DHS Head Allegedly Approved Purchase of 10 Engineless Spirit Airlines Planes That Carrier Did Not Possess
The head of the US Department of Homeland Security reportedly authorized the purchase of Spirit Airlines jets before learning that the carrier did not truly possess the aircraft – and that the planes lacked power plants.
This bizarre anecdote was detailed in a investigation published on Friday, which described how the official and a former campaign manager had recently attempted to purchase ten Boeing 737 planes from Spirit Airlines. Sources with knowledge informed the outlet that the pair planned to use the jets to increase removal flights – and for personal travel.
Those insiders also claimed that ICE officials had cautioned them that buying planes would be significantly costlier than simply increasing current charter agreements.
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Making the situation more complex, the airline, which filed for bankruptcy proceedings for the second time in the summer, did not own the jets and their engines would have had to be acquired independently. The plan has since been halted, according to the investigation.
Meanwhile, Democrats on the House appropriations committee said in the autumn that during this fall's record-long government shutdown, the DHS had already acquired two Gulfstream aircraft for $200 million.
“It has come to our attention that, in the middle of a government shutdown, the United States Coast Guard signed a sole source contract with Gulfstream Aerospace to acquire two new G700 luxury aircraft to support travel for the secretary and the deputy secretary, at a expense to the taxpayer of $200m,” Democratic representatives wrote in a communication to the department.
A department representative told the Journal that parts of its reporting about the aircraft acquisitions were incorrect but declined to offer further details.
The legislature had previously authorized the termed “major immigration bill” in the summer, which dedicates roughly $170 billion for immigration and border-related operations, a sum that makes ICE the most heavily funded law enforcement agency in the federal government.
In the autumn, it was reported that the administration was moving individuals held as part of its deportation agenda in ways that violated their legal rights, often by air.
Leaked data examined from private airline GlobalX outlined the journeys of thousands of immigrants who have been shuttled around the nation before deportation.
