After President Donald Trump accepted a $400 million Boeing 747 from Qatar earlier this year, it looks like Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wants a set of wings of her own.
Last week, the Department of Homeland Security said it planned to purchase new planes. They’re not your typical private jets. The Department of Homeland Security entered into a contract to purchase two US-made Gulfstream G700s for $172 million on Friday, The New York Times reported.
The taxpayer-funded planes will be used by Noem, as well as other high-ranking DHS personnel, said a release put out by the Coast Guard, which is part of DHS. They’re replacing decades-old planes that “experienced 30 days of unplanned maintenance, with six missions requiring unplanned cancellation,” the release said.
It did not address the fact that the Coast Guard took delivery of a new Gulfstream G550 in 2022 for use by Department of Homeland Security senior officials for the same purposes of supervising operations and communicating securely.
“This is a matter of safety and mission readiness,” a spokesperson for the Coast Guard, Sean Plankey, told Business Insider. “It’s well known that senior military officials and cabinet members need secure command and control and rapid long range mobility.”
The purchase, which is more than three times what was originally enumerated in the Coast Guard’s budget and occurred during the government shutdown, has drawn criticism from Democrats. In a letter requesting more information about the source of the funding and purpose of the new jets, Democrats claim that the purchases add up to $200 million.
“While members of the Coast Guard are focused on keeping our seas safe even though many are not getting paid, Secretary Kristi Noem wants to buy hundred million dollar jets,” Congressman Rick Larsen said in a statement. “Secretary Noem: cool your jets and fly commercial.”
The government has long used private planes, including older Gulfstream variants like the G550, for VIP travel. These come with modifications for security, communications, and defense.
However, in the private jet world, the G700 is about more than long flights.
The jet, which began deliveries last year, is the pinnacle of luxury. It’s the newest private jet from Gulfstream on the market.
“It’s the top of the top top tier of private jets in the market,” Doug Gollan, the founder of Private Jet Card Comparison, told Business Insider.
A new one has a list price of $78 million; chartering one costs between $21,000 and $25,000 per hour. Some of the richest people in the world, including Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, are reported to own the model.
The Times reported that DHS is purchasing used ones at an average price of $86 million. It’s unclear where the extra costs come from, but Gollan said it would likely need to be equipped with specialized communication and safety equipment.
For comparison, the Coast Guard previously requested $50 million to replace a Gulfstream G550 it used for government travel.
Each aircraft costs substantially more than the service’s 150-foot-long fast response cutters, used for missions like stopping drug traffickers. While expensive, buying the latest private jet model may make sense.
The acting commandment of the Coast Guard, Adm. Kevin Lunday, said in May that the G550 had “increasingly obsolete” avionics and “increasingly unreliable” communications — though it was still operational.
Gollan said the G550 is dated, and because the plane isn’t made anymore, replacement parts are harder to come by. The G700 is among Gulfstream’s most modern options, flying faster than its predecessor and about 900 miles further. It is also bigger with space for more passengers.
“For the person who sits in the middle seat on American Airlines, it will look lavish,” Gollan said. But for a government official flying to somewhere like Davos? “It’s not out of the ordinary.”
It’s not nearly as large as Air Force One’s Boeing 747, which has 4,000 square feet of space over three levels and includes multiple bedrooms, conference rooms, kitchens, and a medical office. And it doesn’t compare to Trump’s gifted Qatari 747, which is described as a “flying palace” with opulent rooms and gold finishings.
It’s not known what DHS’s G700s will look like inside.
Each jet has a custom interior. They can seat up to 19 people or sleep up to 13, thanks to a combination of convertible loungers, a divan, and a bed. Many of the privately owned ones are outfitted with luxurious materials and include a bedroom and a large kitchen.
Take a look inside some of the G700s Business Insider has toured.
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