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The head of the US Department of Homeland Security allegedly authorized the purchase of Spirit Airlines jets before learning that the carrier did not actually own the planes – and that the planes lacked power plants.

This strange incident was detailed in a report released on the end of the week, which recounted how the official and a former campaign manager had recently attempted to purchase 10 Boeing 737 aircraft from Spirit Airlines. Sources with knowledge informed the outlet that the pair intended to use the planes to expand deportation flights – and for personal travel.

Those sources also claimed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had warned them that purchasing aircraft would be significantly costlier than simply increasing existing flight contracts.

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Complicating matters further, the airline, which filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time in the summer, did not possess the jets and their power plants would have had to be bought separately. The proposal has since been halted, according to the investigation.

Meanwhile, Democrats on the House funding panel said in the autumn that during this fall's record-long government shutdown, the Department of Homeland Security had already acquired two Gulfstream aircraft for $200m.

“It has come to our attention that, in the midst of a federal shutdown, the United States Coast Guard entered into a sole source agreement with Gulfstream Aerospace to acquire two new G700 luxury jets to facilitate travel for you and the deputy secretary, at a cost to the taxpayer of $200m,” Democratic lawmakers wrote in a letter to the DHS.

A DHS spokesperson told the Journal that parts of its reporting about the plane purchases were incorrect but refused to offer further details.

Congress had earlier authorized the termed “big, beautiful bill” in July, which allocates roughly $170bn for immigration and border security operations, a amount that makes Immigration and Customs Enforcement the most heavily funded federal agency in the federal government.

In the autumn, it was reported that the government was transporting immigrants held as part of its removal program in ways that violated their legal rights, often by plane.

Leaked data examined from private airline GlobalX outlined the journeys of tens of thousands of immigrants who have been shuttled around the nation before removal.