Pentagon buzzes lower Manhattan just for kicks

This was not an accident, poor judgment, or lack of sensitivity.  Nobody's that stupid.  It was deliberate.

On Monday morning, one of the 747s used to ferry around the U.S. president was dispatched to the Statue of Liberty, escorted by a fighter jet. Assignment: Get some fresh glamour shots of the plane.

The Air Force said the flight needed to remain confidential. So while New York police knew about it, as did at least one person in the mayor's office, regular New Yorkers remained in the dark.

As a result, to onlookers Monday all across downtown Manhattan -- where the World Trade Center once stood -- the photo shoot looked like a terrorist attack. People watched in horror as a massive aircraft, trailed closely by an F-16 fighter jet, banked and roared low near the city, in a frightening echo of the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

Fearing the worst, thousands of people streamed out of the skyscrapers and into the streets. Some buildings ordered evacuations. (Wall Street Journal)

If you want a photo of Air Force One in front of the Statue of Liberty, you use Photoshop.  If, for some unimaginable reason, you actually need to fly this plane at low altitude over Manhattan, you let everybody know in advance and you do it at 7am Sunday morning.  You DO NOT do THIS (courtesy HuffPo and CNN) during business hours:

One comment on this post read:

Normally, if there are going to be any planes flying down here at all the building sends out memo's to all offices DAYS in advance. Seems a bit fishy to me. The plane was within a few hundred feet of my building - you'd think they would have warned us if it was planned. People were running out of the buildings down here.

If it was a photo-op then there is no reason not to notify the public... unless, of course, the whole point was to scare people, and measure public reaction as part of ongoing psyops research.

Take a look at this short (< 40 seconds) YouTube video to get an idea just how low this plane was, and how upset people became.

I'm not sure what this is all about, but it's obviously disturbing when the Pentagon deliberately tests the public's reaction to impending acts of terrorism.  What is it they were trying to find out?

ADDENDUM:  This news story includes a letter from a NYC council member to the FAA demanding to know why the FAA approved the low-altitude flyover.  Quote:

We understand that there is a need to conduct military activity and even, under some circumstances, near lower Manhattan. However, this does not appear to have been a serious military exercise that would have required a "need to know" classification. Additionally, if this was indeed an aerial photo mission, why you would approve such an exercise for a Monday morning defies reason.

We ask that you urgently advise New Yorkers of the purpose of this exercise, why it needed to be undertaken in New York, and without any public notice.