FBI Director Under Fire for Flying Girlfriend on Government Jet

Democrats Want Answers on Date Night Flights

House Democrats want to know why FBI Director Kash Patel used a government jet to fly his girlfriend home from a wrestling match.

On December 1, Representatives Jamie Raskin and Sydney Kamlager-Dove opened a probe into Patel’s travel after flight logs showed he flew to Pennsylvania on October 25 to watch country singer Alexis Wilkins perform the national anthem at Penn State, then took her to Nashville the next day.

That same weekend, he flew to a Texas hunting ranch owned by a Republican donor and stayed four days during a government shutdown.

The timing made it worse, because federal workers weren’t getting paid.

Patel Flies to Pennsylvania Wrestling Event

On October 25, an FBI jet landed at State College Regional Airport in Pennsylvania.

Patel was there to watch his girlfriend sing at a Real American Freestyle wrestling event on the Penn State campus.

Flight records show the plane departed from Manassas Regional Airport in Virginia and arrived in Pennsylvania for a trip that had nothing to do with FBI business.

Wilkins posted photos of herself with Patel at the event, and he wore an FBI-branded hoodie. The trip took about 40 minutes each way, but the real cost came from what happened next.

Kyle Seraphin Posted Nashville Flight Details Online

About two and a half hours after landing in Pennsylvania, the jet took off again with Wilkins on board. The plane flew straight to Nashville, where she lives.

The flight happened on October 26, and Democrats say it looked like Patel was using a government plane as his personal ride service.

Former FBI agent Kyle Seraphin, who now runs a podcast critical of the bureau, posted the flight logs online and asked his listeners if they thought it was acceptable.

His post went viral and kicked off weeks of negative coverage.

Then Four Days at a Texas Hunting Ranch

That same weekend, Patel took the FBI jet to a San Angelo, Texas ranch which bills itself as the perfect place to waste money or time on unnecessary projects.

He stayed at Boondoggle Ranch, a luxury hunting resort owned by the family of C.R. “Bubba” Saulsbury Jr., a Republican donor who gave $172,500 to Trump Victory in 2019

The plane sat in Texas from Sunday to Wednesday while many FBI employees worked without pay during the government shutdown.

The Wall Street Journal broke the story about the Texas trip, and it added fuel to the controversy already building around the Pennsylvania flight.

FBI Policy Requires Directors Use Government Jets

FBI directors have to use government aircraft for all travel, personal or official, because of a 2011 policy change.

The rule exists so directors can access secure communications systems no matter where they are and respond fast to emergencies.

Directors can take family or friends on personal trips, but they have to reimburse the government at coach fare rates for everyone on board.

A 2013 Government Accountability Office report found that both the attorney general and FBI director are required-use travelers because of security and communication needs.

The policy applies even when directors fly to see family or take vacations.

Patel Fires 27-Year FBI Veteran After Stories Break

On October 31, six days after the Pennsylvania trip, Patel fired Steven Palmer.

Palmer had worked at the FBI since 1998 and was deputy assistant director of the Critical Incident Response Group, which oversees aviation units, hostage rescue, and bomb detection.

Three people familiar with the situation told Bloomberg Law that Patel was furious about the media coverage and blamed Palmer for the leak.

Palmer became the third head of the Crisis Response Group fired since Patel took over in February. His replacement was already posted on the FBI website by the time Palmer walked out.

Palmer Got No Warning Before Termination

Sources say Palmer was told he had to resign immediately or be fired.

They also said they were confused about why Patel blamed Palmer, because flight logs are public and anyone can track them online.

Patel himself had reposted photos from the wrestling event on his X account, so the trip was never a secret.

Palmer’s job included supervising FBI pilots, but he had no control over what information tracking websites publish.

His firing looked like retaliation for bad press Patel brought on himself, and it left the Crisis Response Group without stable leadership for the third time in less than a year.

Patel Previously Slammed His Predecessor for Same Thing

In 2023, before he became FBI director, Patel hosted a podcast called Kash’s Corner.

On the show, he called out then-FBI Director Christopher Wray for using government jets for personal travel.

Patel said the FBI should ground Wray’s private jet that he pays for with taxpayer dollars to hop around the country.

He also posted on Truth Social calling Wray a government gangster for jetting off on taxpayer money. Now Patel is doing the same thing, and critics are throwing his own words back at him.

The difference is Wray never flew his girlfriend around or spent four days at a donor’s hunting ranch during a shutdown.

Democrats Have No Power to Force Records

Raskin and Kamlager-Dove sent Patel a letter demanding travel records, passenger lists, reimbursement receipts, and any communications about the trips.

They want answers by December 15.

But as minority members of the House Judiciary Committee, they can’t issue subpoenas or force Patel to hand anything over without Republican support.

Republicans control the committee, and Chairman Jim Jordan hasn’t said whether he’ll join the investigation.

That means Patel can ignore the request if he wants, and there’s nothing Democrats can do about it except keep asking.

Multiple Other Personal Trips Under Scrutiny

The Pennsylvania and Texas trips aren’t the only flights raising questions.

CBS News reported in May that Patel made at least three round trips to Nashville in his first months as director, visiting FBI field offices during the day and spending personal time with Wilkins at night.

Flight logs also show nine trips to Las Vegas, where Patel owns a home, and seven flights to Nashville between February and October.

In August, he flew to Scotland for a golf outing with friends. The FBI is also reportedly looking to buy a new $80 million jet for Patel’s use.

Senate Democrats requested a GAO review of his travel in May, months before the wrestling event made headlines.

FBI Spokesman Says Patel Follows Rules, Reduces Costs

Ben Williamson, the FBI’s assistant director for public affairs, defended Patel on X and called the criticism disingenuous and dumb.

Williamson said Patel reimburses the government in advance for personal travel and has cut costs by flying out of government airfields more often than his predecessors.

He also said Patel is allowed to take personal time to see family, friends, or his longtime girlfriend, and that he doesn’t do it often.

The FBI declined to share Patel’s flight schedule or confirm his presence on specific flights, citing security concerns.

Patel himself posted that he won’t be distracted by baseless rumors or noise from internet anarchists and fake news, though he didn’t deny taking the trips.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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