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The head of the United States Department of Homeland Security allegedly authorized the acquisition of Spirit Airline aircraft before discovering that the airline did not actually own the planes – and that the planes were missing engines.

This strange incident was contained in a report released on Friday, which recounted how the secretary and a ex- political strategist had recently attempted to purchase ten Boeing 737 planes from Spirit Airlines. People familiar with the situation informed the outlet that the two planned to use the planes to expand deportation flights – and for personal travel.

Those sources also claimed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had warned them that purchasing aircraft would be far more expensive than simply increasing current charter agreements.

Immigration officials facing intense criticism after footage reportedly shows unresponsive individual clutching child during arrest.

Making the situation more complex, Spirit, which filed for bankruptcy proceedings for the second instance in August, did not own the aircraft and their power plants would have had to be acquired separately. The proposal has since been halted, according to the report.

In the interim, Democratic lawmakers on the House appropriations committee said in the autumn that during this season's historically lengthy government shutdown, the DHS had already acquired two Gulfstream jets for $200 million.

“It has come to our attention that, in the midst of a federal shutdown, the United States Coast Guard signed a single-source agreement with Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation to acquire two new G700 luxury jets to support travel for you and the deputy secretary, at a expense to the public of $200 million,” Democratic representatives wrote in a letter to the DHS.

A DHS spokesperson told the Journal that parts of its reporting about the plane purchases were incorrect but declined to provide further details.

The legislature had previously approved the so-called “big, beautiful bill” in the summer, which dedicates roughly $170bn for immigration and border security operations, a sum that makes ICE the most heavily funded law enforcement agency in the federal government.

In the autumn, it was revealed that the government was transporting immigrants held as part of its removal program in ways that violated their legal rights, often by plane.

Leaked data examined from charter airline GlobalX detailed the travels of tens of thousands of immigrants who have been shuttled around the nation before removal.