deporting immigration detainees was “far-fetched”.
ICE deportation flights usually involve transporting more than 100 shackled detainees at a time, plus guards, medical staff and flight crews. The Boeing plane that DHS reportedly wants to buy, meanwhile, has space for a maximum of 18 passengers and can sleep 14 people, according to marketing materials obtained by NBC.
DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
However, in a statement to NBC, a department spokesperson said there were plans to convert at least part of the plane’s interior, if the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which is under White House control, approved ICE’s $70m request for funding.
“At least one of the bedrooms is currently being converted for seating to prepare the aircraft to meet the demands of its deportation mission set,” the spokesperson said.
“This new plane will serve dual missions – both as ICE deportation flights and for cabinet level travel. This plane flies at 40% cheaper than what the military aircraft flies for ICE deportation flights.”
The person added that the purchase was part of homeland security secretary Kristi Noem’s “broader efforts to clamp down on inefficiencies and save taxpayer dollars”.
Noem, however, has faced previous criticism for use of taxpayer money. In October, she was censured by House Democrats for reportedly spending $200m during the government shutdown on two private Gulfstream jets for herself and deputy DHS secretary, Troy Edgar.
