diff --git a/airflow-core/docs/administration-and-deployment/plugins.rst b/airflow-core/docs/administration-and-deployment/plugins.rst
index 8747707b4a461..2daa6036ddb11 100644
--- a/airflow-core/docs/administration-and-deployment/plugins.rst
+++ b/airflow-core/docs/administration-and-deployment/plugins.rst
@@ -109,7 +109,7 @@ looks like:
         # A list of dictionaries containing FastAPI middleware factory objects and some metadata. See the example below.
         fastapi_root_middlewares = []
         # A list of dictionaries containing iframe views and some metadata. See the example below.
-        iframe_views = []
+        external_views = []
 
         # A callback to perform actions when Airflow starts and the plugin is loaded.
         # NOTE: Ensure your plugin has *args, and **kwargs in the method definition
@@ -195,18 +195,24 @@ definitions in Airflow.
     }
 
     # Creating a iframe view that will be rendered in the Airflow UI.
-    iframe_view_with_metadata = {
+    external_view_with_metadata = {
         "name": "Name of the Iframe View as displayed in the UI",
-        # Source URL of the iframe. This URL can be templated using context variables, depending on the location where the iframe is rendered
-        # the context variables available will be different, i.e a subset of (DAG_ID, RUN_ID, TASK_ID, MAP_INDEX)
-        "src": "https://example.com/{DAG_ID}/{RUN_ID}/{TASK_ID}",
+        # Source URL of the external view. This URL can be templated using context variables, depending on the location where the external view is rendered
+        # the context variables available will be different, i.e a subset of (DAG_ID, RUN_ID, TASK_ID, MAP_INDEX).
+        "href": "https://example.com/{DAG_ID}/{RUN_ID}/{TASK_ID}",
         # Destination of the iframe view. This is used to determine where the iframe will be loaded in the UI.
-        # Supported locations are Literal["nav", "dag", "dag_run", "task", "task_instance"]
+        # Supported locations are Literal["nav", "dag", "dag_run", "task", "task_instance"], default to "nav".
         "destination": "dag_run",
         # Optional icon, url to an svg file.
         "icon": "https://example.com/icon.svg",
-        # Optional parameters, relative URL location when opening the iframe
-        "url_route": "/my_iframe_view",
+        # Optional dark icon for the dark theme, url to an svg file. If not provided, "icon" will be used for both light and dark themes.
+        "icon_dark_mode": "https://example.com/dark_icon.svg",
+        # Optional parameters, relative URL location for the iframe rendering. If not provided, external view will be rendeded as an external link. Should
+        # not contain a leading slash.
+        "url_route": "my_iframe_view",
+        # Optional category, only relevant for destination "nav". This is used to group the external links in the navigation bar.  We will match the existing
+        # menus of ["browse", "docs", "admin", "user"] and if there's no match then create a new menu.
+        "category": "browse",
     }
 
 
@@ -216,7 +222,7 @@ definitions in Airflow.
         macros = [plugin_macro]
         fastapi_apps = [app_with_metadata]
         fastapi_root_middlewares = [middleware_with_metadata]
-        iframe_views = [iframe_view_with_metadata]
+        external_views = [external_view_with_metadata]
 
 .. seealso:: :doc:`/howto/define-extra-link`
 
diff --git a/airflow-core/docs/howto/custom-view-plugin.rst b/airflow-core/docs/howto/custom-view-plugin.rst
index 28f413b9b54a2..74a2891f47615 100644
--- a/airflow-core/docs/howto/custom-view-plugin.rst
+++ b/airflow-core/docs/howto/custom-view-plugin.rst
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ core UI using the Plugin manager.
 
 Plugins integrate with the Airflow core RestAPI. In this plugin,
 three object references are derived from the base class ``airflow.plugins_manager.AirflowPlugin``.
-They are fastapi_apps, fastapi_root_middlewares and iframe_views.
+They are fastapi_apps, fastapi_root_middlewares and external_views.
 
 Using fastapi_apps in Airflow plugin, the core RestAPI can be extended
 to support extra endpoints to serve custom static file or any other json/application responses.
@@ -37,12 +37,12 @@ functionality to the entire FastAPI application, including core endpoints.
 In this object reference, the list of dictionaries with Middleware factories object,
 initialization parameters and some metadata information like the name are passed on.
 
-Using iframe_views in Airflow plugin, allows to register custom views that are rendered in iframes in
-the Airflow UI. This is useful for integrating external applications or custom dashboards into the Airflow UI.
+Using external_views in Airflow plugin, allows to register custom views that are rendered in iframes or external link
+in the Airflow UI. This is useful for integrating external applications or custom dashboards into the Airflow UI.
 In this object reference, the list of dictionaries with the view name, iframe src (templatable), destination and
 optional parameters like the icon and url_route are passed on.
 
-Information and code samples to register ``fastapi_apps``, ``fastapi_root_middlewares`` and ``iframe_views`` are
+Information and code samples to register ``fastapi_apps``, ``fastapi_root_middlewares`` and ``external_views`` are
 available in :doc:`plugin </administration-and-deployment/plugins>`.
 
 Support for Airflow 2 plugins
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/datamodels/plugins.py b/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/datamodels/plugins.py
index a1f51c04ab78d..daf712a8eda0e 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/datamodels/plugins.py
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/datamodels/plugins.py
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 
 from typing import Annotated, Any, Literal
 
-from pydantic import BeforeValidator, ConfigDict, field_validator
+from pydantic import BeforeValidator, ConfigDict, Field, field_validator, model_validator
 
 from airflow.api_fastapi.core_api.base import BaseModel
 from airflow.plugins_manager import AirflowPluginSource
@@ -65,20 +65,22 @@ class AppBuilderMenuItemResponse(BaseModel):
     model_config = ConfigDict(extra="allow")
 
     name: str
-    href: str | None = None
+    href: str
     category: str | None = None
 
 
-class IFrameViewsResponse(BaseModel):
+class ExternalViewResponse(BaseModel):
     """Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses."""
 
     model_config = ConfigDict(extra="allow")
 
     name: str
-    src: str
+    href: str
     icon: str | None = None
+    icon_dark_mode: str | None = None
     url_route: str | None = None
-    destination: Literal["nav", "dag", "dag_run", "task", "task_instance"] | None = None
+    category: str | None = None
+    destination: Literal["nav", "dag", "dag_run", "task", "task_instance"] = "nav"
 
 
 class PluginResponse(BaseModel):
@@ -89,9 +91,13 @@ class PluginResponse(BaseModel):
     flask_blueprints: list[str]
     fastapi_apps: list[FastAPIAppResponse]
     fastapi_root_middlewares: list[FastAPIRootMiddlewareResponse]
-    iframe_views: list[IFrameViewsResponse]
+    external_views: list[ExternalViewResponse] = Field(
+        description="Aggregate all external views. Both 'external_views' and 'appbuilder_menu_items' are included here."
+    )
     appbuilder_views: list[AppBuilderViewResponse]
-    appbuilder_menu_items: list[AppBuilderMenuItemResponse]
+    appbuilder_menu_items: list[AppBuilderMenuItemResponse] = Field(
+        deprecated="Kept for backward compatibility, use `external_views` instead.",
+    )
     global_operator_extra_links: list[str]
     operator_extra_links: list[str]
     source: Annotated[str, BeforeValidator(coerce_to_string)]
@@ -105,6 +111,12 @@ def convert_source(cls, data: Any) -> Any:
             return str(data)
         return data
 
+    @model_validator(mode="before")
+    @classmethod
+    def convert_external_views(cls, data: Any) -> Any:
+        data["external_views"] = [*data["external_views"], *data.get("appbuilder_menu_items", [])]
+        return data
+
 
 class PluginCollectionResponse(BaseModel):
     """Plugin Collection serializer."""
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/openapi/v2-rest-api-generated.yaml b/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/openapi/v2-rest-api-generated.yaml
index c67a089b0623e..478316b43369a 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/openapi/v2-rest-api-generated.yaml
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/api_fastapi/core_api/openapi/v2-rest-api-generated.yaml
@@ -7029,9 +7029,7 @@ components:
           type: string
           title: Name
         href:
-          anyOf:
-          - type: string
-          - type: 'null'
+          type: string
           title: Href
         category:
           anyOf:
@@ -7042,6 +7040,7 @@ components:
       type: object
       required:
       - name
+      - href
       title: AppBuilderMenuItemResponse
       description: Serializer for AppBuilder Menu Item responses.
     AppBuilderViewResponse:
@@ -9293,6 +9292,51 @@ components:
       - url
       title: ExternalLogUrlResponse
       description: Response for the external log URL endpoint.
+    ExternalViewResponse:
+      properties:
+        name:
+          type: string
+          title: Name
+        href:
+          type: string
+          title: Href
+        icon:
+          anyOf:
+          - type: string
+          - type: 'null'
+          title: Icon
+        icon_dark_mode:
+          anyOf:
+          - type: string
+          - type: 'null'
+          title: Icon Dark Mode
+        url_route:
+          anyOf:
+          - type: string
+          - type: 'null'
+          title: Url Route
+        category:
+          anyOf:
+          - type: string
+          - type: 'null'
+          title: Category
+        destination:
+          type: string
+          enum:
+          - nav
+          - dag
+          - dag_run
+          - task
+          - task_instance
+          title: Destination
+          default: nav
+      additionalProperties: true
+      type: object
+      required:
+      - name
+      - href
+      title: ExternalViewResponse
+      description: Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.
     ExtraLinkCollectionResponse:
       properties:
         extra_links:
@@ -9386,42 +9430,6 @@ components:
       - triggerer
       title: HealthInfoResponse
       description: Health serializer for responses.
-    IFrameViewsResponse:
-      properties:
-        name:
-          type: string
-          title: Name
-        src:
-          type: string
-          title: Src
-        icon:
-          anyOf:
-          - type: string
-          - type: 'null'
-          title: Icon
-        url_route:
-          anyOf:
-          - type: string
-          - type: 'null'
-          title: Url Route
-        destination:
-          anyOf:
-          - type: string
-            enum:
-            - nav
-            - dag
-            - dag_run
-            - task
-            - task_instance
-          - type: 'null'
-          title: Destination
-      additionalProperties: true
-      type: object
-      required:
-      - name
-      - src
-      title: IFrameViewsResponse
-      description: Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.
     ImportErrorCollectionResponse:
       properties:
         import_errors:
@@ -9676,11 +9684,13 @@ components:
             $ref: '#/components/schemas/FastAPIRootMiddlewareResponse'
           type: array
           title: Fastapi Root Middlewares
-        iframe_views:
+        external_views:
           items:
-            $ref: '#/components/schemas/IFrameViewsResponse'
+            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ExternalViewResponse'
           type: array
-          title: Iframe Views
+          title: External Views
+          description: Aggregate all external views. Both 'external_views' and 'appbuilder_menu_items'
+            are included here.
         appbuilder_views:
           items:
             $ref: '#/components/schemas/AppBuilderViewResponse'
@@ -9691,6 +9701,7 @@ components:
             $ref: '#/components/schemas/AppBuilderMenuItemResponse'
           type: array
           title: Appbuilder Menu Items
+          deprecated: true
         global_operator_extra_links:
           items:
             type: string
@@ -9721,7 +9732,7 @@ components:
       - flask_blueprints
       - fastapi_apps
       - fastapi_root_middlewares
-      - iframe_views
+      - external_views
       - appbuilder_views
       - appbuilder_menu_items
       - global_operator_extra_links
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/plugins_manager.py b/airflow-core/src/airflow/plugins_manager.py
index 84cc92cd81723..8874864286b77 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/plugins_manager.py
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/plugins_manager.py
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@
 flask_blueprints: list[Any] | None = None
 fastapi_apps: list[Any] | None = None
 fastapi_root_middlewares: list[Any] | None = None
-iframe_views: list[Any] | None = None
+external_views: list[Any] | None = None
 menu_links: list[Any] | None = None
 flask_appbuilder_views: list[Any] | None = None
 flask_appbuilder_menu_links: list[Any] | None = None
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@
     "flask_blueprints",
     "fastapi_apps",
     "fastapi_root_middlewares",
-    "iframe_views",
+    "external_views",
     "menu_links",
     "appbuilder_views",
     "appbuilder_menu_items",
@@ -156,7 +156,7 @@ class AirflowPlugin:
     flask_blueprints: list[Any] = []
     fastapi_apps: list[Any] = []
     fastapi_root_middlewares: list[Any] = []
-    iframe_views: list[Any] = []
+    external_views: list[Any] = []
     menu_links: list[Any] = []
     appbuilder_views: list[Any] = []
     appbuilder_menu_items: list[Any] = []
@@ -371,9 +371,9 @@ def ensure_plugins_loaded():
 def initialize_ui_plugins():
     """Collect extension points for the UI."""
     global plugins
-    global iframe_views
+    global external_views
 
-    if iframe_views is not None:
+    if external_views is not None:
         return
 
     ensure_plugins_loaded()
@@ -383,10 +383,10 @@ def initialize_ui_plugins():
 
     log.debug("Initialize UI plugin")
 
-    iframe_views = []
+    external_views = []
 
     for plugin in plugins:
-        iframe_views.extend(plugin.iframe_views)
+        external_views.extend(plugin.external_views)
 
 
 def initialize_flask_plugins():
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/schemas.gen.ts b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/schemas.gen.ts
index 93814056bb09c..6f5f33136e54f 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/schemas.gen.ts
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/schemas.gen.ts
@@ -7,14 +7,7 @@ export const $AppBuilderMenuItemResponse = {
             title: 'Name'
         },
         href: {
-            anyOf: [
-                {
-                    type: 'string'
-                },
-                {
-                    type: 'null'
-                }
-            ],
+            type: 'string',
             title: 'Href'
         },
         category: {
@@ -31,7 +24,7 @@ export const $AppBuilderMenuItemResponse = {
     },
     additionalProperties: true,
     type: 'object',
-    required: ['name'],
+    required: ['name', 'href'],
     title: 'AppBuilderMenuItemResponse',
     description: 'Serializer for AppBuilder Menu Item responses.'
 } as const;
@@ -3269,6 +3262,74 @@ export const $ExternalLogUrlResponse = {
     description: 'Response for the external log URL endpoint.'
 } as const;
 
+export const $ExternalViewResponse = {
+    properties: {
+        name: {
+            type: 'string',
+            title: 'Name'
+        },
+        href: {
+            type: 'string',
+            title: 'Href'
+        },
+        icon: {
+            anyOf: [
+                {
+                    type: 'string'
+                },
+                {
+                    type: 'null'
+                }
+            ],
+            title: 'Icon'
+        },
+        icon_dark_mode: {
+            anyOf: [
+                {
+                    type: 'string'
+                },
+                {
+                    type: 'null'
+                }
+            ],
+            title: 'Icon Dark Mode'
+        },
+        url_route: {
+            anyOf: [
+                {
+                    type: 'string'
+                },
+                {
+                    type: 'null'
+                }
+            ],
+            title: 'Url Route'
+        },
+        category: {
+            anyOf: [
+                {
+                    type: 'string'
+                },
+                {
+                    type: 'null'
+                }
+            ],
+            title: 'Category'
+        },
+        destination: {
+            type: 'string',
+            enum: ['nav', 'dag', 'dag_run', 'task', 'task_instance'],
+            title: 'Destination',
+            default: 'nav'
+        }
+    },
+    additionalProperties: true,
+    type: 'object',
+    required: ['name', 'href'],
+    title: 'ExternalViewResponse',
+    description: 'Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.'
+} as const;
+
 export const $ExtraLinkCollectionResponse = {
     properties: {
         extra_links: {
@@ -3399,58 +3460,6 @@ export const $HealthInfoResponse = {
     description: 'Health serializer for responses.'
 } as const;
 
-export const $IFrameViewsResponse = {
-    properties: {
-        name: {
-            type: 'string',
-            title: 'Name'
-        },
-        src: {
-            type: 'string',
-            title: 'Src'
-        },
-        icon: {
-            anyOf: [
-                {
-                    type: 'string'
-                },
-                {
-                    type: 'null'
-                }
-            ],
-            title: 'Icon'
-        },
-        url_route: {
-            anyOf: [
-                {
-                    type: 'string'
-                },
-                {
-                    type: 'null'
-                }
-            ],
-            title: 'Url Route'
-        },
-        destination: {
-            anyOf: [
-                {
-                    type: 'string',
-                    enum: ['nav', 'dag', 'dag_run', 'task', 'task_instance']
-                },
-                {
-                    type: 'null'
-                }
-            ],
-            title: 'Destination'
-        }
-    },
-    additionalProperties: true,
-    type: 'object',
-    required: ['name', 'src'],
-    title: 'IFrameViewsResponse',
-    description: 'Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.'
-} as const;
-
 export const $ImportErrorCollectionResponse = {
     properties: {
         import_errors: {
@@ -3830,12 +3839,13 @@ export const $PluginResponse = {
             type: 'array',
             title: 'Fastapi Root Middlewares'
         },
-        iframe_views: {
+        external_views: {
             items: {
-                '$ref': '#/components/schemas/IFrameViewsResponse'
+                '$ref': '#/components/schemas/ExternalViewResponse'
             },
             type: 'array',
-            title: 'Iframe Views'
+            title: 'External Views',
+            description: "Aggregate all external views. Both 'external_views' and 'appbuilder_menu_items' are included here."
         },
         appbuilder_views: {
             items: {
@@ -3849,7 +3859,8 @@ export const $PluginResponse = {
                 '$ref': '#/components/schemas/AppBuilderMenuItemResponse'
             },
             type: 'array',
-            title: 'Appbuilder Menu Items'
+            title: 'Appbuilder Menu Items',
+            deprecated: true
         },
         global_operator_extra_links: {
             items: {
@@ -3885,7 +3896,7 @@ export const $PluginResponse = {
         }
     },
     type: 'object',
-    required: ['name', 'macros', 'flask_blueprints', 'fastapi_apps', 'fastapi_root_middlewares', 'iframe_views', 'appbuilder_views', 'appbuilder_menu_items', 'global_operator_extra_links', 'operator_extra_links', 'source', 'listeners', 'timetables'],
+    required: ['name', 'macros', 'flask_blueprints', 'fastapi_apps', 'fastapi_root_middlewares', 'external_views', 'appbuilder_views', 'appbuilder_menu_items', 'global_operator_extra_links', 'operator_extra_links', 'source', 'listeners', 'timetables'],
     title: 'PluginResponse',
     description: 'Plugin serializer.'
 } as const;
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/types.gen.ts b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/types.gen.ts
index 92dee7ed04011..692a290abccfe 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/types.gen.ts
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/openapi-gen/requests/types.gen.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
  */
 export type AppBuilderMenuItemResponse = {
     name: string;
-    href?: string | null;
+    href: string;
     category?: string | null;
     [key: string]: unknown | string;
 };
@@ -871,6 +871,22 @@ export type ExternalLogUrlResponse = {
     url: string;
 };
 
+/**
+ * Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.
+ */
+export type ExternalViewResponse = {
+    name: string;
+    href: string;
+    icon?: string | null;
+    icon_dark_mode?: string | null;
+    url_route?: string | null;
+    category?: string | null;
+    destination?: 'nav' | 'dag' | 'dag_run' | 'task' | 'task_instance';
+    [key: string]: unknown | string;
+};
+
+export type destination = 'nav' | 'dag' | 'dag_run' | 'task' | 'task_instance';
+
 /**
  * Extra Links Response.
  */
@@ -923,18 +939,6 @@ export type HealthInfoResponse = {
     dag_processor?: DagProcessorInfoResponse | null;
 };
 
-/**
- * Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.
- */
-export type IFrameViewsResponse = {
-    name: string;
-    src: string;
-    icon?: string | null;
-    url_route?: string | null;
-    destination?: 'nav' | 'dag' | 'dag_run' | 'task' | 'task_instance' | null;
-    [key: string]: unknown | string;
-};
-
 /**
  * Import Error Collection Response.
  */
@@ -1034,8 +1038,14 @@ export type PluginResponse = {
     flask_blueprints: Array<(string)>;
     fastapi_apps: Array<FastAPIAppResponse>;
     fastapi_root_middlewares: Array<FastAPIRootMiddlewareResponse>;
-    iframe_views: Array<IFrameViewsResponse>;
+    /**
+     * Aggregate all external views. Both 'external_views' and 'appbuilder_menu_items' are included here.
+     */
+    external_views: Array<ExternalViewResponse>;
     appbuilder_views: Array<AppBuilderViewResponse>;
+    /**
+     * @deprecated
+     */
     appbuilder_menu_items: Array<AppBuilderMenuItemResponse>;
     global_operator_extra_links: Array<(string)>;
     operator_extra_links: Array<(string)>;
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/NavButton.tsx b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/NavButton.tsx
index 23f837cd7c62f..4ebaa90b7c3ea 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/NavButton.tsx
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/NavButton.tsx
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
  * specific language governing permissions and limitations
  * under the License.
  */
-import { Box, Button, type ButtonProps } from "@chakra-ui/react";
+import { Box, Button, Link, type ButtonProps } from "@chakra-ui/react";
 import type { ReactElement } from "react";
 import { NavLink } from "react-router-dom";
 
@@ -33,17 +33,18 @@ const styles = {
 
 type NavButtonProps = {
   readonly icon: ReactElement;
+  readonly isExternal?: boolean;
   readonly title?: string;
   readonly to?: string;
 } & ButtonProps;
 
-export const NavButton = ({ icon, title, to, ...rest }: NavButtonProps) =>
+export const NavButton = ({ icon, isExternal = false, title, to, ...rest }: NavButtonProps) =>
   to === undefined ? (
     <Button {...styles} {...rest}>
       <Box alignSelf="center">{icon}</Box>
       <Box fontSize="xs">{title}</Box>
     </Button>
-  ) : (
+  ) : isExternal ? (
     <NavLink to={to}>
       {({ isActive }: { readonly isActive: boolean }) => (
         <Button {...styles} variant={isActive ? "solid" : "ghost"} {...rest}>
@@ -52,4 +53,11 @@ export const NavButton = ({ icon, title, to, ...rest }: NavButtonProps) =>
         </Button>
       )}
     </NavLink>
+  ) : (
+    <Link href={to} px={2} rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">
+      <Button {...styles} variant="ghost" {...rest}>
+        <Box alignSelf="center">{icon}</Box>
+        <Box fontSize="xs">{title}</Box>
+      </Button>
+    </Link>
   );
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenuItem.tsx b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenuItem.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..28b777570501d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenuItem.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+/*!
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+import { Box, Link, Image } from "@chakra-ui/react";
+import { LuPlug } from "react-icons/lu";
+import { Link as RouterLink } from "react-router-dom";
+
+import type { ExternalViewResponse } from "openapi/requests/types.gen";
+
+import { NavButton } from "./NavButton";
+
+type Props = { readonly topLevel?: boolean } & ExternalViewResponse;
+
+export const PluginMenuItem = ({ href, icon, name, topLevel = false, url_route: urlRoute }: Props) => {
+  // External Link
+  if (urlRoute === undefined || urlRoute === null) {
+    return topLevel ? (
+      <NavButton
+        icon={
+          typeof icon === "string" ? (
+            <Image height="1.75rem" src={icon} width="1.75rem" />
+          ) : (
+            <LuPlug size="1.75rem" />
+          )
+        }
+        isExternal={true}
+        key={name}
+        title={name}
+        to={href}
+      />
+    ) : (
+      <Box alignItems="center" display="flex" gap={2} outline="none" px={2} py="6px">
+        <Link
+          aria-label={name}
+          fontSize="sm"
+          href={href}
+          rel="noopener noreferrer"
+          target="_blank"
+          width="100%"
+        >
+          {name}
+        </Link>
+      </Box>
+    );
+  }
+
+  // Embedded External Link via iframes
+  if (topLevel) {
+    return (
+      <NavButton
+        icon={
+          typeof icon === "string" ? (
+            <Image height="1.75rem" src={icon} width="1.75rem" />
+          ) : (
+            <LuPlug size="1.75rem" />
+          )
+        }
+        key={name}
+        title={name}
+        to={`plugin/${urlRoute}`}
+      />
+    );
+  }
+
+  return (
+    <RouterLink to={`plugin/${urlRoute}`}>
+      <Box alignItems="center" display="flex" fontSize="sm" gap={2} px={2} py="6px">
+        {typeof icon === "string" ? (
+          <Image height="1.25rem" src={icon} width="1.25rem" />
+        ) : (
+          <LuPlug size="1.25rem" />
+        )}
+        {name}
+      </Box>
+    </RouterLink>
+  );
+};
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenus.tsx b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenus.tsx
index 7ff5c58d3bbb7..13fde6fa66371 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenus.tsx
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/layouts/Nav/PluginMenus.tsx
@@ -16,98 +16,65 @@
  * specific language governing permissions and limitations
  * under the License.
  */
-import { Box, Link, Image } from "@chakra-ui/react";
+import { Box } from "@chakra-ui/react";
 import { useTranslation } from "react-i18next";
 import { FiChevronRight } from "react-icons/fi";
 import { LuPlug } from "react-icons/lu";
-import { Link as RouterLink } from "react-router-dom";
 
 import { usePluginServiceGetPlugins } from "openapi/queries";
-import type { AppBuilderMenuItemResponse } from "openapi/requests/types.gen";
+import type { ExternalViewResponse } from "openapi/requests/types.gen";
 import { Menu } from "src/components/ui";
 
 import { NavButton } from "./NavButton";
+import { PluginMenuItem } from "./PluginMenuItem";
 
 export const PluginMenus = () => {
   const { t: translate } = useTranslation("common");
   const { data } = usePluginServiceGetPlugins();
 
-  const menuPlugins = data?.plugins.filter((plugin) => plugin.appbuilder_menu_items.length > 0);
-  const iframePlugins =
-    data?.plugins.flatMap((plugin) => plugin.iframe_views).filter((view) => view.destination === "nav") ?? [];
+  const menuPlugins =
+    data?.plugins.flatMap((plugin) => plugin.external_views).filter((view) => view.destination === "nav") ??
+    [];
 
-  // Only show iframe plugins in menu if there are more than 2
-  const menuIframePlugins = iframePlugins.length > 2 ? iframePlugins : [];
-  const directIframePlugins = iframePlugins.length <= 2 ? iframePlugins : [];
+  // Only show external plugins in menu if there are more than 2
+  const menuExternalViews = menuPlugins.length > 2 ? menuPlugins : [];
+  const directExternalViews = menuPlugins.length <= 2 ? menuPlugins : [];
 
-  if (data === undefined || (menuPlugins === undefined && iframePlugins.length === 0)) {
+  if (data === undefined || menuPlugins.length === 0) {
     return undefined;
   }
 
-  const categories: Record<string, Array<AppBuilderMenuItemResponse>> = {};
-  const buttons: Array<AppBuilderMenuItemResponse> = [];
+  const categories: Record<string, Array<ExternalViewResponse>> = {};
+  const buttons: Array<ExternalViewResponse> = [];
 
-  menuPlugins?.forEach((plugin) => {
-    plugin.appbuilder_menu_items.forEach((mi) => {
-      if (mi.category !== null && mi.category !== undefined) {
-        categories[mi.category] = [...(categories[mi.category] ?? []), mi];
-      } else {
-        buttons.push(mi);
-      }
-    });
+  menuPlugins.forEach((externalView) => {
+    if (externalView.category !== null && externalView.category !== undefined) {
+      categories[externalView.category] = [...(categories[externalView.category] ?? []), externalView];
+    } else {
+      buttons.push(externalView);
+    }
   });
 
-  if (!buttons.length && !Object.keys(categories).length && iframePlugins.length === 0) {
+  if (!buttons.length && !Object.keys(categories).length && menuPlugins.length === 0) {
     return undefined;
   }
 
   return (
     <>
-      {directIframePlugins.map((plugin) => (
-        <NavButton
-          icon={
-            typeof plugin.icon === "string" ? (
-              <Image height="1.75rem" src={plugin.icon} width="1.75rem" />
-            ) : (
-              <LuPlug size="1.75rem" />
-            )
-          }
-          key={plugin.name}
-          title={plugin.name}
-          to={`plugin/${plugin.url_route ?? plugin.name.toLowerCase().replace(" ", "-")}`}
-        />
+      {directExternalViews.map((externalView) => (
+        <PluginMenuItem {...externalView} key={externalView.name} topLevel={true} />
       ))}
-      {(menuIframePlugins.length > 0 || buttons.length > 0 || Object.keys(categories).length > 0) && (
+      {menuExternalViews.length > 0 && (
         <Menu.Root positioning={{ placement: "right" }}>
           <Menu.Trigger>
             <NavButton as={Box} icon={<LuPlug />} title={translate("nav.plugins")} />
           </Menu.Trigger>
           <Menu.Content>
-            {menuIframePlugins.map((plugin) => (
-              <Menu.Item key={plugin.name} value={plugin.name}>
-                <Box alignItems="center" display="flex" gap={2}>
-                  {typeof plugin.icon === "string" ? (
-                    <Image height="1.25rem" src={plugin.icon} width="1.25rem" />
-                  ) : (
-                    <LuPlug size="1.25rem" />
-                  )}
-                  <RouterLink
-                    to={`plugin/${plugin.url_route ?? plugin.name.toLowerCase().replace(" ", "-")}`}
-                  >
-                    {plugin.name}
-                  </RouterLink>
-                </Box>
+            {buttons.map((externalView) => (
+              <Menu.Item asChild key={externalView.name} value={externalView.name}>
+                <PluginMenuItem {...externalView} />
               </Menu.Item>
             ))}
-            {buttons.map(({ href, name }) =>
-              href !== null && href !== undefined ? (
-                <Menu.Item asChild key={name} value={name}>
-                  <Link aria-label={name} href={href} rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">
-                    {name}
-                  </Link>
-                </Menu.Item>
-              ) : undefined,
-            )}
             {Object.entries(categories).map(([key, menuButtons]) => (
               <Menu.Root key={key} positioning={{ placement: "right" }}>
                 <Menu.TriggerItem display="flex" justifyContent="space-between">
@@ -115,15 +82,11 @@ export const PluginMenus = () => {
                   <FiChevronRight />
                 </Menu.TriggerItem>
                 <Menu.Content>
-                  {menuButtons.map(({ href, name }) =>
-                    href !== undefined && href !== null ? (
-                      <Menu.Item asChild key={name} value={name}>
-                        <Link aria-label={name} href={href} rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">
-                          {name}
-                        </Link>
-                      </Menu.Item>
-                    ) : undefined,
-                  )}
+                  {menuButtons.map((externalView) => (
+                    <Menu.Item asChild key={externalView.name} value={externalView.name}>
+                      <PluginMenuItem {...externalView} />
+                    </Menu.Item>
+                  ))}
                 </Menu.Content>
               </Menu.Root>
             ))}
diff --git a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/pages/Iframe.tsx b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/pages/Iframe.tsx
index 69327a6a999af..9256a463b08b9 100644
--- a/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/pages/Iframe.tsx
+++ b/airflow-core/src/airflow/ui/src/pages/Iframe.tsx
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ export const Iframe = () => {
   const { data: pluginData, isLoading } = usePluginServiceGetPlugins();
 
   const iframeView = pluginData?.plugins
-    .flatMap((plugin) => plugin.iframe_views)
+    .flatMap((plugin) => plugin.external_views)
     .find((view) => (view.url_route ?? view.name.toLowerCase().replace(" ", "-")) === page);
 
   if (!iframeView) {
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ export const Iframe = () => {
     <Box flexGrow={1} m={-3}>
       <iframe
         sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-forms"
-        src={iframeView.src}
+        src={iframeView.href}
         style={{ height: "100%", width: "100%" }}
         title={iframeView.name}
       />
diff --git a/airflow-core/tests/unit/api_fastapi/core_api/routes/public/test_plugins.py b/airflow-core/tests/unit/api_fastapi/core_api/routes/public/test_plugins.py
index c16e1f114a9f5..2b84d441b3f96 100644
--- a/airflow-core/tests/unit/api_fastapi/core_api/routes/public/test_plugins.py
+++ b/airflow-core/tests/unit/api_fastapi/core_api/routes/public/test_plugins.py
@@ -68,6 +68,45 @@ def test_should_respond_200(
         assert body["total_entries"] == expected_total_entries
         assert [plugin["name"] for plugin in body["plugins"]] == expected_names
 
+    def test_external_views_model_validator(self, test_client):
+        response = test_client.get("plugins")
+        body = response.json()
+
+        test_plugin = next((plugin for plugin in body["plugins"] if plugin["name"] == "test_plugin"), None)
+        assert test_plugin is not None
+        assert test_plugin["external_views"] == [
+            # external_views
+            {
+                "name": "Test IFrame Airflow Docs",
+                "href": "https://airflow.apache.org/",
+                "icon": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/lucide-icons/lucide/refs/heads/main/icons/plug.svg",
+                "icon_dark_mode": None,
+                "url_route": "test_iframe_plugin",
+                "destination": "nav",
+                "category": "browse",
+            },
+            # appbuilder_menu_items
+            {
+                "category": "Search",
+                "destination": "nav",
+                "href": "https://www.google.com",
+                "icon": None,
+                "icon_dark_mode": None,
+                "name": "Google",
+                "url_route": None,
+            },
+            {
+                "category": None,
+                "destination": "nav",
+                "href": "https://www.apache.org/",
+                "icon": None,
+                "icon_dark_mode": None,
+                "label": "The Apache Software Foundation",
+                "name": "apache",
+                "url_route": None,
+            },
+        ]
+
     def test_should_response_401(self, unauthenticated_test_client):
         response = unauthenticated_test_client.get("/plugins")
         assert response.status_code == 401
diff --git a/airflow-core/tests/unit/cli/commands/test_plugins_command.py b/airflow-core/tests/unit/cli/commands/test_plugins_command.py
index e938989527986..885a8b2510fe6 100644
--- a/airflow-core/tests/unit/cli/commands/test_plugins_command.py
+++ b/airflow-core/tests/unit/cli/commands/test_plugins_command.py
@@ -90,13 +90,14 @@ def test_should_display_one_plugin(self):
                         "name": "Name of the Middleware",
                     }
                 ],
-                "iframe_views": [
+                "external_views": [
                     {
                         "destination": "nav",
-                        "icon": "https://example.com/icon.svg",
-                        "name": "Test IFrame Plugin",
-                        "src": "https://www.google.com",
-                        "url_route": "/test_iframe_plugin",
+                        "icon": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/lucide-icons/lucide/refs/heads/main/icons/plug.svg",
+                        "name": "Test IFrame Airflow Docs",
+                        "href": "https://airflow.apache.org/",
+                        "url_route": "test_iframe_plugin",
+                        "category": "browse",
                     },
                 ],
                 "appbuilder_views": [
diff --git a/airflow-core/tests/unit/plugins/test_plugin.py b/airflow-core/tests/unit/plugins/test_plugin.py
index 725cf87e0c192..7901e1cc99b55 100644
--- a/airflow-core/tests/unit/plugins/test_plugin.py
+++ b/airflow-core/tests/unit/plugins/test_plugin.py
@@ -102,12 +102,13 @@ async def dispatch(self, request, call_next):
     "name": "Name of the Middleware",
 }
 
-iframe_view_with_metadata = {
-    "name": "Test IFrame Plugin",
-    "src": "https://www.google.com",
-    "icon": "https://example.com/icon.svg",
-    "url_route": "/test_iframe_plugin",
+external_view_with_metadata = {
+    "name": "Test IFrame Airflow Docs",
+    "href": "https://airflow.apache.org/",
+    "icon": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/lucide-icons/lucide/refs/heads/main/icons/plug.svg",
+    "url_route": "test_iframe_plugin",
     "destination": "nav",
+    "category": "browse",
 }
 
 
@@ -128,7 +129,7 @@ class AirflowTestPlugin(AirflowPlugin):
     flask_blueprints = [bp]
     fastapi_apps = [app_with_metadata]
     fastapi_root_middlewares = [middleware_with_metadata]
-    iframe_views = [iframe_view_with_metadata]
+    external_views = [external_view_with_metadata]
     appbuilder_views = [v_appbuilder_package]
     appbuilder_menu_items = [appbuilder_mitem, appbuilder_mitem_toplevel]
     global_operator_extra_links = [
diff --git a/airflow-ctl/src/airflowctl/api/datamodels/generated.py b/airflow-ctl/src/airflowctl/api/datamodels/generated.py
index a3132f3de504b..86e1ba25d70f5 100644
--- a/airflow-ctl/src/airflowctl/api/datamodels/generated.py
+++ b/airflow-ctl/src/airflowctl/api/datamodels/generated.py
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ class AppBuilderMenuItemResponse(BaseModel):
         extra="allow",
     )
     name: Annotated[str, Field(title="Name")]
-    href: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Href")] = None
+    href: Annotated[str, Field(title="Href")]
     category: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Category")] = None
 
 
@@ -514,6 +514,31 @@ class ExternalLogUrlResponse(BaseModel):
     url: Annotated[str, Field(title="Url")]
 
 
+class Destination(str, Enum):
+    NAV = "nav"
+    DAG = "dag"
+    DAG_RUN = "dag_run"
+    TASK = "task"
+    TASK_INSTANCE = "task_instance"
+
+
+class ExternalViewResponse(BaseModel):
+    """
+    Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.
+    """
+
+    model_config = ConfigDict(
+        extra="allow",
+    )
+    name: Annotated[str, Field(title="Name")]
+    href: Annotated[str, Field(title="Href")]
+    icon: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Icon")] = None
+    icon_dark_mode: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Icon Dark Mode")] = None
+    url_route: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Url Route")] = None
+    category: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Category")] = None
+    destination: Annotated[Destination | None, Field(title="Destination")] = "nav"
+
+
 class ExtraLinkCollectionResponse(BaseModel):
     """
     Extra Links Response.
@@ -556,29 +581,6 @@ class HTTPExceptionResponse(BaseModel):
     detail: Annotated[str | dict[str, Any], Field(title="Detail")]
 
 
-class Destination(str, Enum):
-    NAV = "nav"
-    DAG = "dag"
-    DAG_RUN = "dag_run"
-    TASK = "task"
-    TASK_INSTANCE = "task_instance"
-
-
-class IFrameViewsResponse(BaseModel):
-    """
-    Serializer for IFrame Plugin responses.
-    """
-
-    model_config = ConfigDict(
-        extra="allow",
-    )
-    name: Annotated[str, Field(title="Name")]
-    src: Annotated[str, Field(title="Src")]
-    icon: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Icon")] = None
-    url_route: Annotated[str | None, Field(title="Url Route")] = None
-    destination: Annotated[Destination | None, Field(title="Destination")] = None
-
-
 class ImportErrorResponse(BaseModel):
     """
     Import Error Response.
@@ -647,7 +649,13 @@ class PluginResponse(BaseModel):
     fastapi_root_middlewares: Annotated[
         list[FastAPIRootMiddlewareResponse], Field(title="Fastapi Root Middlewares")
     ]
-    iframe_views: Annotated[list[IFrameViewsResponse], Field(title="Iframe Views")]
+    external_views: Annotated[
+        list[ExternalViewResponse],
+        Field(
+            description="Aggregate all external views. Both 'external_views' and 'appbuilder_menu_items' are included here.",
+            title="External Views",
+        ),
+    ]
     appbuilder_views: Annotated[list[AppBuilderViewResponse], Field(title="Appbuilder Views")]
     appbuilder_menu_items: Annotated[list[AppBuilderMenuItemResponse], Field(title="Appbuilder Menu Items")]
     global_operator_extra_links: Annotated[list[str], Field(title="Global Operator Extra Links")]
diff --git a/devel-common/src/tests_common/test_utils/mock_plugins.py b/devel-common/src/tests_common/test_utils/mock_plugins.py
index a70fdaf753538..7426df1801d11 100644
--- a/devel-common/src/tests_common/test_utils/mock_plugins.py
+++ b/devel-common/src/tests_common/test_utils/mock_plugins.py
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@
     "flask_blueprints",
     "fastapi_apps",
     "fastapi_root_middlewares",
-    "iframe_views",
+    "external_views",
     "menu_links",
     "flask_appbuilder_views",
     "flask_appbuilder_menu_links",