Government officials knew the Air Force One flyover of the Statue of Liberty would scare the bejabbers out of New Yorkers, but went ahead with it anyway and quickly realized their bigtime blunder.
A barrage of e-mails between officials right after the flight made public Friday showed a flurry of second guessing, finger-pointing, attempts at damage control - even comparisons between them and The Three Stooges.
"We ... need to construct some sort of timeline on when folks became aware of it if that is possible," one Air Force official wrote, responding to the public fright.
"I agree we .. . need to accomplish damage control, but we aren't the POC (point of contact)," the response reads. "Nor do I want to become a belly button for NORAD to push on this one."
A top Pentagon spokeswoman: "Nothing like having everyone point the finger at someone else so we ALL look like a big bunch of buffoons ... can you say Moe, Larry & Curly!??!?!"
The e-mails were released in response to Freedom of Information Act requests by CNN and other news organizations.
Officials said the flyover three months ago was to create an iconic shot of Air Force One to be given to passengers on the President's plane.
The documents also show the regimented system the Pentagon uses to monitor and respond to breaking news stories.
A U.S. Northern Command document wrote this assessment: "Last 4 hours: Story reported quickly. ... Local reporting very critical, highlighting 'scare' factor. Local populace very critical of event, due to 9-11 sensitivities."
It concludes: "No positive spin is possible. Admit mistake."
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