Why not? It isn’t as if there is any terror threat to New York City that might require use of this plane, right? De Blasio made that threat a thing of the past by dismantling the NYPD’s counterterror surveillance program, thereby ending all resentment Muslims may have had toward the city — right?
“De Blasio used a $3M counterterrorism plane to zip home from vacation,” by Yoav Gonen, Larry Celona, Tina Moore and Max Jaeger, New York Post, July 5, 2018:
The NYPD used a $3 million counterterrorism plane to shuttle Mayor Bill de Blasio back and forth from his Canada vacation to the Big Apple for an event Thursday, The Post has learned.
Hizzoner, who is in Quebec on a weeklong respite, briefly flew back to the Bronx for a memorial for slain Detective Miosotis Familia.
“NYPD is transporting him in their plane,” de Blasio spokesman Eric Phillips told The Post.
“Their plane” is a Cessna 208 Caravan that cost roughly $3 million and was picked up by the department in 2017, sources said.
The high-tech aircraft is outfitted with special sensors that can detect at a distance radioactive material used to make “dirty bombs.”
Police sources questioned the use of a special plane for mayoral transportation.
“It is very unusual to go on an international flight to go pick up the mayor,” one source said.
“I think it’s excessive, because that wasn’t what that plane was designed to do. It’s designed for counterterrorism measures. To go to Canada to get the mayor? It’s excessive.”
Sources said the aircraft is kept at MacArthur Airport on Long Island. Data from flight-tracker website FlightAware shows a Cessna Caravan with a tail number previously identified by Wired.com as belonging to an NYPD “spy” craft flying from MacArthur at 6:36 a.m. Thursday and landing at Montreal-Trudeau Airport by 8:18 a.m.
The plane departed Montreal less than an hour later and landed at Westchester County Airport near White Plains at 10:58 a.m….
Richard Robbins says
Wow where’s the outrage on the left? Oh yeah that’s right…..only when a conservative does it…
mortimer says
R. Robbins is on target. Leftards believe that ‘It isn’t fascism when WE do it … it isn’t BRIBERY when WE do it … It isn’t LYING when WE do it … it isn’t misappropriation of government property when WE do it.’
Another word for de Blasio’s misappropriation of police equipment is ‘HYPOCRISY’.
The Leftards look the other way when one of their is caught in impropriety. Remember the attitude of silence from Feminists when Bill Clinton was identified as a serial rapist.
Patsy Luna says
This Mayor is obviously delusional! terrorist attacks are always a issue since Obama let everyone in our country without begin vetted..
mortimer says
Di Blasio whitewashes Islam and downplays the terror threat. It is not because of him that police have interdicted many attempted terror attacks, but in spite of him.
NEW YORKERS, WAKE UP! Your mayor is not taking YOUR safety seriously,
Halal Bacon says
is this plane nap friendly? yuk, yuk, yuk
Sons of Liberty says
+ 1 well said Halal Bacon !
mariam rove says
Of course he did. He does not give a f… about treosism or the safety of New Yonkers, He just wants to make sure by using that plane he does get his ass blown up to pieces by muslims. m
J D S says
Muslims are not going to go after him…He’s too Muslim friendly..Didn’t he stop the antiterrorism tactics by the NYPD?
JawsV says
Can’t stand Bill Kaiser. “De Blasio” is his mother’s maiden name. What a phony!
Flavius Claudius Iulianus says
Was that De Blasio in the photo? I didn’t recognize him without his clown nose.
Sons of Liberty says
The hypocrisy of the Democrats in full view ! After hounding Scott Pruitt for his travel until he resigned here we have a Mayor of NYC which has a constant target on it by the Muslims,…. flying around in a plane meant for counter- terrorism ! At least Scott Pruitt was straightening out the mess at the over zealous EPA .
PRCS says
Couldn’t Justin Trudeau have used his plane for that?
Lydia Church says
He’s probably watching the counter terrorism operatives like Geller and us with the plane… since “we’re the real enemy,” and the vacation story is just a cover…. dun – dun – dunnnnnnnnn!!!
Relax.
I’m half joking and only half serious.
; D
gravenimage says
NYC Mayor de Blasio uses counterterrorism plane to shuttle back and forth from his Canada vacation
………………….
What a stooge.
No Muzzies Here says
De Blasio is a perfect example of the smug, condescending arrogance that characterizes the liberal Nomenklatura of New York.
Vicky says
New York is a joke. It’s a violent cartoon land of Corporate cronyism and leftist anarchy painted over by Hollywood glitz.
Babona says
Politics aside, DID DE BLASIO PAY THE PRICE OF OPERATING THIS PLANE—NOT JUST A FIRST CLASS TICKET VALUE???
This plane belongs to the people of NYC and they should be reimbursed for the cost of the entire flight!! Including filling up the gas tank!!
WESTPAC Spy says
“The high-tech aircraft is outfitted with special sensors that can detect at a distance radioactive material used to make ‘dirty bombs.'”
This very well be a more serious matter than some of you may suspect. NYC may have purchased the plane, but it sounds to me like there is classified technology installed in it. Or even if it’s not classified it still constitutes defense information. Which means it is really ours, not theirs.
And Billy exported it. Which, if my suspicions are correct, is a felony.
After I left active duty I worked as a contractor for BAE systems. Formerly known as British Aerospace E-systems. The US corporation dropped all the words and just became BAE systems because in order to get US defense contracts we had to become an independent entity from the British corporation. Not entirely as we still had a financial relationship with the parent company. But all that we were allowed to share with the London company was financial information. DoD constantly pounded it into our heads that we could not export defense information. What constitutes the export of defense information? If one of our people so much as took a laptop with them that contained any software code the USG was paying us to produce that would be it. It didn’t matter if any Brit even saw it, it didn’t matter if it was classified or not (hello, Hillary), and the laptop never left the hotel room and the person only used it send email. Once the technology leaves the country you can’t guarantee it hasn’t been compromised.
And we’re talking about the UK here. Like Canad a member of the five eyes intel alliance. Obviously we trust the Brits, and the Canadians. But that doesn’t mean that a defense contractor can willy nilly share everything on their own authority. They have none.
I don’t know what the technology behind these “special sensors” involve.And I don’t want to know. I left defense contracting in 2005 and retired from the reserves in 2008 so I haven’t maintained a clearance for ten years. And it’s a huge relief. I used to hand carry classified between my command in Yokosuka and Yongsan. Normally it wasn’t a problem. But once military aircraft broke down in Taegu. There was no way I was going to make it to Seoul on a military aircraft. So my two Sailors and I took the bus to Pusan and I got authorization from my command to put them on a Korean airlines flight and sent them on ahead. But I had to ride the bus to Seoul because you can not fly on a foreign carrier when transporting classified material. And, no, they don’t handcuff a briefcase to your wrist or anything like that. But when you are hand carrying classified ideally you make it from point A to point B as expeditiously as possible. Sometimes delays and detours are unavoidable.. There are rules governing these eventualities. Actually, they’re laws, and ordinary people go to prison (hello, Hillary) for breaking those laws. Unlike the FBI (hello, Hillary) the NCIS is not understanding when it comes to mishandling classified. I’ve witnessed more than one Commander tearing open burn bags with sweat running down the crack of his @$$ looking for the document he had signed out and could no longer find. Because, frankly, they are real b@stards and I am under the impression they like to see people get prosecuted. We had a duty truck that all the squadrons in my building at Miramar shared. One of the things we used it for was to make burn runs; to take the burn bags to the incinerator and destroy classified documents. I recall the time when one Sailor found a SECRET document in the glove box. Knowing what was good for him, he reported it. You don’t know who used the truck, whether or not they had a clearance, and whether or not they might be dirtbags. NCIS paid all the intel officers in all the squadrons a visit. Their theory (and it seems reasonable) was that while loading the truck an overstuffed burn bag broke open. So the Sailor but the broken bag in the cab of the truck and then for some reason put a SECRET message that fell out into the glove box.
What wasn’t reasonable was that they weren’t actually going to investigate. It was up to us to prove we were innocent. Then they would destroy whoever couldn’t prove their innocence. I am so glad I am no longer an intel officer.
But something is telling me that I don’t want the technology we use to detect radioactive material at a distance leaving the country. In fact, I don’t want it being used by a joyriding mayor at all. And I would say that if he were most conservative Republican who ever lived.
If I woke up on Monday and discovered I was the Attorney General of the United States I know what my first order of business would be. Defense information is information that is closely held by the US government and if revealed to a person not authorized by the US government to receive it could compromise the security of the United States. Note I didn’t say “marked classified” (hello, Hillary). You can’t allow it to escape into the wild (hello hillary). Ordinary people get prosecuted for that (hello, Hillary). Because you can’t rule out the possibility of compromise after that (hello, Hillary). Who works at Montreal-Trudeau Airport? Who refueled the plane? Did any airport workers access the interior to service the aircraft? Are they even all Canadian citizens?
If I were the AG I’d hit the ground running on Monday to answer all my questions.