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Secretary Gates should explain why he allowed this outrageous waste of taxpayer funds. Why did we need this publicity stunt?

My building was evacuated the morning. I was also near the WTC center site right on 9/11.

This was not a good way to start the morning. Everyone in the area was worried and trying to figure out what was going on.

I was thankful for how quickly the building management was reacting, but it would have been better not to have to go through this experience.

Might we please get a full explanation of the reason for the flyover before we start opening my mouths we obama this Obama that?

And how much did this photo shoot cost the taxpayers?????????

Who exactly approved of this brilliant idea? I doubt President Obama knew anything about it. He never would have agreed to it. Stupid, stupid decision by some idiot bureaucrat. FAA, DOD, some really lame brain from within those agencies, and the pilots flying these planes just thought it was a photo op, too? Wouldn't frighten anyone? What are people thinking? Over NYC of all places!!

thank BO. That was helpful.

We cannot and should not over react to every single thing. This is overblown. If we have National Security, then reasoned minds should believe that if this were indeed a security breach, actions would have warranted such bruhaha.
There is such a thing as making a mountain out of a molehill, this is such a case. We certainly have enough "real problems" than to create problem where non exixts, and to always assume the worst.
Everyone is already on edge, let's not create an atmosphere where everything is negative. It is not.

Wow... emergency evacuations for a Presidential photo-op??

This would be ridiculously funny – if it weren't so scary how this administration uses propaganda.

From various sources: 40,000-50,000 dollars per hour to operate Air Force One.

For a PHOTO-OP that scared people.

I can see how New Yorkers might be concerned at the site of a large airliner flying low near Manhattan and being escorted by fighter jets. For a while I had begun to believe that the horror of the attacks of September 11th had been forgotten.

here is other D party to scare people.....

and

I support it for reason – flight test... but WRONG PLACE!!!!

What were they thinking – can they think? Get the idiots out of the government decision making positions or stop taxing us!!!!!

So let me understand this. Air Force One used taxpayers money to have a photo op over New York City. How come the media won't call it Air Force One?

A few million $$$ of taxpayer money for a photo-op. This presidency is about as thoughtful as a dime-store novel.

Let's see how many people will blame Obama for this ...

Communication failed somewhere between Federal , State and Local leaders.

Our hard earned tax dollars at work!!! I am sure that cost around $125,000, for a photo? Great work Obama

Nothing here, folks. It's just the O'man buzzing 'round the Apple in his new pimped out ride.

This was a typical bone head move by the FAA.

Apparently our current Administration forgot what horrible memories this visual "photoshoot" could trigger for a city that had endured so much.... Lack of planning and total disregard not to alert local agencies... And we are prepared to defend ourselves when we can't even notify agencies of a "planned" low flying aircraft for a photoshoot. food for thought

What a pretty stupid move! why would they do something like that after 9/11? imagine hearing a 747 buzzing lower Manhattan the first thing comes to mind is hijacking/911 run!.. pretty stupid "photo op"

That's right, scare the hell out of the residents of Manhattan for a photo shoot. Why not? Do you assume they are use to this by now? Good grief! what next?

A supremely stupid thing to do. They're lucky people weren't stroking out or having heart attacks in the streets.

It is absolutely unfathomable to me that the general public would not be informed of this activity. I am sure some people thought 9/11 was happening all over again. Why create unnecessary panic? Does anyone have an explanation for the blatant disrespect for the citizens of NYC?

Photoshop CS4 : $699.

Fueling and flying a 747 and two F16s, plus work hours lost due to building evacuations? $3.6 Million

For what it cost to stage this photo-op, they could have paid a Photoshop guru to fake a pic (just as convincingly as the real thing) for a couple a thousand dollars MAX.

D'uh.

Is President Obama aware that Earth Day has just passed? Great example he is setting. Did he really just send an empty 747 on a photo shoot??

Ok...I want my tax money back right now!

With Air Force One burning 9000 gallons of fuel an hour, does this represent the "conservation" and belt-tightening we're all being lectured and railroaded about ?

both the FAA and local law enforcement were warned ahead of time! So why the evacuations?!

Why was this plane flying around with F16's & the public not notified in advance??

Another prime example of the cluelessness in the Obama Administration to allow such a thing to go on with their airplane in NY after what happened on 9/11 – I am also shocked and dismayed that NYC police and other officials knew about this and did not warn the public so there was no scare involved, what a bunch. Complacency can lead to disaster – just ask Bill Clinton, I hope Obama gets a clue before it's too late.

Why do we need a photo shoot ? Do we not have enough PR shots of Air Force One ? Why are these people allowed to continue wasting our money ?

I don't know what kind of photo-op the back up to Air Force One was involved in, but given the adverse publicity, I certainly hope Obama weaves it into one of his re-election campaign commercials.

That's too funny. Inconveniencing hundreds or thousands of people for a photo shoot. This president has no shame.

"Oops."

So this stimulates the economy how? Glad we are wasting money on this. Change is something you put in a big jar.

Yawn! These kinds of military flyovers happen over many major cities all the time, there is always a scare, but nothing comes of it. This is not newsworthy.

See, the government even scares the Big Apple!!!

Obama terrorizes Wall Street. Whats news about that?

Probably would have been smart for the P.A. to have alerted the local media so they could warn area residents not to be alarmed. But i guess that would have made too much sense...

isn;t this how September 11 attacks happened??

" is this real life or drill?"

wasteful, tasteless b/s
not to mention unforgivably threatening to the citizens of NYC

Ok... so don't warn the public and bring back all those horrific memories of 9/11 - Way to go!

Let's be a bit more considerate of our citizens next time – thank you!

Why in the world was that plane up there for a photo shoot?? That's a lot of fuel wasted and pollution – wasn't Earth Day just last week? So much for Obama's commitment to the environment.

Air Force One is probably the most recognizable aircraft in the world, especially for Americans. While I understand the sensitivity New Yorkers have to big planes in their skies, you have to be kidding me. The people that caused the buildings to be evacuated are probably the same people that watch carefully when the seat belt demo is being given by the flight crew, and find it very confusing.

Very stupid move by all – the Air Force, the FAA, and "local officials". This should NOT have even been an idea to begin with, let alone one that was executed.

To the insensitive jerks who will post things like "get over it NYC" etc., save your breath for when you have to watch people jump out of buildings, or run for cover because of falling debris, or have to walk 20 miles home despite physical ailments – you will need it then.

Add to that, I am 7 months pregnant and did not appreciate the pain this stunt put me through. This is the most assinine decision I have experienced in years. I wish there was someone for me to slap – just one hard slap.

more poor judgment and WASTING fuel!

This was irresponsible. Many people still have the Towers still very much in the back of their minds. What kind of panic could this have caused? How many people could have been trampled to death by a flurry of people running for thier lives, trying to escape what they saw as a threat? And how many car accidents could this have caused as people driving rubber neck to see what's going on?

The people should also have been informed of this little stunt for safety reasons. Informing the FAA and police is good so they don't freak out, but what about the millions living and working there who could have been seriously injured? They need to think these thins through. Even a short message on the radio the morning of would hav e sufficed, without giveg any terrorists enough time to do something.

As a New Yorker, I can't believe the idiocy! This publicity stunt was obviously thought up by someone who wasn't here on 9/11. Low-flying 747s and fighter jets still bring it all back to us.

As someone sitting and working in the NYC financial district I find it disturbing that no one involved in the preparation of the photo op gave thought to the fear it could cause. Were any of the people involved in this photo op here on 911? Do any of you understand that it does not matter if 8 years have passed? There will be no amount of time in which the bombing of the world trade centers will be forgotten.
Life on the ground here changed tremendously that day. Every day we now have policemen with AK-47's on corners. Security check points where there were none, bomb sniffing dogs patroling the area, practice evacuations in our buildings. It is not as if the safety factor will ever be taken for granted again. Anyone to have thought this was an appropriate spot for such a photo op without it being widely publicized must be insanely inconsiderate and thoughtless.

Horible, Horrible, Horrible! Our building was totally evacuated, people panicking. It was crazy. Think of a commercial plane coming close to your building and you standing on the window watching it approach. Total chaos.

It is not acceptable for the govt to have not sent notification before hand.

That's very bad that after 9/11 NY still hasn't gotten its communication systems interfaced...if they can't clearly communicate the difference between a photo op for Airforce 1 and another potential 9/11 then what have we learnt and what plans were put in place?

What a waste of taxpayers money – a photo shoot!

lol......

A lot of gas being wasted...

Well, and good.... at least Obama was not hanging on the wing in a full flight suit declaring us the victors of what.... oh, hell, anything! *LOL* We have to have photos ops... *LOL*

Is anyone surprised that it was a "photo shoot" for the presidential airplane that caused the evacuation?

The arrogance of this administration will be it's downfall.

so how much id we lose in productivity and what did we gain from this photoshoot? While I have been for Obama, at events like this, he acts like a kid i a candy shop! He is not setting agood example.

Who ordered the photo shoot and why?

If you need any more help asking the relevant questions, just let me know.

Used for a photo shoot? How much did that cost?

The local law enforcement, however, was told NOT to divulge any information leading to massive building evacuations, thousands of phone calls from concerned citizens, and some very shakey New York residents.

Allowing this "photo-op" to happen unannounced has caused a great panic in that city.

Hope those photos were worth it.

Yep, that's what Obama is all about: a photo shoot. The people in NY were wise to get out of the way of Obama and his publicity stunts, as he cares more about how he "appears" than how he really is. People could get hurt if they get in the way of his photo op.

Enough already with the SCARE crap. I'm so sick a tire of all this crap out here about FEAR. If it's not the republicans, it's the media tiring to SCARE the crap out of this country about TERRORISM, EEEEENOUGH ALREADY. We had 9/11 8yrs ago and all you hear is people want to kill Americans, our country is under attack by terrorist, nothing but FEAR tactics by the politics to keep you afraid of people who don't look like white America.

Incredibly stupid! As a witness to 9/11, I am appalled at the callous attitude taken by this Administration to joy-ride around lower Manhattan. Clearly, there were very nervous NY'ers watching this unfold, not sure what was going to happen next.

What in tarnation

Given the circumstances which occurred on 9/11 involving planes crashing into the World Trade Center and the aftermath associated with that disaster, it is understandable that people remember the trauma associated with that event. Likewise, when the president travels, enough security is required for his safety which means security flyovers and so forth. The real problems associated with the events of 9/11 remain shrouded in secrecy to the extent that the trauma elicited during these security efforts remains unresolved. If an objective investigation into the matter had been entertained and investigated, that trauma would in my opinion dissolve but no investigation on an objective basis is not forthcoming and we shall never know the real association of THERMATE found in the WTO rubble to who placed it there in the first place and not by the supposed hijackers!

Now there's a good use of tax payer dollars! Couldn't they just use the postcards we can all buy at the store????

Jeez, what a waste.....

Real smart....although, to an administration who really thinks there is no terror threat, a photo op with a 747 flying low near the statue of Liberty would not even come to mind.

Cool

Whose idea was it anyway?

I really like Obama, but he must insist that the military end it's practice of flying in our kite space within .25 miles of our homes. If an accident happened, the negative effects would be phenomenal!

Also, he must put an end to the appalling air show that we're subjected too every October, in San Francisco. My poor doggie might suffer from a very painful heart attack if he is subjected too another eardrum shattering roar of fierce engines in the sky. It terrifies him, and is pure noise pollution!

i think that the government needs to stop being so weird about stuff. i mean, they act like everything in the air is going to fly into something and blow it up. we havent had an episode like that in years. use your brain ppl!

Yeah, an airplane followed by two fighters flying low over lower Manhattan. Didn't think that'd freak anyone out? What genius authorized that without warning people first?

And just how much of the taxpayer dollars went into this photo shoot for the WH?

I bet the amount spent could have saved a couple hundred elementary school teacher positions instead, Obama will have a nice 8×10 of Air Force One.

Waiting for all the Obama haters to start ranting....

Hmm, I guess Cheney wasn't there to clog and confuse the FAA Air Traffic Control network with multiple military exercises this time....