Former President Donald Trump’s plane was forced to divert its landing to Billings, Montana, on Friday due to a mechanical problem, airport officials confirmed to CBS News.
Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in Bozeman, Montana, Friday night, but his private plane instead landed in Billings Friday afternoon, Billings-Logan International Airport said in a statement. Bozeman is about 150 miles west of Billings.
The airport said Trump’s plane “landed without incident,” and Trump then departed for Bozeman on another private plane. The details of the mechanical problem were not confirmed.
Trump’s rally was scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. local time, or 10:00 p.m. ET, and supporters lined up hours before the scheduled start time to secure a spot.
This is Trump’s first rally this week, while his vice president, Sen. JD Vance, and opponents, Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, have been crossing key battleground states. Less than a month ago, Trump was shot during his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Montana is considered a safe Republican state, and no Democrat has won the presidential race there since Bill Clinton in 1992. But Trump’s appearance is expected to give GOP Senate candidate Tim Sheehy a boost as he seeks to unseat incumbent Democrat Sen. Jon Tester, who is for re-election in November.