I just heard from a reliable (but unconfirmed) source that Bush’s trip to Ground Zero two weeks ago was marked by one security procedure that had never before been used. Air Force One was not designated “Air Force One”. It was given a new code name for that specific trip.
Can anyone confirm that this?
Is it true that this was the first time that Air Force One was called something else?*
What code name was used?
Does this practice continue?
I realize that this information may not be publicly available.
[sub]* I am referring to the designation of Air Force aircraft, not Marine aircraft as in “Marine One”, and not private jets as in “Executive One”.[/sub]
This doesn’t really answer your question, but I beleive it was this PBS show that explained that an Air Force plane is designated Air Force One only when the President is aboard. As soon as he steps off, it is no longer Air Force One, and any Air Force plane the President occupies is designated Air Force One.
I don’t know how this fits into your question.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t fit at all. I’m only interested in the deviations from normal procedure that apparently occured during Bush’s recent post Sep-11 trip to New York. I am well aware of the standard naming practices for a ship or aircraft when the President boards. I’d rather this didn’t become that kind of discussion, since it has already been covered at length in other threads.
