Pop Goes The News — Faced with having one of his private jets grounded for months due to expired registration, Donald Trump sold it to himself and then had it fly to Montreal.

According to a report, Trump’s Cessna Citation X made the 500-kilometre journey on May 4 to speed up the re-registration process.

The New York Times reported that the cross-border trip was arranged solely so Trump’s plane — which had been flying for about three months with expired registration — could be re-registered with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) much more quickly.

Registering a plane can take several months but the FAA expedites the process for new owners planning to fly outside the U.S.

So, according to the Times, Trump’s jet — which he has used since 2012 — was sold by DJT Operations CX LLC (a Delaware-registered company he controls) to DT Endeavor I (a company registered at the same address) and a declaration of international operations was filed.

The FAA granted the plane a temporary certificate of registration.

The Cessna landed at Montreal’s Pierre E. Trudeau International Airport shortly after 11 a.m., cleared a Customs inspection, and then communicated with air traffic controllers requesting to take off again.

There is no indication that Trump was on the plane.

It has flown hundreds of times since Trump began his campaign for the Republican nomination last June, particularly to take him to airports in cities where his Boeing 757 is too big to land.

The Times revealed on April 19 that the Cessna’s registration expired on Jan. 31. Flying an unregistered plane can result in up to three years in prison, a criminal fine of up to $250,000 USD and a civil penalty of up to $27,500 USD.