Drooid Logo
Back to today’s briefing

Story perspectives

DHS Paid $464M for No-Bid Planes, Can’t Operate

8/13/2026

28 5 Full Breakdown

1 of 1

Story summary
  • DHS spent $464 million on a no-bid contract last fall to buy 10 used airplanes.
  • The contract went to Daedalus Aviation Corp., whose chairman donated to a committee supporting former DHS secretary Kristi Noem.
  • The fleet—three business jets and seven Boeing 737s—has sat idle at Lake Charles, Louisiana.
  • An internal DHS document says the agency lacks staff to operate the planes despite planning to use them for deportations.