Donald Trump Gets Water Cannon Salute at LaGuardia as He Prepares to Upgrade His Plane

@DanGallo, Donald Trump’s 757 received a water cannon salute as it departed New York LaGuardia airport for Washington DC so that the President Elect could meet with President Obama.

He could have taken the American Airlines Shuttle to Washington National, of course, it used to be the Trump Shuttle.

On the Trump Shuttle, there were gold colored fixtures in the lavatories. On Trump’s 757 the seat belts — and everything else — are gold plated.

Air Force One, on the other hand, features an onboard operating room staffed by a doctor whenever the plane is inflight, a shower, and even a gym.


Copyright: carlosyudica / 123RF Stock Photo

It also features defense technologies:

  • “Mirror-ball defense technology in the wings scramble infrared missile guidance systems”
  • “Electronic countermeasure defense systems…jam enemy radar”
  • “Flares hidden in the wings..to confuse enemy missiles”
  • “The body of the plane can withstand a nuclear blast on the ground”
  • Each exit has its own retractable staircase, to avoid risk of sabotage of whatever staircase would be provided on the ground
  • Windows are armored

So that’ll definitely be an upgrade.

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Comments

  1. Congratulations America. You didn’t elect a President, but rather, you’ve coronated a Chancellor-Fuhrer.

  2. Oh Gary….You are going to draw some hate on this post I bet. Let me bullet a few for you…
    -Oh what a waste of water. He’s killing the planet because as we all know once they spray that water it leaves the earth forever.
    -Why would they honor him like this he is a (fill in the blank).
    -This isn’t travel related which is why I read your blog.
    -Why would Obama even want to meet with Trump.
    I could go on.
    I just wonder how he’ll use the Trump plane once he gets Airforce One and also will he be able to go back to a 757 after having a 747.

  3. Miserable, he’s going to destroy this country. I’m unfriending, deleting, blocking anyone who boasts about Trump. I suspect one surefire way to decrease your readership is to post about him…. #notmypresident.

  4. Gee, isn’t democracy wonderful? Everything is great … until the time your side loses. And then, just like Nick, you run off and join the Whiny Little B!tch Club. #ifnotyourpresidentthengtfo.

  5. I don’t think anyone who reads this blog regularly thinks I’ve been a Donald Trump supporter. But I do think this is interesting, and that the travel-related components are interesting. He has a hotel chain bearing his name. He used to own an airline. He even had an online travel agency (GoTrump.com: the Art of the Travel Deal). Air Force One is interesting as well. I post what’s interesting to me, and I think it’s great when others find it interesting as well.

  6. From a travel point of view, and whatever you think of Trump as a person (when will we be able to stop saying that and just accept the reality?), his choice of aircraft is fascinating. I’m guessing most of us have never traveled on a private plane, let along a large jet turned into a private plane. It’s something we can only dream about when squished into an economy seat somewhere between the baggage hold and the lavatory block.

    As to the gold – no thank you, tacky in the extreme!

  7. As with anything that anyone decides to post on the internet…it is FREE SPEECH. If you don’t like a country where free speech is available to all, then leave the country. Get on a plane or a boat, whichever you prefer, and simply leave. Because of the freedom others have selflessly fought and died for, you have the wonderful freedom to do just that…leave if you don’t like it. We won’t miss you one bit.
    Gary is completely in his “right” to post this if he so chooses.

  8. keep your blog to just travel. you’ll never win by stepping into politics no matter how neutral you want to appear to be.

  9. Not my president either. And you supporters and defendants of that orange bigoted racist misogynist scumbag that will set about destroying this planet GFYourselves and thank you for enabling him. As*holes

  10. Democracy is great, but only if it works out in my favor. Watching the left freak out is so satisfying. Reminds me of the “protests”, flag-burning, etc. by conservatives when BHO was elected. Oh, wait ….

    MAGA.

  11. Piggish white nationalism cannot support a government anywhere since the young people of the United States help bring it down in South Africa 25 years ago.

    The biggest scumbag con man ever to run for office will be Self corrected by our system in 2 and 4 years to the exact extent, he tries to implement his Promised plans. Maybe then The unengaged majority will realize that a democracy is fragile enough it can be destroyed By know nothings politely referred to as no college education. We’ve been to your fly over wasteland and, no, you have nothing to offer the country other than ignorance and morbid obesity.

  12. Gary…..rumor has it you will be invited aboard AirForce Trump right after the first of the year to write a review.

    Please include lots of photos.

  13. While I don’t like the person Trump is I need to now get to a place that I can support him…he is the next President of the USA. For all those who lost in this election you need merely to look to Clinton and Obama, they made very wonderful speeches yesterday about coming together. We NEED Trump to succeed whether we like him or not. BTW, I voted for neither of them.

    And quit giving @gary a hard time. Personally, I’m envious that he’s built a nice business out of travel…

  14. wow Greg, maybe you should open your eyes a little bit. You’re the pig. And for all of the people who say he’s “not my president”, did you suddenly wake up yesterday a citizen of a new country? I don’t think so. While I don’t support Trump, and didn’t vote for him, I don’t support your whiny bitchy attitudes. Grow up! Things in this country don’t turn on a dime. Things aren’t going to all of sudden change. And if you don’t like it, then , please, get the hell out of here. And don’t let the main cabin door hit you on the ass on the way out! And don’t come back.

  15. @Brian did you really want to call a career Special Forces commander a whiny bitch, and tell me to get out of your country? Do you like to live dangerously all the time?

  16. Gary, please take this thread down. It is not seriously travel related at all. That is the purpose of the blog and why I read it.

  17. @Robert How is it possible to get to a place where you support denigrating women, denying climate change, implementing racist border control policies, abandoning defense coalitions ,dragging the country into recession by killing trade deals, supporting racial profiling(aka stop and frisk), kicking people out of the country who have been here since infancy , taking away health care from many who need it, and last but not least taking away women’s abortion rights?

  18. Henry I find your referring Trump to what we all know to be the Nazi era repulsive. And frankly it should be removed. American is one thing FREEDOM and the American people has spoken no matter what our beliefs were to the candidates, it;s over move on Henry and do the right then apologize and ask that it be taken down

  19. Gary, travel-related question!

    I saw the plane take-off behind Trump when it was taxiing, so maybe I’m answering my own question here… but I wonder if they start imposing ground holds when he is taking-off/landing as President-Elect? Or maybe that “VIP aircraft activity” treatment doesn’t begin until he’s sworn in?

  20. Hey guys. It’s Gary’s blog.
    Don’t railroad it into rants. You can do that elsewhere. Gary gets to post whatever he wants. And you don’t have to read it. I don’t think I am the only one who would be happy if you ranted elsewhere.

  21. @ Andy, Greg & Nick: Charter members of the Whiny Little Bitch Brigade, we see. #ifnotyourpresidentgtfo.

  22. This post is interesting and travel related. Everyone should be calm down and give him sine time to llead our coup as Hilary said.

  23. Gary, I’m not sick of the Trump stuff. Please keep it up whenever it involves travel.

    I’m sure you’ve posted Obama-related travel stories, and nobody objected to those even though he had his detractors.

  24. Clinton won the popular vote. Little Don won the electoral college.

    More Americans rejected him than voted for him.

    But I wouldn’t expect the trumpanzees to understand this since:
    –they have low levels of intelligence and education
    –they couldn’t figure out how to make it in a global economy
    (hint: start living in reality, get an education, learn about the world)
    –they live in a right-wing bubble of rush, drudge, and breitbart

    PS. In all my decades I’ve never seen such boorish, poor “winners”. Take your worst 5 year old and put 50-60 years on him–without increasing his intelligence, wisdom, or maturity–and you’ve got the typical supporter.

  25. @DiscoPapa that’s a great question and not one I paid attention to in past elections, of course flights of President Elects weren’t usually as obvious and with less media coverage.

  26. He IS going to be your President whether you wanted him or not. Half the country always supports someone that loses, that’s how it works. You get another chance to win in 4 years when your side loses.

    Acting like one guy will ruin everything because you don’t like him is petty as it doesn’t work that way in America.

    Also, this post isn’t about his policies. It’s about his plane, which IS interesting. I’d be interested in some Saudi prince’s aircraft of it were special, too, even if he believes that women shouldn’t drive. His beliefs and the plane are 2 different things.

  27. @ The Truth, you forgot the pesky little issue of Al Gore winning the popular vote but not making it past the Electoral College.

    Which begs the question, were you also a Whiny Little B!tch then or is it a recent phenomenon for you?

  28. @Greg, yes I do, and I’ll tell you again. You are a whiny little bitch. Get the hell out of MY country if HE is not YOUR president. And go fuck yourself while your’re at it!

  29. My tolerance for personal attacks in the comments is waning rapidly and I may have to reconsider my approach to allowing people to make fools of themselves without interference.

  30. After inauguration will Trump’s personal plane be placed in mothballs for four to eight years? One in the White House will he ever even be able to use it?

  31. @JC my guess is that his family will be able to use it (his sons who will run the company), but I would guess that Trump wouldn’t be able to fly on it.

  32. 32 % of US citizens have college degrees, so to be realistic the remainder of the work force must try to keep manufacturing jobs in US- they were thinking of themselves and we “”elite” college grads do the same, computers are taking jobs away from both groups so Trump can do only so much unfortunately.

  33. I can’t wait for them to “gold up” the White House. Gold is such a 1980’s look…no thanks.
    I wonder how much the airspace will be disrupted between Washington DC and New York because they want to go home and spend time in the “gold tower” instead of the White House?!?!

  34. They can never wash clean the creepy grabbing molester who brags about buying Miss Universe so he can go into the changing room to ogle women.

    The GOP elder statesman Colin Powell called him an international pariah. Now we are a pariah nation.

  35. Gary, if you don’t get to visit Trump Force One and do a review for us….let me know, I think I still have some AirForce One swag somewhere in a closet….I threw out the M&Ms cause the ants got inside the package.

  36. It’s always the libs busting out the ad hominems. 🙂

    “GOP elder statesman” Colin Powell. Now that was a funny one!

  37. Thank you Carolynne for the 32% statistic for college grads. Although I have two Masters degrees, I am highly insulted by the notion that only college educated citizens have the intelligence necessary to make an informed decision. Greg, you are pathetic. Special Forces, my a**

  38. I am sick of the smug libs that denigrate “flyover country.” I grew up in NYC and know the type very well. All of those small, successful business owners across the country who employ the vast majority of the population are largely run by people who never completed university. Yes, they certainly have poor judgement. Only the libs get it, right? Get real, it isn’t AT&T or the pharma industry that keeps the country running. Please, smug coastal libs, tell us how many jobs you have created. You push paper, that’s it. The others do the heavy lifting.

    The true ignorance comes from those “educated” folks that think four years of college suddenly produces wisdom and enlightenment. Those people will never possess either.

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