Low-flying jets cause panic in New York, White House apologizes

Source: Xinhua | 04-28-2009 08:49

NEW YORK, April 27 (Xinhua) -- A VC-25 aircraft and an F-16 fighter jet flew low above lower Manhattan on Monday morning, causing panic among some New Yorkers fresh with memories of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, and angering Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

In this image taken with a cell phone by Jason McLane, the primary presidential aircraft, a Boeing 747 known as Air Force One when the president is aboard, flies low over New York Harbor, followed by an F-16 chase plane during a federal government photo op Monday, April 27, 2009. A low-flying Boeing 747 escorted by two fighter jets as part of a federal government photo opportunity over lower Manhattan caused a brief panic among workers near ground zero on Monday.(AP Photo/Jason McLane)

The planes, authorized by the U.S. military on a "photo-op" mission, flew as low as 1,000 feet to 150 feet (about 305 meters to 46 meters) over Manhattan, State Island, and neighboring New Jersey, and circled the Statue of Liberty, local media reported.

The VC-25 aircraft is the military version of Boeing 747. The one involved in Monday's flyover was one of the customized Boeing 747s that serve as Air Force One when the U.S. president is on board.

Thousands of people were evacuated from buildings in New York and across the Hudson River in New Jersey following the sighting of the low-flying jets, the New York Daily News reported.

"I didn't know what was going on. Some planes were circling the building. I was afraid. I was here when the World Trade Center went down," the paper quoted Eunice Davis, who was evacuated from the New York Mercantile Exchange, as saying.