DHS Head Allegedly Approved Purchase of 10 Engineless Spirit Airline Aircraft That Airline Didn't Own
The secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security reportedly approved the purchase of Spirit Airlines aircraft before learning that the airline did not actually own the planes – and that the aircraft lacked power plants.
This bizarre incident was contained in a report published on Friday, which recounted how the official and a ex- political strategist had recently attempted to buy ten Boeing 737 planes from Spirit Airlines. People familiar with the situation informed the outlet that the two planned to use the jets to expand removal flights – and for personal travel.
Those sources also claimed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials had warned them that purchasing aircraft would be significantly costlier than simply expanding current charter agreements.
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Making the situation more complex, Spirit, which entered bankruptcy proceedings for the second instance in the summer, did not possess the jets and their power plants would have had to be acquired independently. The plan has since been paused, according to the investigation.
Meanwhile, Democratic lawmakers on the House funding panel said in October that during this season's record-long government shutdown, the DHS had already purchased two Gulfstream jets for $200m.
“It has come to our attention that, in the midst of a government shutdown, the US Coast Guard signed a single-source contract with Gulfstream Aerospace to procure two new G700 luxury jets to support travel for you and the deputy secretary, at a expense to the public of $200 million,” Democratic lawmakers wrote in a communication to the department.
A DHS spokesperson told the Journal that some details in the report about the aircraft acquisitions were inaccurate but declined to provide further details.
Congress had earlier authorized the termed “big, beautiful bill” in the summer, which dedicates roughly $170bn for immigration-related and border-related operations, a sum that makes ICE the most heavily funded law enforcement agency in the US government.
In the autumn, it was reported that the government was moving immigrants detained as part of its deportation agenda in ways that violated their legal rights, often by air.
Leaked data reviewed from private airline GlobalX outlined the journeys of thousands of individuals who have been transported around the country before deportation.
