Avelo Airlines caved to radical activists and quit flying deportation flights six months ago.
Now Trump is making sure that never happens again.
DHS just announced it is building its own government-owned fleet of planes – and the Left has no one left to pressure.
Activists Thought They Won When Avelo Quit
The mob celebrated in January when Avelo Airlines shut down its deportation contract with DHS.
They organized boycotts, staged airport protests, and flooded the airline with fake job applications until the pressure became too much.
Avelo pulled out on January 27 and closed its Arizona hub.
Democrats called it a victory for "immigrant families."
What they actually did was hand Trump the blueprint for something far more powerful.
Because when a private company folds under activist pressure, the answer isn't to find another private company.
https://twitter.com/WesternJournalX/status/2076686036034593217?s=20
The answer is to stop depending on private companies altogether.
That is exactly what DHS just decided to do.
The department is now seeking a contractor to operate a government-owned fleet of nine aircraft – seven Boeing 737-700s and two Gulfstream 650ERs – running 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
No airline CEO to harass.
No boycott to organize.
No flight attendants' union to pressure.
Just federal assets doing the job the American people voted for.
The Numbers Behind the Fleet
DHS officials under Kristi Noem first started buying aircraft this spring – including six Boeing 737s acquired from Avelo itself for roughly $140 million.
The irony is almost too good.
The same planes the activists drove out of the deportation business now belong to the United States government.
DHS says the move will save taxpayers $280 million over time by eliminating the broker-to-subcontractor model that drives up charter costs.
Right now, taxpayer dollars flow through a prime contractor who then farms the actual flights out to whoever has a plane available.
Every link in that chain costs money.
https://twitter.com/DjsAviation/status/2076141003367456866?s=20
A government-owned fleet eliminates the chain entirely.
New Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin reviewed the program after replacing Noem in March and kept it moving forward.
"We anticipate we will be able to integrate these planes into our deportation efforts in the coming weeks," a DHS spokesperson confirmed.
The fleet will handle deportation flights, voluntary repatriation, crisis response, and medical evacuation – all under one government roof with no outside company to squeeze.
Connecticut's Attorney General Celebrated Too Soon
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong called Avelo's exit a win against Trump's "cruel and reckless deportation program."
New York state legislators issued a joint press release taking credit for pressuring the airline out of the business.
A Delaware state senator declared it a "moral stand" and said his state would "not be complicit."
They thought they had found the formula.
Find a private company dependent on public goodwill.
Apply maximum pressure – boycotts, fake job applications, airport protests, state legislation threatening tax incentives – until it breaks.
Then move to the next company and do it again.
It worked against Avelo.
They were already targeting GlobalX.
What none of them accounted for was Trump buying Avelo's own planes and cutting them out of the equation entirely.
https://twitter.com/GigaBeers/status/2076075474988810452?s=20
William Tong cannot boycott a federal aircraft.
New York legislators cannot pull tax incentives from DHS.
The agency already conducted a record 245 removal flights in a single month while still dependent on charters.
With a dedicated government fleet flying 24 hours a day, that number goes up – and nothing Tong, or any activist senator, or any protest coalition can do will slow it down.
"Since Day One, DHS law enforcement has been delivering on President Trump's promise to the American people to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens including murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members, and terrorists," DHS said in a statement. "Our message is clear: if you come to our country illegally, we will find you, we will arrest you, and we will deport you."
That message now comes with its own airline.
Sources:
- "DHS Says Its New Deportation Planes Are Almost Ready for Takeoff," CNN, May 16, 2026.
- "US To Launch Deportation Airline With 737s and Luxury Gulfstreams In 2027," Simple Flying, July 10, 2026.
- "Report: DHS Building Its Own Fleet For Deportation Flights," AirlineGeeks, July 10, 2026.
- "Avelo Airlines to Stop Deportation Flights After Months of Backlash," The Washington Post, January 15, 2026.
- "Avelo Exits ICE Deportation Flight Program," Aerotime, January 8, 2026.
- ICE Air Operations Fact Sheet, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.