U.S. officials told CBS News that American intelligence detected a credible plot by Iranian proxy forces to fire a missile at Air Force One as President Trump departed the 36th NATO Summit in Ankara, Türkiye on July 8, 2026 — first reported by The New York Times. We break down why the Secret Service moved him off the $400 million Qatari-donated Boeing 747-8 and onto the legacy VC-25A (tail numbers 28000 and 29000), what the older aircraft’s defensive suite actually does, why a fighter escort would not have stopped this specific threat, and how the IRGC Quds Force Special External Operations Unit runs plots like this through proxies. Plus the full theater SITREP: Aramco’s Jazan refinery shut down after Houthi strikes, a Greek-crewed Patriot battery intercepting two ballistic missiles at Yanbu, three weeks of coalition drone intercepts over Erbil, and CENTCOM’s fourth day without strikes. Round up: a Romanian F-16 downs a third drone in three days over the Black Sea.
Welcome! I'm Ryan aka "Max Afterburner" I'm a former F-16 Thunderbird Pilot, F-15E Combat Fighter pilot and Commercial Airline Pilot. Join me as we dive into aviation, military tech and casual geopolitics. Did I mention I'm a pilot?Aircraft Flown: Cessna 172, Cessna 182, Cessna T-37, Northrop T-38C Talon, F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16C/D Fighting Falcon, Boeing 737, Airbus A220.While in the USAF I became a subject matter expert on; China, Russia, Iran, North Korea and I share some of my experiences here.
Max Afterburner