Mullin and Noem Blame Each Other for Jet Fleet Purchase

Elizabeth Frantz / Reuters An unseemly spat over a $464 million fleet of jets that has been barely used has taken off at the Department of Homeland Security.

At the back end of last year, DHS splurged on 10 airplanes in a rushed procurement process that the department said was vital for enacting President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policy, which had “unusual and compelling urgency.” The fleet included three luxury jets—including then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s notorious Big Beautiful Jet , later used to ferry Trump officials around the world—and seven older 737s.

They have now been left for months in Lake Charles, Louisiana, with an internal document obtained by The New York Times saying DHS lacked the crews to fly them.

DHS sought on Wednesday to distance Noem’s replacement, Markwayne Mullin, from the debacle and place the blame squarely on his predecessor.

A spokesperson told the Daily Beast: “The contract for Daedalus was made and approved by department leadership before Secretary Mullin was sworn in.” They added that DHS “reserves the right to adjust course in an environment with evolving requirements and demands.” In response, a spokeswoman for Noem fired back, telling the Times that the purchase had been “finalized” on Mullin’s watch.

Contracting records reviewed by the Times show that on the day Mullin, 49, officially became DHS secretary, the contract ballooned by $303 million.

The no-competition contract for the fleet was handed to Daedalus Aviation Corporation, a Northern Virginia company chaired by pro-Trump donor William Walters III, which had never held a federal contract, and run by a CEO who the Daily Beast revealed in March had led his previous airline into bankruptcy.

Walters, a former State Department surgeon, had donated $10,000 to a pro-Noem super PAC whose sister nonprofit paid her chief adviser and rumored lover, Corey Lewandowski, 52, more than $265,000 for consulting work.

Walters has insisted the PAC was not openly affiliated with Noem, 54, or Lewandowski when he gave.

The only other donation publicly tied to Walters went to the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute.

The stewardship by another Walters company, Salus Worldwide Solutions, of Trump’s flagship $1 billion Project Homecoming self-deportation scheme has also been beset by allegations of corruption, which he denies.

Originally slated for three years, that contract is currently being recompeted and, according to Daily Beast sister investigations Substack PunchUp , Salus faces being axed after it burned through all its money in year one with debatable results.

The purchase of the planes is now in the crosshairs of Democratic lawmakers.

Senate Appropriations Committee Sens.