How to be insanely stupid on a monday

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**Frazzled**

I was on conference call with people - NYC. Plane flew by at their height. They freaked. Building evacuated. A PR show and you didn't tell anyone you were going to fly a 747 low over downtown NY City!!! People should be fired. Now.

http://wcbstv.com/breakingnewsalerts/military.jets.nyc.2.995375.html

Military Jets Flying Over NYC Part Of Photo Shoot
FAA Confirms F-16s, 747 Seen Flying Near Statue Of Liberty Affiliated With Department of Defense Photo Op
CBS 2 Flooded With Phone Calls From Concerned Residents, WorkersNEW YORK (CBS) ―
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CBS

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numSlides of totalImages Related Slideshows 2009 Celebrity Deaths Funniest Caption Contest More Openly Gay Celebrities Celebrities Separated At Birth? Jessica Simpson: Then & Now Celebs Who Lean To The Right Hooray For The Red, White And Zooom! Hottest Female Athletes Best Picture Blunders Hottest Celebrity Moms Some military aircraft flying over lower Manhattan caused a brief scare for residents, workers, and pedestrians on Monday, but CBS 2 has learned the jets are part of a Department of Defense photo shoot and that there is no threat to the city.

According to many callers who flooded CBS 2 with their concerns, at about 10 a.m. the aircraft were seen flying at low altitudes over the Statue of Liberty and parts of lower Manhattan. The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed that two F-16s escorting a Boeing 747 were part of the Department of Defense photo shoot.

Some residents and workers who saw the aircraft evacuated their buildings as a result, but officials say there is no reason for a panic. Many people could be seen in Jersey City by CBS 2 Chopper HD leaving their buildings and gathering into the street.

Air Force officials say this was a photo mission for their crew. They were shooting from the Statue of Liberty to south of the Holland tunnel, as well as from the Newark Bay to north of the Staten Island Expressway.

Officials say the shoot was part of a normal training mission. They added that they do these mission quite often.

**Darkreaver55**

If by fired you mean strung up over hot coals and slow-roasted, I agree. What in Chaos were these people thinking?

**Jin**

Sigh.

Seriously, who the hell is in charge of this stuff? I'd be freaked as hell too if I were in a sky-scraper in Manhattan and saw a low-flying 747. Bad enough that a plane landed in the Hudson fairly recently, but having planes doing fly-bys.

Idiots.

**Frazzled**

Off the phone with people there. Circled four times. The conspiracy theory is already out that its a cover story for something else. Cool pic but can't send.

**dietrich**

Sounds like whoever did this PR blunder has a future in Obama's cabinet.

**sexiest_hero**

Sigh, ok from your friendly Airforce service man to worried peoples. The Military does fhoto op shots like this all the time. A 747 protected by two f-16s' flying over the Statue of Liberty, the message being your skies are safe. It's been going on since a few years after 9-11, and like the Official says we do these missions over the Statue of Liberty often and have given advanced warning every time. They circle so they can use the best of four shots, and it's a normal part of the mission to do so. Somebody who Didn't pay attention to the ample heads up paniced and people, being people, paniced right along.

"and you didn't tell anyone you were going to fly a 747 low over downtown NY City!!! "

They were fore-warned, and besides, we have to train how to handle a rogue passenger plane, how do you think we do that, by putting the damned planes in the are and running simulations and drills, and hey if we can take a few good pics while at it all the better. We work our asses to the death to protect you civilians, and if that means scaring people who didn't pay attention to our heads up, or missed the other frequent missions we do over Lady Liberty then so be it. We'll still fly over American skies, keeping them safe as you call for our dismissal, or make crazy theories that turn us from normal Americans to Government boogy-men. It's our duty, and our honor.

**ShumaGorath**

You all scare to easily. I lived under the takeoff and landing airway of the Brunswick Naval Air Station for 20 years. Low flying planes are cool, especially when they are 40 feet over your car.

New york has one of the busiest airports on the planet in it. I would think people would be used to seeing low flying aircraft and military fighters.

**Frazzled**

sexiest_hero wrote:Sigh, ok from your friendly Airforce service man to worried peoples. The Military does fhoto op shots like this all the time. A 747 protected by two f-16s' flying over the Statue of Liberty, the message being your skies are safe. It's been going on since a few years after 9-11, and like the Official says we do these missions over the Statue of Liberty often and have given advanced warning every time. They circle so they can use the best of four shots, and it's a normal part of the mission to do so. Somebody who Didn't pay attention to the ample heads up paniced and people, being people, paniced right along.

"and you didn't tell anyone you were going to fly a 747 low over downtown NY City!!! "

They were fore-warned, and besides, we have to train how to handle a rogue passenger plane, how do you think we do that, by putting the damned planes in the are and running simulations and drills, and hey if we can take a few good pics while at it all the better. We work our asses to the death to protect you civilians, and if that means scaring people who didn't pay attention to our heads up, or missed the other frequent missions we do over Lady Liberty then so be it. We'll still fly over American skies, keeping them safe as you call for our dismissal, or make crazy theories that turn us from normal Americans to Government boogy-men. It's our duty, and our honor.

Respectfully, sigh my

. They should have just photshopped this-how many bucks did they blow?
What kind of

ing

head idiot thinks flying a 747 at building level in NY chased by fighters is going to instill anything but terror?

If you're going to play lets pursue the plane then 1. do it over the

ing Mojave Desert; use a C-17. You DON'T do it over the one place to actually get hit like that. Of course this was actually a photo op not some sort of drill. They stated that.
Seriously, anyone who thinks this was in any way smart needs to be working in the dishcleaning subsegment of food service.
FYI there was no "heads up" given.

Again, fire them.

**Frazzled**

ShumaGorath wrote:You all scare to easily. I lived under the takeoff and landing airway of the Brunswick Naval Air Station for 20 years. Low flying planes are cool, especially when they are 40 feet over your car.

New york has one of the busiest airports on the planet in it. I would think people would be used to seeing low flying aircraft and military fighters.

Shuma its not the low flying planes. Its low flying passenger planes over NYC where other planes killed lots of people.

**ShumaGorath**

Frazzled wrote:
ShumaGorath wrote:You all scare to easily. I lived under the takeoff and landing airway of the Brunswick Naval Air Station for 20 years. Low flying planes are cool, especially when they are 40 feet over your car.

New york has one of the busiest airports on the planet in it. I would think people would be used to seeing low flying aircraft and military fighters.

Shuma its not the low flying planes. Its low flying passenger planes over NYC where other planes killed lots of people.

Yes, I'm sure living in fear your entire life due to a single event in americas history is the right way to do things. Or were you afraid before that happened? You realize that when you let an act of terrorism change your outlook on life and behavior your empowering their action? You don't let terrorism change the way things work so that people don't fear common events like aircraft photo ops. You tell people to suck it the feth up and move on.

**Frazzled**

Yes I am sure a 747 flying by your window, the same window that overlooked the Towers, wouldn't cause you the least bit consternation.

**smiling Assassin**

I have to agree with Shuma here.

We have to swallow it, move on. Trust me, you don't want to be stuck in an Underground Train tunnel when a bomb goes off, as much as you don't want your office block crashed into with a jumbo jet.

See what I did there? Which is the most probable, a bomb in the Underground in London, or a gaking jumbo jet crashing into a skyscraper in one of the financial hubs of the world.

I can't run from the asian with the backpack sitting across from me on the Underground mostly every day. What about a fly-by, can you guys deal with that?

Yes, low-flying aeroplanes are frightening. So is it when you see a young asian man muttering under his breath, carrying a backpack, on a packed train.

But, they should have said something -- however we can (ruthlessly?) put it, that's not a funny thing to play without warning.

sA

**Frazzled**

Whats the issue with Asians on a subway?

**smiling Assassin**

7/7 Bombs?

Packed Underground stations, people going about their daily business. Bang. London halts, screaming from the subways. Somewhere around 60 dead -- nothing compared to 9/11, but it rings true in Londoners' minds as a nightmare. Nightmarish.

We've had terrorism before, perhaps bitterer, more frightening, but being reached out and touched from somewhere not in the British Isles is frightening without measure. And on the Underground, too: where would you go? Crawling in the liquid that used to be Human bodies, as I quote from a Police Officer on the day "finding earrings with their backs still attached."

Oh, sorry Frazzled, I don't think I answered you. I mean asians as in Middle Eastern men. You see?

sA

**halonachos**

Shuma, I live between two naval air stations and yes seeing the low flying planes is frikkin awesome. Recently one of them dropped a training bomb(non explosive) by mistake, it landed in a storage facility so it was all good. 5 or so years back, one of them crashed on base and we could see the explosion. Still, I am not afraid of the planes (at least they're on our side).

I think what frazzled is saying is that having a 747 fly near a skyscraper will always bring up that issue and that fear of what might happen. The same thing with the subway bombings, if a britisher sees an asian fellow on the trolley acting suspicious, they may be terrified as they recall what happened before.

**reds8n**

halonachos wrote: if a britisher sees an asian fellow on the trolley acting suspicious, they may be terrified as they recall what happened before.

nah, we're all dead on the inside.

We don't do fear.

We'd tend just to roll our eyes and "tut". Maybe write a letter to the Times complaining about it later.

The comedian Rich Hall did a good skit about this.... I'm sure it's been linked here before.

**halonachos**

Everyone's dead on the inside, what makes you think the british are so special for being dead on the inside?

National Lampoon made fun of situations like that; the whole "tut tut" if something bad happens. They got into a car crash and the british guy gave his bumper to them as a souvenir.

**sexiest_hero**

But there was warning, all protocals were followed.

Flying in a cramped city is a lot different than flying in the desert, you need actual on hand experience, Just think how much more harder it is to fly a high speed fighter trying to corral a jumbo jet, in the middle of New York city. Guess what, in 2001 we didn't know how to do that. The planes were highjacked, and by the time the airforce came up with a plan people were dead. Now with this training, Our Ace pilots are learing to wind through towers and force other planes away from building and monuments, These pilots are training to be able to scatter and cover these places within 10 min of news of an high jacking, all skills you can't learn flying around in a empty desert.

Lasty, A normal military mission has more than one objective, like air drop troops here then go on to land supplies there. Likewise, the mission here involved training, AND THEN, a fly by of Lady Liberty. As I said before the military will train to keep you safe, like it or not. You can always go back to the color code terror chart, because that helps a lot better than rigorous, on site training...

(Sorry if this sounds a little personal I don't mean it as such)

**Frazzled**

No, all they were doing was escorting the plane. It was a photo op. They are not going to go highway to the danger zone through the steel canyons of Manhattan.

**halonachos**

That sounds cool. I want to see some F-18s zooming around New York. Someone should make a movie with that in it, forget flying through a chasm in movies.

**Frazzled**

Curses, now I have that horrific Kenny Logans song stuck in my head. Anyone have an ice pick, or failing that, a hand grendade? AGGGGHHHH!

**sexiest_hero**

So they were buzzing building or flying over the statute.
Or like I said both.

Oh and GOOSE, NOOOOOOOOO!

**Frazzled**

NYC Mayor Bloomberg Blasts Flyover as "Insensitive" and "Ill-Conceived"
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=7439287&page=1

Air Force One Photo Op Triggers Panic in Manhattan
NYC Mayor Bloomberg Blasts Flyover as "Insensitive" and "Ill-Conceived"
By MARK CRUDELE, RICHARD ESPOSITO and LISA STARK
April 27, 2009
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SHARE New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is "furious" over a Department of Defense low-altitude flyover of NYC in the area around Ground Zero this morning, calling it "ill-conceived" and a "waste of taxpayers' money."

A photo shoot involving a 757 spurs frightened calls from people in Manhattan.A photo shoot involving a 747 used as Air Force One and one fighter jet flying at low altitude led to hundreds of frightened calls from residents and workers in Lower Manhattan this morning, triggering memories of 9-11 as many evacuated their offices. The president was not aboard.

At a White House press briefing Monday afternoon, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs dodged questions about the flyover, even referring the media to the White House (that he represents).

Gibbs said he had no other information about the flyover other than news reports he had seen. "I was working on other things," Gibbs said. "You might be surprised to know I don't know every movement of Air Force One or what happens to it."

Click here to watch Bloomberg and Gibbs speak about the flyover.

Although the shoot was authorized, the normal system of public notification broke down, multiple officials said.

The DOD would not answer specific questions about the promotional flight.

Bloomberg said he was so furious he wasn't told about the photo op, that before he talked further to his own staff and agencies about the lack of notice to him, he wants "to calm down."

"Poor judgment would have been a nice way to put it," Bloomberg said of the government flyover.

**Typeline**

ShumaGorath wrote:
Yes, I'm sure living in fear your entire life due to a single event in americas history is the right way to do things. Or were you afraid before that happened? You realize that when you let an act of terrorism change your outlook on life and behavior your empowering their action? You don't let terrorism change the way things work so that people don't fear common events like aircraft photo ops. You tell people to suck it the feth up and move on.

I don't know Shuma, I get pretty freaked out when I see too many people in red coats in one area.

**halonachos**

Highway to the danger zone!

**sexiest_hero**

Soo somebody forgot to pass the memo along at some point. We sent it out, did our part, and we get the blame anyways.

"Officials say the shoot was part of a normal training mission. They added that they do these mission quite often."

It was part of a bigger training mission, part as in there were other parts of the mission. If the pilots are the ones cosen to protect Air Force One or the pilots os said craft, then training is very important.

They do these missions quite often. This isn't even the first time or an isolated event, just a case of lost papaerwork.

"Although the shoot was authorized, the normal system of public notification broke down, multiple officials said"

So what we have here is an approved mission, training and a photo op, a misplaced Public Noticication paper.
Oh noes, not a simple clerical error!

**Frazzled**

And hundreds of people are freaked out. But hey, at least Obama got his cool photo op, so its ok.

**dogma**

Its Manhattan. Everyone is freaked out about something at all times. You can't live on the island without being high strung.

**sexiest_hero**

I'm sure it was an idea cooked up by the PR or DoD. Like every other promotional video made for the military, or handshake and smile taken of the President. I'm sure the first thing on Obama's mind was "did that Public Notification paper make it through all the red tape for that typical and very usual training mission and photo shoot. I hope so, it's far more important than the two wars, economey, and flu virus I have to deal with today."

Edit :Jim Peters, an F.A.A. spokesman, said “the photo op was approved and coordinated with everyone.” Notification was made in advance to the mayor’s office, “including its 911 and 311 operation centers,” the New York City Police Department, the New Jersey State Police, the United States Park Police and other agencies, he said.

The Police Department confirmed that it had been notified about the event

A senior administration official said that an F.A.A. official notified Mayor Bloomberg’s office last week about the flyover. She said that Marc Mugnos, the director of operations in the office of citywide event coordination and management, was the official notified about the Air Force operation.

**Frazzled**

Panic I can believe in
Ordered by the White House no less

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

FAA Memo: Feds Knew NYC Flyover Would Cause Panic
Threatened Federal Sanctions Against NYPD, Secret Service, FBI & Mayor's Office If Secret Ever Got Out
Furious Obama Apologizes: "It Will Never Happen Again"
CBS News Interactive: Sept. 11 And Since Reporting
Marcia Kramer NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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An F-16 fighter jet trails a larger military aircraft over Lower Manhattan Monday, April 27, 2009, conducting a photo shoot that panicked thousands of New Yorkers who believed the city was in jeopardy for another terrorist attack.
Christopher Talbot, WCBS-AM Listener

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Dozens of people evacuated outside 17 State Street after military jets were seen escorting a 747 in Manhattan on April 27, 2009.
CBS

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Ellen in Bayonne, NJ took this photograph of a military jet escorting a 747 over lower Manhattan.
CBS

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Recriminations After NYC Jet Flyover Photo Op (4/28/2009)
Related LinksWCBS-TV Local Coverage
A furious President Barack Obama ordered an internal review of Monday's low-flying photo op over the Statue of Liberty.

CBS 2 HD has discovered the feds will have plenty to question.

Federal officials knew that sending two fighter jets and Air Force One to buzz ground zero and Lady Liberty might set off nightmarish fears of a 9/11 replay, but they still ordered the photo-op kept secret from the public.

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.

What are your feelings on federal officials demanding the NYC flyover be kept secret by the NYPD and the mayor's office?

"To say that it should not be made public knowing that it might scare people it's just confounding," Sen. Charles Schumer said. "It's what gives Washington and government a bad name. It's sheer stupidity."

The flyover -- apparently ordered by the White House Office of Military Affairs so it would have souvenir photos of Air Force One with the Statue of Liberty in the background -- had President Obama seeing red. He ordered a probe and apologized.

"It was a mistake. It will never happen again," President Obama said.

The NYPD was so upset about the demand for secrecy that Police Commissioner Ray Kelly vowed never to follow such a directive again and he accused the feds of inciting fears of a 9/11 replay.

"Did it show an insensitivity to the psychic wounds New York City has after 9/11? Absolutely. No questions about it. It was quite insensitive," Kelly said.

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.

The mayoral aide who neglected to tell Mayor Michael Bloomberg about it was reprimanded.