The Pentagon Stripped the Former Air Force Secretary's Clearance Over Air Force One. He Says Nobody Will Tell Him What He Said.

The Pentagon on Friday revoked former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall's eligibility to access classified information and barred him from holding "any sensitive position," accusing him of disclosing sensitive details about Air Force One's capabilities to the press.

"This action follows his unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Air Force One's capabilities to a media outlet," Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell wrote in a social media post announcing the decision. "Safeguarding classified information is a non-negotiable duty. Those who violate that trust forfeit the privilege of access and any role requiring it." Parnell did not name the outlet, did not say what specific information Kendall was alleged to have revealed, and did not say whether Kendall was being referred for prosecution. The Pentagon declined to provide further detail.

Kendall, who led the Air Force from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden after decades in national security work, said he had no idea what he was being accused of. "I've always been extremely careful to not say anything classified, and as far as I know I have not," he told The Associated Press late Friday, calling himself "completely mystified." He added: "No one has said anything to me about what I'm asserted to have revealed and I can't imagine what it could be." Kendall said he had been comfortable speaking on the record with reporters and on national television about the Qatari 747 precisely because he was confident he had disclosed nothing classified.

The revocation follows reporting last month, including by The New York Times, on security gaps in the new Qatari-donated Air Force One — chiefly that it lacks the advanced antimissile defenses of the aircraft it replaced. Kendall was quoted in that article saying the retrofit window would not have been long enough for "all the normal Air Force One modifications," and expressing surprise that the plane was being flown outside the United States. The jet underwent a $400 million retrofit before entering service. President Trump flew it to Turkey last month for the NATO summit but returned on an older Air Force One after U.S. officials detected what they described to CBS News as a credible plot to fire a missile at the aircraft. Trump publicly denied the swap was driven by security concerns, though he acknowledged he is under threat "all the time" and is Iran's "No. 1" target. The White House later said he would keep using the older plane while the Qatari jet receives roughly a month of additional upgrades in the fall.

The Air Force has maintained that the rapid conversion was carried out "without accepting any risk regarding security, safety, or secure communications," while also acknowledging that several highly complex engineering modifications standard on the U.S.-built replacement aircraft were deliberately left out. The service has confirmed it did not widen the aircraft's exit doors or install the multiple built-in stairways found on the older plane.

The Justice Department's response to the same reporting drew its own backlash: prosecutors subpoenaed Times reporters in an attempt to force them to identify their sources, then withdrew the subpoenas last month after a judge criticized the department's legal work. Friday's action against Kendall fits a broader pattern. The administration revoked the clearances of 37 then-current and former national security officials last year, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pulled the security detail and clearance of retired Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley shortly after taking office. What separates this case is the accusation attached to it — normally a charge of unauthorized disclosure travels alongside a criminal referral under the Espionage Act. So far, none has been announced.