Donald Trump's Secretary of War has been forced to make an "unscheduled landing" in the United Kingdom after a "crack" appeared on his aircraft's windshield.
Pete Hegseth's aircraft declared an emergency and diverted to an RAF base in the UK.
The Boeing C-32A, a military version of the Boeing 757, was flying to Washington DC from Brussels, following Mr Hegseth's appearance at a Nato meeting for defence ministers.
However, it was forced at land at RAF Mildenhall after emitting a Squawk 7700 code indicating a general emergency.
Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Sean Parnell confirmed Mr Hegseth's plane made an unscheduled landing earlier this evening.
"On the way back to the United States from Nato's defence ministers meeting, Secretary of War Hegseth's plane made an unscheduled landing in the United Kingdom due to a crack in the aircraft windshield," Mr Parnell said.
"The plane landed based on standard procedures and everyone onboard, including Secretary Hegseth, is safe."
Mr Hegseth also issued a brief statement following the unscheduled landing.
The was forced at land at RAF Mildenhall after emitting a Squawk 7700 code indicating a general emergency
|PA
He said: "All good. Thank God. Continue mission!"
Flight tracking data showed the plane took off from Brussels and made it past Ireland before turning around to land at Royal Air Force Mildenhall in England just after 7pm.
During his appearance in Brussels, Hegseth urged Nato allies to allocate more funds to purchase American-made weapons for Ukraine under the PURL programme.
The War Secretary also issued a stern warning to Russia, saying that the US and its allies would "impose costs on Russia for its continued aggression" if the war in Ukraine did not come to an end.
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Pete Hegseth met with Nato defence ministers in Brussels earlier today
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"If we must take this step, the US War Department stands ready to do our part in ways that only the United States can do," Mr Hegseth added.
"Now is the time to end this tragic war, stop the needless bloodshed, and come to the peace table.
"This is not a war that started on President Trump's watch, but it will end on his watch."
Hegseth did not elaborate on his comment.
Everyone onboard the aircraft were safe, the Pentagon has confirmed
|GETTY
However, Mr Trump's administration is reportedly considering a request by Ukraine for long-range Tomahawk missiles.
Earlier this year, an air force plane carrying Marco Rubio to Munich was forced to return to Washington after experiencing a mechanical problem.
“This evening, en route from Washington to Munich, the plane on which Secretary Rubio is flying experienced a mechanical issue,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.
“The plane has turned around and is returning to Joint Base Andrews,” she added, referring to the Maryland air base just outside Washington, DC.
President Donald Trump and US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth | REUTERS
Ms Bruce continued: "The Secretary intends to continue his travel to Germany and the Middle East on a separate aircraft."
The mechanical issue in the C-32 plane, a converted Boeing 757, related to a crack in the cockpit windshield.
A US official confirmed that the technical fault forced the plane to turn around about 90 minutes after taking off.
Mr Rubio’s plane landed safely at Joint Base Andrews just outside the capital around 10pm It had taken off around 7pm