Pentagon Strips Ex-Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall's Security Clearance Over Air Force One Leak

The Pentagon pulled former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall's security clearance Friday, citing an unauthorized disclosure about the capabilities of Air Force One.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced the action on X. "Effective immediately, the Department of War has REVOKED former Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall's eligibility for access to classified information and his ability to hold any sensitive position," Parnell wrote. He said the move followed "his unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Air Force One's capabilities to a media outlet."

Parnell called safeguarding classified material a "non-negotiable duty" and said those who violate it "forfeit the privilege of access and any role requiring it."

Kendall served as the 26th Secretary of the Air Force from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. He oversaw a budget exceeding $173 billion and was responsible for nearly 700,000 active-duty, Guard, Reserve and civilian personnel, according to Times Now. Before that role, he spent decades in national security and defense acquisition work, including as Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics and as Vice President of Engineering at Raytheon.

What Kendall is accused of, and what isn't confirmed

The Pentagon has not laid out specifics beyond the general claim of an "unauthorized disclosure" tied to Air Force One's capabilities. No indictment, criminal charge, or formal investigation finding has been announced against Kendall as of Friday evening.

Newsweek reported that Kendall has not publicly confirmed wrongdoing, and the outlet said it reached out to both the Department of Defense and Kendall for comment Friday but had not received responses by publication. A revoked security clearance is an administrative personnel action, not a criminal conviction. The Pentagon controls who gets access to classified material and can pull that access on its own determination, without a court proceeding or public evidence disclosure. That's standard practice across administrations, but it also means the public is taking the department's word for what happened, at least for now.

The bigger fight this sits inside

This didn't come out of nowhere. Times Now and CNN reporting referenced in these accounts describe a monthslong dispute over coverage of President Donald Trump's Qatari-gifted Air Force One replacement jet. Reporting alleged the newer plane lacks some of the protective capabilities built into older Air Force One aircraft, coverage that reportedly angered Trump and triggered what Times Now described as an "extraordinary leak investigation."

That investigation has already produced subpoenas targeting New York Times reporters who first reported on the jet's alleged shortcomings, according to Newsweek. White House officials were also asked to turn over their phones as part of the probe, per Times Now's reporting.

Journalism advocacy groups have raised concerns about that approach, according to Newsweek. They worry that subpoenaing reporters and demanding official phone records could chill sources willing to talk to the press about government safety or security shortfalls. National security reporting depends on people inside government being willing to flag problems, and if leak investigations sweep too broadly, sources dry up and oversight suffers.

The counterargument is straightforward. Classified information about presidential aircraft capabilities, including anything touching on protective systems, is classified for a reason. If a sitting or former Cabinet-level official disclosed specifics about Air Force One's defensive capabilities to a reporter, this is not ambiguous. Presidents of both parties have pulled clearances and pursued leak investigations when officials talk out of school on matters affecting presidential security. The Department of War's position, stated plainly by Parnell, is that this is exactly that kind of case.

What's actually unresolved

The Pentagon hasn't detailed which specific statements or reporting triggered the revocation, whether Kendall is the same person referenced in the Times Now and CNN reporting about the Air Force One capability leaks, or whether any criminal referral is being considered alongside the clearance action. Ground News's aggregation of coverage shows outlets across the spectrum, from Just the News on the right to unspecified center outlets, largely repeating the Pentagon's own statement without independent confirmation of the underlying leak's contents.

Kendall has not issued a public statement disputing or confirming the Pentagon's characterization as of Friday evening. Whether he responds, and whether the Department of Justice pursues any further action beyond the clearance revocation, remains to be seen.