President Donald Trump gestures as he boards Air Force One as he leaves Washington for Switzerland on Jan. 20, 2026, in Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
By Joe Saunders January 21, 2026 at 7:41am
Even the leader of the free world faces flight delays sometimes.
Air Force One, the Boeing 747 flying President Donald Trump to a conference in Switzerland, was forced to turn back to base Tuesday night over what the White House described as a “minor electrical issue,” according to CNN.
After landing back at Joint Base Andrews about 11:00 p.m., Trump was once more in the air in a backup jet about an hour later.
The president landed safely in Zurich just before 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time, Fox News reported.
NEW: President Trump lands safely in Switzerland en route to the World Economic Forum after Air Force One was delayed due to a “minor electrical issue” shortly after takeoff. pic.twitter.com/WMgoOWfBmE
— Fox News (@FoxNews) January 21, 2026
Trump is attending the World Economic Forum in Davos. As a gathering of government and corporate leaders with a generally leftist bent, it’s not always a friendly environment for a Republican president — especially a Republican president named Donald Trump.
Last year, shortly after his inauguration, Trump addressed the forum virtually, declaring that, “Under the Trump administration, there will be no better place on Earth to create jobs, build factories, or grow a company than right here in the good old USA.”
On his last visit to the forum as president, in January 2020, Trump used the occasion to tout the progress of the American economy under his watch.
The fact that Trump’s flight was interrupted in such an unexpected way wasn’t a great start to his return.
According to CNN, a scrambling staff was forced to transfer baggage, food, and other accoutrements of a presidential trip — like reporters — from one massive jet to another to get Trump back on the journey.
WATCH: President Trump stepped off Air Force One tonight at Joint Base Andrews and is now en route to the White House.pic.twitter.com/viV5XMQQSl
— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) January 20, 2026
The snafu was also likely to spur Trump’s efforts to get the presidential travel fleet replaced.
The current jets have been in service for 35 years, according to CNN.
Boeing was supposed to deliver a new generation in 2022, but production delays have gotten in the way, CNN reported.
The jets are now due for delivery in 2028.
The Air Force is also purchasing Boeing jets from the German carrier Lufthansa for presidential travel, according to CNN.
And then there’s the jet the government of Qatar gave to Trump for use as Air Force One that is being modified for presidential service.
That jet “is sounding much better,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt joked with reporters during Tuesday night’s delay, according to The Hill.
But the show must go on.
Joe has spent more than 30 years as a reporter, copy editor and metro desk editor in newsrooms in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Florida. He’s been with Liftable Media since 2015.
Joe has spent more than 30 years as a reporter, copy editor and metro editor in newsrooms in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Florida. He’s been with Liftable Media since 2015. Largely a product of Catholic schools, who discovered Ayn Rand in college, Joe is a lifelong newspaperman who learned enough about the trade to be skeptical of every word ever written. He was also lucky enough to have a job that didn’t need a printing press to do it.
Birthplace
Philadelphia
Nationality
American
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