The Pentagon revoked former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall's security clearance Friday, accusing the Biden-era official of disclosing classified details about Air Force One's capabilities to reporters.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced the action on X, identifying Kendall by name and stripping his eligibility for access to classified information effective immediately. The Department of War also barred Kendall from holding any sensitive position going forward, a direct consequence, Parnell said, of Kendall's "unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Air Force One's capabilities to a media outlet."
Kendall, who served as Secretary of the Air Force from July 2021 through January 2025 under President Biden, did not respond to a request for comment from the New York Post. No denial from Kendall or his representatives has surfaced publicly.
The revocation traces back to reporting about the $400 million Boeing 747-8 jet gifted to President Trump by Qatar. News outlets published details about security concerns with the aircraft, specifically, that it had not been retrofitted with sufficient security measures before Trump was set to fly it home from a NATO summit in Turkey. Reporters cited concerns from lawmakers questioning whether an advanced missile defense system and other modifications had been installed.
Kendall was quoted in a Wall Street Journal report revealing that the Qatari-donated Boeing 747-8 lacks midair refueling capability and nuclear blast hardening compared to the older Air Force One jets. He had a longstanding connection to the Air Force One modernization program through his tenure atop the service.
Kendall publicly stated the new jet would need three to four years of modifications to meet previous Air Force One standards, comments the Trump administration now characterizes as an unauthorized disclosure of classified information. Whether those details were already publicly known, partially known, or genuinely classified remains an open question. But the Pentagon's position is unambiguous: Kendall crossed the line.
Parnell's full statement left no room for nuance. He posted 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. This action follows his unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Air Force One's capabilities to a media outlet. Safeguarding classified information is a non-negotiable duty. Those who violate that trust forfeit the privilege of access and any role requiring it."
Kendall's clearance revocation did not happen in isolation. The Trump administration subpoenaed several New York Times journalists last month after the outlet reported on the Air Force One security concerns. Days later, War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the creation of a joint task force with the Department of Justice to identify and prosecute officials who leak sensitive information to the media.
That task force represents a significant escalation. The administration has already moved to require NDAs for federal workers as part of a broader effort to shut down unauthorized disclosures from inside the government.
The pattern is clear enough. Subpoenas hit the reporters. A joint Pentagon-DOJ task force stood up to hunt leakers. And now the Pentagon has named its man, a former Biden cabinet official, and pulled his access. Each step has followed the last in rapid sequence.
Kendall is not the first former official to lose clearance privileges under this administration. The Trump administration has previously revoked clearances of 37 national security officials and Gen. Mark Milley, establishing a precedent for using clearance revocation as an accountability tool against former officials whose conduct the administration deems disloyal or damaging.
What makes this case different from a policy disagreement is the subject matter. Air Force One's defensive capabilities, its missile countermeasures, its ability to refuel in midair, its hardening against electromagnetic pulse, are among the most closely guarded details in the U.S. government. They exist to keep the president alive in the worst scenarios imaginable.
Kendall, by the Pentagon's account, told reporters which of those capabilities the Qatari jet lacked. That is not a policy critique. It is a roadmap of vulnerabilities, published for anyone to read, including foreign adversaries.
Acting Attorney General Blanche has separately warned media members to expect subpoenas over classified leak investigations, signaling that the Justice Department views these disclosures as potential criminal matters, not merely administrative ones.
Whether the DOJ will pursue criminal charges against Kendall remains unclear. The Pentagon's announcement Friday addressed only his clearance and his eligibility for sensitive positions. No criminal referral was mentioned in Parnell's statement, and no charges have been filed as of the announcement. But the joint task force Hegseth created exists precisely to bridge the gap between administrative punishment and prosecution.
The Pentagon has also been engaged in contentious congressional hearings over funding and war costs, adding political complexity to Hegseth's enforcement posture. But on the leak question, the administration has shown no hesitation.
Several important questions remain unanswered. The Pentagon did not specify which media outlet received the alleged classified disclosure, though Breitbart identified Kendall as having spoken to reporters about the Qatari-gifted jet's security deficiencies. The Wall Street Journal report in which Kendall was quoted appears to be the disclosure at issue, based on the available details.
It is also unclear what legal authority the Department of War cited for the revocation, or whether Kendall was given any opportunity to respond before the action took effect. Security clearance decisions are generally treated as executive discretion, not subject to the same procedural protections as criminal proceedings.
Kendall's silence is notable. A former cabinet secretary accused of compromising presidential security would ordinarily have strong incentive to mount a public defense, unless counsel has advised otherwise in anticipation of a criminal referral.
The administration has also signaled broadly that it views leak prosecutions as a priority, not a one-off response to a single story.
If you hold a security clearance, you accept a simple bargain: access to the nation's secrets in exchange for keeping them secret. Frank Kendall held one of the highest positions in the Air Force, oversaw the very program in question, and, if the Pentagon's accusation holds, walked out the door and handed reporters the details. That is not whistleblowing. That is a former official treating classified information like a talking point, and the consequences should surprise no one.