Tech

Trump’s jet malfunctioned—its replacement appears to have been owned by Jeffrey Epstein

Photo of Mikael Thalen

Mikael Thalen

Donald Trump with white jet background

A viral post on Reddit claims that former President Donald Trump recently flew on a private jet once owned by deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

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The post, shared on the r/pics subreddit on Sunday, alleges that a Gulfstream G550 featuring a Trump 2024 logo landed at a small airport in Aspen, Colorado.

Records indicate that an aviation company, according to Reddit user u/shiruken, bought the plane from an LLC linked to Epstein in February 2021. The Reddit user says they traced the plane’s history through its tail number 550GP and its serial number 5173.

“This aircraft’s old designation was N212JE (note the matching serial number) and was previously owned by Jeffrey Epstein (note the last two letters of the tail number),” they wrote. “The registration history shows it was owned by Epstein’s Plan D, LLC in the U.S. Virgin Islands before being transferred to N550GP, LLC in February 2021. The tail number was subsequently changed to N550GP in July 2021.”

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The claim quickly exploded online.

The Reddit post was amplified further after the “Harris | Walz War Room,” an unaffiliated campaign account run by an “Independent Grassroots organization dedicated to electing Kamala Harris for President of the United States” shared it on X.

“Is anyone going to ask Donald why he was flying on Jeffrey Epstein’s plane on Saturday?” the account asked.

Did Trump fly on Epstein’s jet this weekend?

The origins of the photo aren’t exactly clear. According to u/shiruken, the photo was first posted by the redditor u/ChuckBarley. Neither account responded to inquiries sent by the Daily Dot.

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The plane, which is not the infamous “Lolita Express,” made headlines in 2020 after going on sale for $16.9 million. Flight logs from the Lolita Express reveal Trump previously flew on it.

Further analysis indicates that the California-based company Threshold Aviation Group currently operates it for charter. It remains unclear when the plane had the Trump 2024 logo added.

The plane’s recent travel itinerary, as outlined by u/shiruken, also appears to line up with Trump’s schedule.

“According to Flight Aware (screenshot), it was dispatched to Bozeman, MT on Friday, presumably after Trump’s personal plane experienced mechanical issues,” the user added, noting Trump’s plane recently had to make an emergency landing. “The plane’s route aligns with Trump’s high-profile fundraising events on Saturday in Jackson Hole and Aspen with fossil fuel tycoons and investment executives.”

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The thread goes on to highlight an Instagram story from the Aspen airport on Saturday. It clearly shows the plane with the Trump campaign logo.

A report in the Aspen Daily News says Trump flew into the town on the jet. It includes a photo of the jet with the tail number visible.

The Daily Dot reached out over email to the Threshold Aviation Group to inquire whether they owned or operated the plane in question and to confirm Epstein’s previous ownership. The group did immediately respond. An email sent to the Trump campaign also went unanswered.

The Air Current, an outlet that provides, according to its X bio, “data-driven reporting & analysis on the business, technology, and strategy of flying,” stated on Monday that it confirmed that Epstein previously owned the plane used by Trump.

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It remains unclear if Trump or anyone on his campaign team was aware of the plane’s history, given it seems to have merely been an emergency replacement.


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