Air Force disputes Alaska crew favored Trump Scottish hotel

Military officials are disputing a report that claims a joint Air Force and Alaska Air National Guard unit on a refueling mission to Kuwait went miles out of their way to spend the night at a resort in Scotland owned by President Trump

Trump Turnberry branding sits on a flag during the grand opening of The King Robert The Bruce Golf Course at Trump Turnberry golf resort in Turnberry, Scotland, on June 28, 2017.Read more

by Mark Thiessen, The Associated Press

Published Sept. 7, 2019, 9:05 p.m. ET

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Military officials are disputing a report that claims a joint Air Force and Alaska Air National Guard unit on a refueling mission to Kuwait went miles out of its way to spend the night at a resort in Scotland owned by President Donald Trump.

Politico first reported the military transport that took off from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage in March spent the night at the Turnberry resort, about 50 miles outside Glasgow.

Air Force Brig. Gen. Edward Thomas said in a Saturday email to The Associated Press that stopovers in Scotland are not unusual and there were no rooms available closer to the airport.

Thomas says the crew stayed at the Trump property en route to Kuwait, but it appears a Marriott was used on the return trip. The Trump property cost $136 a night for lodging, cheaper than the Marriott's $161 a night.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has opened an investigation into the matter.