State Department uses Patriots team plane to evacuate Americans from Middle East

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ANew England Patriotsplane was used by the State Department as part of its efforts to move Americans out of the Middle East as the U.S.-Israeli joint military campaign against Iran entered its seventh day.

Dylan Johnson, the assistant secretary of state for global public affairs, posted a photo on X showing Americans boarding a charter flight out of theMiddle East.

The plane, displaying the Patriots logo and colors, landed in Washington, D.C., Friday morning, according to the State Department.

Patriots plane used to transfer Americans

�encourage” the charter company that operates the team planes “to use them for missions like this and other humanitarian and national interest type missions” when the planes are not being used by the team. (State Department via X)

New England Patriots plane parked at Logan International Airport in Boston

The New England Patriots’ team plane delivers N95 masks from Shenzhen, China, to Logan International Airport in Boston April 2, 2020, to help slow the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.(Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

The Associated Press reported Friday that the Patriots plane was the second such flight to land at Dulles International Airport outside Washington.TheNFLteam reportedly did not pay for or arrange the flight.

Johnson said Friday that 24,000 American citizens “have safelyreturned to the United Statesfrom the Middle East” since Feb.28, noting that the figure did not include Americans who have relocated to other countries or are still en route to the U.S.

PresidentDonald Trumpsaid in a Truth Social post Friday that the U.S.is moving “thousands of people” out of the Middle East.

“We are moving thousands of people out of various Countries throughout the Middle East.It is being done quietly, but seamlessly,” he wrote Friday.“The State Department, under Secretary Marco Rubio, is doing a great job!”

President Donald Trump listening during an event in the Indian Treaty Room.

President Donald Trump listens during an event about the Ratepayer Protection Pledge in the Indian Treaty Room of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex Wednesday, March 4, 2026, in Washington.(Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)

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The State Department has urged Americans in need of assistance getting out of the Middle East to call its 24/7 hotline at +1-202-501-4444.

�s Rachel Wolf contributed to this report.

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