Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is pushing for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to purchase, own and operate its own fleet of airplanes to carry out deportations, according to a new report.
The move would mark a shift from ICE's longstanding reliance on chartered aircraft and could significantly increase deportation capacity. The agency has typically chartered eight to 14 planes at a time for deportation flights.
Jason Houser, who served as ICE chief of staff from 2022 to 2023, told NBC News that under the Biden administration the agency deported roughly 15,000 people per month using charter planes. He estimated that if the Trump administration seeks to reach 30,000 to 35,000 removals monthly, "you would need to double the number of planes" or purchase about 30 planes.
Acquiring its own planes would free ICE from competing with other clients for charter availability, but would also mean taking on responsibility for pilots, medics, security staff, and aircraft maintenance. According to aviation experts cited in the report, commercial airliners can cost $80 million to $400 million each. Buying 30 could cost between $2.4 billion and $12 billion.
ICE has chartered just over 1,000 deportation flights through July this year, according to flight tracker Tom Cartwright. Each flight costs about $25,000 per hour, covering aircraft, crew, medical and security staff. Officials consulted by NBC News noted that ICE sometimes pays $100,000 to $200,000 per charter.
The Trump administration has pledged to deport one million undocumented immigrants annually. Internal data cited by shows 100,000 to 150,000 people were removed or self-deported in Trump's first six months in office. Estimates of the total undocumented population remain in the millions.
The push for an air fleet comes amid a broader expansion of immigration enforcement infrastructure. An internal planning document obtained by The Washington Post over the weekend outlines ICE's intent to expand detention capacity to more than 107,000 beds by early next year, including the opening or enlargement of 125 facilities. The plan emphasizes large "mega-detention" centers and temporary structures, extending ICE's reach into at least five new states.
Congress has allocated $45 billion for detention expansion and $30 billion specifically for deportation operations through what the administration has called the "big, beautiful bill."
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