Tuesday, April 28, 2009

AF One Photo-Op Scare

From David Seifman, Murray Weiss and Jeremy Olshan at the New York Post:
A jumbo jet being chased by a F-16 fighter jets buzzed Lower Manhattan [Monday] morning, panicking New Yorkers, many of whom were forced to evacuate their office buildings.

It was not a terrorist attack, however, but a photo opportunity for Air Force One, sources told the Post.
President Obama was in Washington at the time, but the low-flying 747 circling the Statue of Liberty was one of the planes used as Air Force One, sources said.
The NYPD and the city were notified of the planned flight, but did not share that information with Mayor Bloomberg and other New Yorkers, many of whom said they were terrified.

MORE: White House Apologizes For Air Force One Photo Op

Hours after the incident, a furious Bloomberg called the photo-op "insensitive."
"First thing is I'm annoyed - furious is a better word - that I wasn't told," he said. "Why the Defense Department wanted to do a photo op right around the site of the World Trade Center catastrophe defies imagination. Poor judgment would be a nice ways to phrase."
Bloomberg said federal officials notified the NYPD and another city official, whom he declined to identify, of the flight plan.
"Had I known about it I would have called them right away and asked them not to," he said. "The good news is it was nothing more than an ill considered, badly conceived, insensitive photo op - with the taxpayers' money."

4 comments:

Sean Schafer said...

This is one of those situations where you have to take a step back and put yourself in the shoes of the person who made that decision.

After doing that I find it unbelievable that someone could actually think this is a good idea. How can you think sending a 747 with a trailing fighter jet through New York is a good idea??? I just can't imagine it. Wow....

Sean Schafer said...

Also, in a time where the President is being bashed about worrying too much about his image, who was the braniac that decided the President's plane needed a photo-op?? Great political move.

Dan Cirucci said...

This one is right up there with Clinton getting his hair cut on AF One with the jet using tons of fuel,

Sean Schafer said...

hahaha! I never knew about that. I googled it. Thanks for the laughs.