The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wants to refit four Boeing 737-700s bought for deportation operations for official travel, as lawmakers question a $463.6 million aviation support contract.
A Sept. 9 solicitation seeks new cabin layouts for congressional delegations and senior officials, along with crews and maintenance for the four planes. They belong to a group of seven passenger 737s acquired as part of a larger aircraft deal.
Federal spending records show a $463,638,746 award to Daedalus Aviation Corporation for support of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) removal operations. In an Aug. 25 letter, three senators described the acquisition as 10 aircraft: seven passenger 737s and three business jets. The award is for the overall aviation support contract and does not establish a purchase price for the passenger jets.
Human Rights First said none of the DHS-owned aircraft had operated for ICE Air through September. Its monitor counted 331 removal flights reaching 38 countries and 1,274 domestic transfer flights in September 2026, while contracted carriers continued to serve ICE Air. It counted 224 removal flights in September 2025.
DHS had outlined several possible uses for the fleet in July. A notice seeking information from potential contractors covered seven 737-700s and two Gulfstream aircraft for removals, medical evacuations and senior-official transport. The September solicitation focuses on converting and operating four of the passenger planes.
Bloomberg reported that each of the seven passenger jets had made fewer than five flights since April, citing ADS-B Exchange data. The aircraft have been reported in the Lake Charles, Louisiana, area. A separate tracker found limited flight activity in records through Oct. 19, but said gaps in tracking signals cannot establish a complete flight history.
U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal, Peter Welch and Adam Schiff have asked DHS for purchase, storage and operating costs, as well as a comparison with contracted air service. In their Aug. 25 letter, they said DHS had described the contract as undertaken during former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s tenure. Citing The New York Times, the senators said the contract’s value rose by $303 million on the day Markwayne Mullin was sworn in as homeland security secretary.
In a separate Oct. 8 letter, the senators requested records by Oct. 22. DHS’s solicitation sets Dec. 11 as the anticipated date for the first refitted aircraft to be ready.
