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- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - British
Airways said on Monday that none of its pilots made contact with President
Bush's plane during its secret flight to Baghdad, contradicting White House
reports of a mid-air exchange that nearly prompted Bush to call off his
trip.
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- Honor Verrier, a spokeswoman for British Airways in North
America, said two BA aircraft were in the area at the time and neither
radioed the president's plane to ask if it was Air Force One.
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- "We have spoken to the British Airways captains
who were in the area at the time and neither made comments to Air Force
One nor did they hear any other aircraft make the statement over the radio,"
Verrier said in response to a question from Reuters.
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- The White House had no immediate comment on the discrepancy.
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- Bush aides recounted with excitement last week the moment
during the flight to Baghdad when they said a BA pilot thought he spotted
the president's blue and white Boeing 747 from his cockpit.
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- "Did I just see Air Force One?" the pilot radioed,
according to the White House.
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- There was a pause. Then came the response from Air Force
One: "Gulfstream 5" -- a much smaller aircraft.
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- As one of Bush's aides recounted, the BA pilot seemed
to sense that he was in on a secret, and replied: "Oh."
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- The exchange was one of the most suspenseful moments
during Bush's secret flight to Baghdad, according to the White House.
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- With three hours to go, Bush had the Secret Service check
if his mission was still secret.
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- "They assured me that there was still a tight hold
on the information, that conditions on the ground were as positive as positive
could be," he said afterward.
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