Which specific Epstein flight records place Bill Clinton on Epstein's planes, and what corroborating documentation exists?
Executive summary
Flight logs unsealed in litigation and reporting show Bill Clinton listed as a passenger on Jeffrey Epstein aircraft during 2002–2003, with multiple outlets counting at least 17 distinct flight legs and some compilations counting as many as 26 segments tied to six trips; a named August 2002 flight manifest specifically places Clinton on a jet with Kevin Spacey and Charles “Tucker” (Charles) Tucker, and the Justice Department’s later document/photo releases include images of Clinton aboard a private plane—while those records do not show him on any Virgin Islands–bound flight to Epstein’s island and do not, by themselves, prove wrongdoing [1] [2] [3] [4] [5].
1. What the flight logs actually record: dates, legs and a named August 2002 manifest
Court filings and reporting based on unsealed flight logs list Bill Clinton on Epstein planes during 2002–2003; some compilations count “at least 17” distinct legs in that period while other tallies note 26 flight segments across six multi-stop trips between Feb. 9, 2002 and Nov. 4, 2003—differences hinge on whether counting individual legs or grouped trips [2] [4] [1]. Among the most concrete pieces cited in litigation is an exhibit that includes a flight list from August 2002 showing Clinton aboard a flight alongside actor Kevin Spacey and Charles Tucker, a manifest repeatedly referenced in reporting and court exhibits [3].
2. Corroborating documentation beyond the logs: court exhibits, photos and DOJ releases
The flight logs were produced in the Giuffre/Maxwell litigation and published by outlets including Gawker and later cited in court exhibits; those filings (Exhibit 10 and related documents) are the primary provenance for passenger lists that show Clinton’s name on specific flights [3]. Separately, the Justice Department’s phased release of Epstein-related files under the Epstein Files Transparency Act included photographs that depict Clinton on a private plane and in social settings with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell—images that confirm his presence in Epstein-related materials but do not, by themselves, establish the context or purpose of the flights [5] [6].
3. What the records do not show—and limits of inference
Public reporting and fact-checking emphasize that the logs do not indicate the purpose of trips, the identities or ages of other passengers beyond named entries, or whether conduct occurred on board, and no released flight logs list Clinton as a passenger on a Virgin Islands–bound flight to Epstein’s Little St. James island, undermining claims that logs place him on the island [4] [7]. Pilots’ time logs and passenger manifests can contain errors or shorthand, and news outlets caution that the logs alone do not prove illicit activity; Clinton’s team has said he flew on these trips in an official Foundation capacity and that he had Secret Service and staff on the travel [2] [8].
4. Disputes, competing tallies and political uses of the records
Numbers cited publicly have varied—some opponents counted “27” or “28” by tallying individual legs, while Clinton’s statement characterized the travel as four trips in 2002–2003 for foundation work; those competing tallies have been used politically, including by congressional investigators and partisan commentators, and the recent DOJ photo/document releases have intensified demands for depositions and subpoenas from House Republicans [1] [8] [9] [10]. Journalistic sources and fact-checkers such as FactCheck.org explicitly note there is no evidence in the logs that Clinton visited Epstein’s private island, and major outlets reporting the logs have also stressed that inclusion in passenger lists is not the same as evidence of criminal conduct [4] [11].
5. What remains unresolved in public records and how to read the evidence
The available documentation establishes that Clinton’s name appears on Epstein-related flight manifests for international trips in 2002–2003 and that photographs released by the DOJ show him in Epstein-associated settings, but the records as released do not provide destination-level proof of any visit to Little St. James, do not explain the purpose of every flight leg, and do not by themselves demonstrate criminal behavior—limitations repeatedly noted in court filings, reporting and public statements by Clinton’s representatives [3] [5] [4] [8]. Investigators, journalists and the public must therefore treat the flight logs and photos as corroborating evidence of association and shared travel on Epstein aircraft, while recognizing the factual gaps and the potential for political exploitation of differing tallies [2] [9].