Un-freakin-believable, even for the schlubs in question.

On second thought, they were obviously savvy enough to photoshop out all the terrified citizens, so they have something going for them.

As Instapundit would say "The country is in the very best hands"

That looks more like a snapshot taken by the escorting F-16 than a pro's shot.

They needed low level passes over the skyscrapers of lower Manhattan for that?

A long race track with the jet only getting low over the harbor would have sufficed.

By the way - who requested the photo op? I don't care who approved it, I want to know who requested it.

I'll bet it was a joyride--not a photo shoot.

Even the LA Times knows how to do this-

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2009/05/photoopobamanyc-flyover.html

They would have been better off not releasing the photo since it demonstrates that this was not a photo-op mission. The obvious guess is a joyride for campaign donors.

That looks more like a snapshot taken by the escorting F-16 than a pro's shot.

Where do you think the pro was sitting?

Where do you think the pro was sitting?

Hopefully not behind the camera that took that pathetic photo.

More like an autograph signing/joy ride episode.
The riders list is classified as top secret.
Could be the won was along for the thrill of
twirling his easy chair as the 747 swooped
over NYC scaring the life out of everyone.

Better yet, why didn't you take an image of Air Force One that's in the public domain and an image of the Statue of Liberty, also in the public domain and make the same shot for nothing more than the cost of Photoshop and some personal time. Now, that would be a lot cheaper than $357K...

If you take all this at face value, another metaphorical layer is added to the rich tapestry already suggested by this entire event (Obamazilla attacking a terrified urban populous, waste in a time of hardship, the president attacks his own people, 9/11 never really happened, etc., etc.) we now have a photograph that deliberately highlights the One and renders everything else in it almost invisible.

The shadows are inconsistent between the plane and the ground.

<tinfoil garmenttype="hat">
Is there anything in this picture to indicate it was taken a couple of weeks ago, rather than a year or two ago?
</tinfoil>

Victor Massad of the American Thinker writes...

"One image alone was released from the expensive photo op that terrified New Yorkers last month. Out of God only knows how many images taken during the mission, only one was chosen. It speaks powerfully to the American public — in symbolic language.

The ominous and imposing aircraft dominates the scene in such a way that, in gestalt parlance, no one could mistake the figure for the ground. The figure is an aircraft that serves as Air Force One, representing the Messianic omnipotence of the Obama presidency. Below it, part of the background — a small and less relevant thing in comparison to the aircraft — stands the Statue of Liberty, representing the individual freedoms that Americans have come to treasure and enjoy.

The message and its purpose could not be clearer: we must reset our priorities. Now that the democracy is at last headed by this magnificent and elegant man, we must put the federal government and its needs ahead of our paltry individual freedoms. Of what value, after all, is the property Americans have spent their lifetimes to acquire, or one’s right to defend oneself with a firearm, or even the privilege of living in an upwardly mobile society that used to be the envy of the rest of the world, in comparison to the Leader’s magnificently powerful icon, glistening like a phoenix in the sun?"

Perfect!