Hi Everyone! Kristi encouraged me to put this on our family blog. The following pictures are of Air Force One. President Bush visited San Francisco the other day for a couple of hours to raise money for the Republican Party. I had the opportunty to be a part of a group that escorted President Bush's security detail on and off the airport. It was a neat experience and one that I hope to experience again. The above pictures were taken from a friend of mine at work who is an avid photographer. You will notice there are no pictures of President Bush as we were not allowed to take any photos of him as he exited Air Force One.
Many of you already know that I work at San Francisco International Airport. One of my job duties entails escorting special VIP's, dignitaries from other countries, professional sports teams, and high profile politicians. In this case it was President Bush. Our facility on the airport was literally crawling with secret service agents, white house staff personnel, the police, and the CHP. We were wall to wall with people ordering us around and demanding requests. At one point our supervisor who was incharge of the escort was ready to toss them all outside. In one incident, a group of secret service agents came into our building and flashed their credentials and demanded to be escorted onto the airfield. Our supervisor, bless her heart, flat our told them... NO! It was hilarious! Everyone around her became uncomfortably quiet. I give her credit, though, she held her ground. The agents had to call their supervior to get approval to enter the airfield.
The security there was so tight that it got to be intimidating at some points. Especially when Presdient Bush exited Air Force One. We were ordered not to move. We were all instructed to keep our distance. My co-workers and I wanted to get as close as we could but still could only get within 50 yrds. We had to squint to even get a good look. When he exited AirForce One he had secret service agents on every side of him. It was hard to determine who was actually him. In one of the pictures, Air Force One is shown from behind. To the left is a building with three personnel dressed in black fatigues standing on the roof. These individuals were three of six snipers with long rifles aimed in all directions.
Overall, it was a great experience. It was only his second appearence in San Francisco. When it was all said and done it seemed like a lot of work, fuss, and headache for only a two hour visit. I overheard someone stating that the secret service agents can put in up to eightteen hour days. Not something I would want to do for a living. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the slide show.
The following link will take you to an article and some more photos about President Bush's visit.
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