The Department of Homeland Security has reached a new agreement to acquire six Boeing 737 aircraft for deportation operations, a move officials say will significantly cut transportation costs and save taxpayers an estimated $279 million. The deal, valued at nearly $140 million according to sources cited by The Washington Post, is being funded in part through appropriations from the One Big Beautiful Bill passed earlier this year. ICE has traditionally relied on charter flights for removals, but DHS says a dedicated fleet will streamline large-scale operations as the administration intensifies enforcement efforts.
“These planes will allow ICE to operate more effectively, including by using more efficient flight patterns,” Assistant DHS Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin wrote on X. The announcement comes as President Trump pushes to meet his goal of removing one million migrants by year’s end. Border czar Tom Homan said roughly 579,000 deportations have already been carried out, with 66,000 additional migrants currently in detention awaiting processing. The administration’s focus on aggressive immigration restrictions has intensified following the deadly attack on National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., carried out by an Afghan national who entered the U.S. under President Biden’s Operation Allies Welcome program.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has also urged the administration to impose a broader travel ban on countries she claims contribute heavily to criminal activity in the U.S. She told President Trump she would recommend “a full travel ban” on nations sending “killers” and “leeches,” a statement later amplified by both Trump and DHS on social media. The White House previously released a list of 19 countries under full or partial restrictions, and Noem’s proposed additions would expand the total to about 30, according to U.S. officials.
The travel-ban debate comes amid heightened scrutiny of Afghan resettlement efforts. Officials say approximately 100,000 Afghans entered the country through Operation Allies Welcome after the U.S. withdrawal. FBI Director Kash Patel criticized the Biden administration’s vetting failures following the Nov. 26 shooting that left 20-year-old U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom dead and 24-year-old Air National Guard Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe critically injured. He called the incident emblematic of broader security lapses in the immigration system.