WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (Reuters) – President-elect Donald Trump headed to Washington on Saturday ahead of his inauguration in a U.S. military aircraft purchased by U.S. President Joe Biden, as the outgoing president stressed adherence to traditional transition norms.
Trump will arrive in Washington on Saturday night for a celebration to mark his return to office on Monday.
For the occasion, he is ditching his navy and the crimson “Trump Force One” he often flies in favor of the government plane that Biden is sending to Florida. Biden has stressed to his officials that they must work with Trump’s transition team, a stark contrast to the last transition when Trump refused to attend the inauguration or acknowledge Biden’s victory.
Both planes landed on the tarmac at Palm Beach International Airport before Trump’s departure on Saturday. Trump’s son Eric and Eric’s wife Lara boarded the private plane.
For his less than three-hour flight to Dulles International Airport in Washington, Trump will fly in a specially configured Boeing (NYSE: ) 757-200 in the trademark blue and white colors emblazoned with “United States of America.”
His daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner were spotted boarding that plane on Saturday afternoon.
It is the same model aircraft that is called Air Force Two when flown by the vice president, but is also used by the first lady, cabinet members and other senior officials.
It is customary for newly elected presidents to take such a government-provided plane to their inauguration, although Biden did not.
In 2021, Biden planned to arrive by train, but the plan was canceled after the Secret Service raised security concerns after thousands of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 in an attempt to reverse his election defeat.
The Trump administration did not offer the plane and Biden ended up taking a private jet to Washington, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Photos from Trump’s arrival in the Washington area in 2017 to take office for his first term showed him using a similar American plane at the time.
The White House and the US Air Force were not immediately available for comment.
