FBI Fires Top Official Amid Kash Patel’s Outrage Over Agency Jet Use
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FBI Official Fired Amid Scrutiny of Director’s Travel
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A top FBI official, Steven Palmer, was reportedly fired by the bureau on Friday after Director Kash Patel reportedly became angered by press coverage of his use of a government jet. The coverage focused on Patel’s travel to see his girlfriend, country singer Alexis Wilkins, perform at a wrestling event.
Palmer, who had served with the FBI since 1998, was head of the Critical Incident Response Group, responsible for managing major security threats and the agency’s fleet of aircraft. His dismissal marks the third time the head of this unit has been replaced since Patel assumed the directorship in February.
The controversy stems from Patel’s use of an FBI jet (tail number N708JH) to travel to an airport near Penn State,pennsylvania,on October 25th,the day Wilkins performed at a Real American Freestyle wrestling event. The jet subsequently flew to Nashville.
Details of the Incident
Bloomberg Law first reported the firing, citing three unnamed sources who expressed surprise given the public availability of Patel’s flight data.Patel himself reposted photos on X (formerly Twitter) showing himself with wilkins after her performance.
Following the publication of stories about his travel,Palmer was reportedly given the choice to resign or be fired. The dismissal was made official on Friday.
As of Sunday, records for the FBI jet N708JH have been blocked from public tracking on Flight Aware, displaying a message stating the data is unavailable ”per request from the owner/operator.”
Response from the FBI
Patel has not directly responded to Bloomberg’s report. Though, his spokesperson, Ben Williamson, issued a statement on X calling criticism of Patel’s jet travel “disingenuous and dumb” and “bad faith whining.”
Williamson argued that Patel is required to reimburse the government for personal travel and that his personal travel has been “considerably