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| Pilot Reveals Shocking Details About Threats Against Air Force One on 9/11 |
| 2011-09-06 |
| As the 10th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, Colonel Mark Tillman, who piloted Air Force One on that fateful day, is revealing shocking details about threats against the president and his aircraft. As he was flying President Bush from Sarasota, Florida, Tillman was warned that an unidentified aircraft was bearing down on the plane. Tillman said, “As we got over Gainesville, Florida, we got the word from Jacksonville Center. They said ‘Air Force One, you have traffic behind you, and basically above you, descending into you. We are not in contact with them and they’ve shut their transponder off.’” In addition, an unidentified man near the runway forced Air Force One to take off in the opposite direction. Given that officials had no idea what the capabilities of the terrorists were, Tillman didn’t want to take chances and asked for support from fighter jets. Air Force One and President Bush landed safely, but the attack forced Tillman to scrutinize the security of the aircraft. He said, “We had to make sure that every little hole, chink in our armor, had to be filled so we could protect the president. “ |
| Posted by:Sherry |
| #3 That reminds me of my personal memories of 9/11, from here in Burbank, CA. After waking up and watching it all unfold on TV in horror and disbelief, the whole San Fernando Valley became eerily quiet. Suddenly there was no air traffic overhead, and the freeway traffic slowed down. I admit to feeling scared, wondering what was going on. How far was this going to go? An hour or so later, there was a sudden roar overhead, and I jumped up in fear. I ran outside and saw a pair of ANG F-16's side by side, circling the whole valley. I had tears running down my face. At that moment, it was such a relief to know that those guys were up there watching over us. I'll never forget that. |
| Posted by: Bruce 2011-09-06 19:43 |
| #2 HMMMMM, HMMMMMM, well, iff the group of suicide operatives that carried out the 9-11 airliner attacks had seeming PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF AIR FORCE ONE = POTUS DUBYA'S FLIGHT ROUTE, why didn't they take out Dubya + Staff on the ground, or wid a MANPAD(S) AS THE PLANE WAS TAKING OFF OR LANDING. Given the chaos in post-Soviet/USSR/Cold War Russia + its soon-to-be-ex-SSRS + WARSAW PACT BLOC [East Euros], I also have to wonder why the above same just didn't buy a black market light AAM(S) or MP Rockets, etc. that could also had easily taken down Dubya's plane??? Taken collectively, this Artic + above once again tells me that there were BIGGER STAKES AT PLAY THAN JUST DESTROYING THE WTC + OTHER TARGETS. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2011-09-06 19:42 |
| #1 ...COL Tillman paints a word picture a little bit later in the story that will bring a catch to your throat: the sight of USAF fighters rolling in on Air Force One, the pilots saluting as they take up their escort positions. Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2011-09-06 17:22 |