A US Coast Guard aircraft carrying Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin was forced to make an emergency landing on Wednesday after losing one of its engines.
Mullin was travelling from Georgia to Washington, D.C., when the C101, a C-37A Gulfstream V operated by the US Coast Guard, was diverted to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia.
The aircraft’s pilot contacted the airport’s control tower after the right engine failed and requested an immediate landing.
“We just lost our right engine and would like to declare an emergency and immediate landing at DCA,” the pilot said, according to recorded air traffic control audio.
Controllers were also told that 14 people were aboard the aircraft and that it had about 2½ hours of fuel remaining.
Mullin later commended the Coast Guard crew for safely bringing the aircraft down despite the engine failure.
“The United States Coast Guard pilots made the single-engine landing feel routine,” Mullin wrote on X. “No panic, just straight professionalism. After we landed, the pilots told me that was a first for them! We could not have been in better hands.”
The incident has renewed attention on the condition of the Coast Guard’s ageing aircraft, particularly because DHS had previously raised concerns about the C101.
The agency said in 2025 that the aircraft was more than “20 years old, outside of Gulfstream’s service life and well beyond operational usage hours for a corporate aircraft.”
Then-DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin also highlighted wider concerns about the age of Coast Guard equipment.
“Much like the U.S. Coast Guard’s ships that are well beyond their service life and safe operational usage, Coast Guard’s aircraft are, too. The Trump administration is taking action to restore our nation’s finest maritime armed service to a capable fighting force,” McLaughlin said.
The emergency occurred against the backdrop of controversy over DHS spending on new executive aircraft for the Coast Guard.
In 2025, then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem came under criticism after the department acquired two Gulfstream G700 jets for Coast Guard use. The aircraft were estimated to have cost between $172 million and $200 million, despite an initial request of $50 million.
The purchase prompted questions from Democratic lawmakers over whether resources should instead have been directed towards replacing older aircraft used for search-and-rescue operations.
In May 2025, Democratic Reps. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and LaMonica McIver of New Jersey challenged DHS over its aircraft priorities in a letter to Noem.
“We know President Trump has set a high bar for wasteful luxury travel by government officials with his unconstitutional attempt to personally acquire a $400 million jet from a foreign government,” the lawmakers wrote.
“ That does not mean members of his Cabinet must follow suit. Your desire to travel in luxury should not eclipse the need for USCG service members to fly safely and conduct lifesaving missions.”
