White House apologizes for low flying plane

[superdave]

There were building evacuations in New York and New Jersey. I even saw video of people screaming and running because of remembering 9/11 from seeing the low flying plane. It's amazing how stupid people can be to approve something like this.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/04/27/low.flying.plane/index.html

[speciale]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

The mayor didnt even know about it. Must have been scary to go through especially if you were there during 9/11.

[toasty]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

Saw this. What an incomprehensibly boneheaded, insensitive thing to do. Was it too much trouble to Photoshop a picture of Air Force 1 in? Or at least permit the powers that be to alert people that it would be happening? It's not like the President was actually on the plane, so it's not really a security issue...

[speciale]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

Photo Opp fail

[toasty]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

What's even more brainbending is that this evidently isn't a situation where someone just wasn't cognizant of the effect it might have -- they did consider it, and did it anyway:

In a memo obtained by CBS 2 HD the Federal Aviation Administration's James Johnston said the agency was aware of "the possibility of public concern regarding DOD (Department of Defense) aircraft flying at low altitudes" in an around New York City. But they demanded total secrecy from the NYPD, the Secret Service, the FBI and even the mayor's office and threatened federal sanctions if the secret got out.

http://wcbstv.com/topstories/air.force.one.2.996457.html

Oh, and here's another gem, from the same article:

The cost of the frivolous flight was about $60,000 an hour and that was just for Air Force One. That doesn't include the cost of the two F-16s that came along.

By government standards, that's obviously not a hell of a lot of money, but it is just completely and utterly unnecessary to spend that sort of cash on something like this right now. Honestly, any graphic artist worth his or her salt could insert that plane against a blue sky no problem at all, for practically nothing. Or maybe wait until Obama is heading up to NYC for something else anyway. Just madness.

[Huggie Smiles]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

its one of the many mind blowing things that people behind desks agree to.

its absolutely shocking.

[runningman]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

this was a psy-op nothing more. DOD was trying to accomplish something with this.

[speciale]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

By government standards, that's obviously not a hell of a lot of money, but it is just completely and utterly unnecessary to spend that sort of cash on something like this right now. Honestly, any graphic artist worth his or her salt could insert that plane against a blue sky no problem at all, for practically nothing. Or maybe wait until Obama is heading up to NYC for something else anyway. Just madness.

hey, we paid for that photo op with our tax money. no wait

[Shpira]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

this was a psy-op nothing more. DOD was trying to accomplish something with this.

LOL sorry it had to be done...dude are you on shrooms or lsd?

[Miroslav]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

*EDIT* never mind... not worth it.

[runningman]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

do you guys know the risk of flying that plane at that low altitude over the city?? Wow huge risk
What if it lost altitude and landed right in time square? You actually believe this was just an accident? You don't think that the pentagon invests in psychological warfare? What did they learn from this?

They found out that what happened on 9/11 is still very much in the veins of the American people especially in NYC. You can't buy that kind of research.

[floridaorange]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

^I dont know if I've been spending too much time reading the political thread on MS or if I am simply seeing eye to eye with RM on this one? lol

I agree this was definitely thought out, I hope real information comes to light on this here...that was some seriously weird sh*t.

[Miroslav]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

It seems rather silly for the Pentagon to launch this psychological campaign just to learn that 9-11 is still very much in the memory of the people who lived through it. Anyone with an asshole and a functional central nervous system could have told you that for free. And what is that information good for anyways?

[runningman]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

how are we supposed to know what they were researching? Look it up and tell us. But I know what it wasn't. A photo.

This article right here tells how much of a lie it is.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/8486044

The White House director Caldera says

"Last week, I approved a mission over New York. I take responsibility for that decision," Caldera said. "While federal authorities took the proper steps to notify state and local authorities in New York and New Jersey, it's clear that the mission created confusion and disruption. I apologize and take responsibility for any distress that flight caused."

While in the previous paragraph it states:

Even Mayor Michael Bloomberg didn't know about it, and he later called it "insensitive" to fly so near the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

[Miroslav]

Re: White House apologizes for low flying plane

^^ There is nothing in that article or that quote that really supports your argument.

I dunno... it's still a huge leap for me to go from the government fucking up and leaving people in the dark to the government flying the President's plane around NYC to scare people as a part of some covert psy-ops campaign. I admit that the second interpretation sounds a lot more exciting and interesting, but I need some more direct evidence to support that.