WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House says President Donald Trump will be returning to an older Air Force One plane for about a month as the new, Qatari-gifted jet undergoes “additional upgrades and enhancements.”
Trump’s use of the new red, white and navy blue aircraft has faced much scrutiny not only because it was gifted by a foreign government, but also because it appears to not be equipped with some of the same missile detection and countermeasure systems as the older jets.
But it came under deeper scrutiny this month when he left the NATO summit in Turkey on the older, baby blue Air Force One and made a previously unscheduled stop at a base in the United Kingdom. Trump then swapped back onto the new Qatari-gifted plane at Royal Air Force Mildenhall.
“The new Air Force One is perfectly safe for the President’s travels, but will receive additional upgrades and enhancements in the fall which will take approximately one month to complete,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday. “During that time, the President will fly on the old Air Force One.”
The statement from Leavitt elaborated on a comment from the president as he returned to Washington on Sunday night, when he told reporters that the new plane will be sent to be “maxed out.”
Trump claimed earlier this month that the stop in the United Kingdom was so U.S. troops at Mildenhall could look at the new plane. He denied to reporters that the jet switch was due to security concerns, although he also said that he has a threat against him “all the time” and is Iran’s “No. 1” target.
President Donald Trump exits Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., after attending the World Cup final soccer match, Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
NEW DELHI (AP) — Supporters of India’s youth-led Cockroach movement said Tuesday they will continue their protest in New Delhi, refusing to leave their sit-in site a day after police used tear gas and batons to disperse thousands of them as they tried to march toward Parliament.
Hundreds of protesters camped at Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site, under heavy police presence, saying they would stay until Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns over alleged failures in India’s examination system.
“We are going to continue our protest,” said Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, which emerged just two months ago.
The movement, drawing students, professionals and families, marks a rare public challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi ’s government in its third term, reviving criticism over its handling of dissent and its use of force to respond to protests.
Also Tuesday, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi and dozens of his Congress party lawmakers staged a sit-in protest outside Modi’s residence, marking a dramatic escalation. Several were seen fastening zip ties around their wrists.
They are there to “demand answers from him for the brutalities against young students yesterday,” Gandhi wrote on X. He urged ”every patriotic Indian who believes that our students should get justice" to join the sit-in.
The Cockroach movement began as a satirical protest but quickly evolved into a nationwide, youth-led movement focused on exam leaks, unemployment and government accountability.
It gained momentum over the weekend after prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk, whose three-week hunger strike has become a symbol of the protests, was forcibly taken to a hospital by police.
Video of police beating protesters and dragging them away spread on social media, fueling public outrage. Footage showed young protesters crying and pleading with officers not to hit them, while others stood their ground and endured blows.
Delhi Police said nearly 180 people were injured, including 118 security personnel and 60 protesters.
Sona Bisht, a 20-year-old student who was part of the protest, said the confrontation strengthened her resolve.
“If the government thinks that doing this with Gen Z, they can stop us, then that won’t happen. We are here talking about education, talking about securing our future. And till the time our demands are not met, we will not move from here,” she said.
After nearly a month of silence, the government made its first apparent move to engage with the protesters Monday, when a senior minister held talks with movement representatives. The outreach failed to ease tensions.
Movement leaders said they wanted action rather than assurances, including Pradhan’s resignation, examination reforms and compensation for families of students who died by suicide after alleged exam irregularities.
Dipke accused authorities of breaking their word, saying police resorted to a baton charge after protesters were invited for talks.
Rights group Amnesty International said in a statement late Monday that the police action showed “how peaceful dissent is being suppressed in India," noting that the right to freedom of peaceful assembly is recognized under the Indian constitution.
More people have joined the movement after seeing the confrontation.
Rabina Kashyap, a 26-year-old working professional, said she joined the protest on Tuesday.
“I have nothing to do with this protest," she said. “But this is India, this is my country, and these are my people. So I will stand by them.”
Associated Press video journalist Piyush Nagpal contributed to this report.
India's opposition Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, center, with his hands tied, participates in a sit-in protest with his sister and lawmaker Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, center right, outside the residence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Shekhar Yadav)
Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party scuffle with police as they attempt to march toward India's Parliament, demanding the resignation of the education minister, in New Delhi, Monday, July 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Vipin)
Security officers stand guard at the camping site of the Cockroach Janta Party at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Shekhar Yadav)
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, sits by a portrait of hunger-striking activist Sonam Wangchuk during a protest in New Delhi, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Shekhar Yadav)
A supporter of the Cockroach Janta Party holds posters of Bhagat Singh, an Indian revolutionary freedom fighter, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Shekhar Yadav)
Supporters gather at the camping site of the Cockroach Janta Party at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Shekhar Yadav)
