Trump's DHS locks in its own Boeing fleet as administration turbocharges deportation crackdown

The Department of Homeland Security inked a deal to purchase a fleet of Boeing planes to carry out the Trump administration's ongoing deportation efforts, Fox News Digital learned. "We are delighted to see the media is highlighting the Trump administration's cost-effective and innovative ways of delivering on the American people's mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens," Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital Wednesday. "This new initiative will save $279 million in taxpayer dollars by allowing ICE to operate more effectively, including by using more efficient flight patterns," she added. The Washington Post first reported Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security signed a deal to purchase six Boeing 737 planes for deportations. The funding is included in the "big, beautiful bill" approved by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump in July that advances his agenda on taxes, immigration, energy, defense and the national debt. Congress approved $170 billion for various border and immigration efforts, the outlet reported. The deal was signed with Daedalus Aviation, a commercial and charter aviation service company established in Virginia in 2024, according to the Post. "President Trump and Secretary Noem are committed to quickly and efficiently getting criminal illegal aliens OUT of our country," McLaughlin added in a statement to Fox News Digital. It is unclear whether the Boeing 737 planes are new or if the U.S. government will handle maintenance of the fleet.