Dick Cheney makes Shannon (Ireland) stopover

[Tab]

It has been confirmed that US Vice President Dick Cheney made a stopover at Shannon airport last night en route from Afghanistan.

The White House No.2 was accompanied into the terminal building by an entourage of up to thirty people where he spent an hour while his aircraft was refuelled.

Mr Cheney was travelling back to the United States from Kabul where he had met with newly elected President Hamid Kharzai.

However, the Department of Foreign Affairs has refused to confirm reports Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was also on board a second plane which also touched down at Shannon.

Witnesses have said there was a full US secret service unit and significant Garda presence at the airport.
http://212.2.162.45/news/story.asp?j=126741120&p=yz674y8z6&n=126741880

[non sociopath skin]

1. Hope there was time for a quick RTE interview ...

... I seem to remember that they gave Shrub an enjoyably hard time.

Interestingly, I've been listening to RTE's Classical radio station all day and nothing's been said about this ...

The Skin

[veggiemama]

2. Didn't hear a thing about it all day on RTE Radio 1 either!

But I knew I smelled something foul in the winds from the west last night! There was also no news of this event in the IAWM/SWP news bulletin today, and those fine people are generally ahead of the media on all things concerning Shannon Warport.

If I'd known OilDick was going to be on MY island, I'd have gone out to protest!

[Bridget Burke]

3. I'm sure many would have turned out to give him a fine greeting!

No surprise that his visit was kept secret.

[MaineDem]

4. Plenty showed up to greet Shrub earlier

I love the Irish!!!

Slainte!

[ElectroPrincess]

16. Yes, I remember Shrub's RTE interview well ....

it was during that interview that he referred to the Democratic Republic of Pakistan. Damn, that cracked me up almost as much as he rudely snipped, "Let me finish! Let me finish!"

What an embarrassment to somewhat thoughtful and intelligent Americans everywhere.

What a sniveling little man ... a true blue MAROON! :P

[veggiemama]

5. Rumor has it that Rummy touched down at Shannon Warport, too!

Here's snippage from IOL:

>>

It has been confirmed that US Vice President Dick Cheney made a stopover at Shannon airport last night en route from Afghanistan.

...

However, the Department of Foreign Affairs has refused to confirm reports Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was also on board a second plane which also touched down at Shannon.

Witnesses have said there was a full US secret service unit and significant Garda presence at the airport.

<<

http://212.2.162.45/news/story.asp?j=126741120&p=yz674y8z6&n=126741880

Bloody hell! But at least Bushco's gotten the message that there's no "cead mille failte" for fascists in Eire!

[Tab]

7. Yes

That's in the original posting (see 4th para).

Interesting thing was that Cheney went in. He apparently was meeting someone. He could have just hung out on the plane during refueling.

[MaineDem]

8. Maybe he needed some Bushmills from Duty Free

:D

[TahitiNut]

14. Or duty-free pharmaceuticals?

About 70% of the drugs consumed in the U.S. are now manufactured in Ireland, I'm told.

[veggiemama]

15. And you can buy codeine OTC, too!

Must've been stocking up on the Codinex!

[veggiemama]

11. Sorry, Tab! I was so angry when I read the 1st paragraph that I

didn't make it to the end! The "telefish" news, which just aired, also neglected to mention this item. However, the planespotters at Shannon have ample evidence to support Cheney's visit and Rummy's landing. I'm surprise at how little security there was last night, considering how utterly over-the-top the security was for Chimpy.

http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=67834

[obreaslan]

9. More like...

Cead mile lar mear

One Hundred Thousand Middle Fingers

escuse my phrasing, I only know a little Irish. :shrug:

[veggiemama]

6. IndyMedia Ireland has some eyewitness reporting . . .

It's a highly entertaining, enlightening, and frightening minute-to-mintue account:

http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=67834

There's even poetry and pictures!

Erin go bragh!

[bin.dare]

18. agree, it is worth the read n/t

[midnight armadillo]

10. Could it be medical?

A medical emergency could have prompted a landing...

Don't keel over dead Cheney, it'd break my cheneying heart!

[Tab]

12. No, not like that

He wouldn't have walked in with an entourage

[veggiemama]

13. Planespotters reported an ambulance, but there appears to have been

no visible emergency:

~snip~

80002 was Cheney’s jet. It had the presidential livery on it, and it didn’t come down the taxiway like other planes. When it left the main runway, it turned off to come down the shorter runway (runway one-three) rather than come down a taxiway (the taxiways are closer to the fence).
It parked PARALLEL to the terminal rather than nose-in. This was they save time, and they don’t need to be pushed back for departure. It also means that they’re blocking the apron.

As Air Force Two came to a stop, there were about 6-8 Garda vehicles.
A few airport police vehicles, the FBO van, and unmarked cars to meet it. We could see one of the airport police inspectors upstairs in the terminal with Gardai, overlooking the plane.
The steps got moved over and over 30 guys in long jackets step down from the plane. As they did, more secret service guys arrived in a pick up truck and limo. The plane was surrounded by cars and “dudes-who-don’t-smile-in-pictures”.

The entire airport fire brigade was sitting on standby the whole time, with all their lights flashing, orange and blue. There was an ambulance waiting as well.

We think that the second plane was probably Rumsfeld returning from Kabul. His plane didn’t get the same level of security, but it was parked in the ‘pen’ (the fenced in area at Gate 42, where they close a gate behind the plane after it enters.)


SAM 8335 was the call sign used by Cheney’s plane when it was arriving, but at the same time as the second VIP jet (80001) landed, Cheney’s plane started talking to ground control using call sign Air Force Two. We were wondering for a second if they were using a decoy…

After Cheney left, there was long line of unmarked cars, Garda cars and Garda vans leaving in single file.

<<

http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=67834

The US gubmint uses Shannon daily to refuel its planes to and from Afghanistan and Iraq. That's why we call it Shannon "Warport", why there are planespotters there 24/7, and why Irish peace activists are being arrested, tried, and jailed. It's unacceptable to have a warport in an neutral country.

[Megahurtz]

17. He probably had to visit his offshore bank account.

[veggiemama]

19. Good point, but that would be on the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands

Not the Land of Ire!