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NYPD Can Shoot Down Planes, Is Bigger Than The FBI
By
Garth Johnston
Published Sep 26, 2011
Modified Sep 26, 2011
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Sep 26, 2011
Modified Sep 26, 2011
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As footage of an NYPD officer pepper spraying protesters surfaced, NYPD commissioner Ray Kelly sat down with 60 Minutes to talk counter-terrorism. SEE Ray Kelly in his "hi-tech command truck" drive to protect the U.N. MARVEL at the NYPD's terrifying, straight-out-of-Hollywood Joint Operations Center and its crazy camera capabilities. TREMBLE in fear at the idea that the NYPD has the ability to take down an aircraft that doesn't, we presume, involve Canadian geese.
In what immediately became the go-to soundbite of the interview, CBS's Scott Pelley got Kelly to cop to our police's anti-aircraft abilities:
Pelley: Are you satisfied that you've dealt with threats from aircraft, even light planes, model planes, that kind of thing?
Kelly: Well, it's something that's on our radar screen. I mean in an extreme situation, you would have some means to take down a plane.
Pelley: Do you mean to say that the NYPD has the means to take down an aircraft?
Kelly: Yes, I prefer not to get into the details but obviously this would be in a very extreme situation.
Pelley: You have the equipment and the training.
Kelly: Yes.
And while it is unclear if the NYPD has the authorization to take down an airplane, flight-downing power isn't all that Kelly (who doesn't talk about those mayoral rumors) acknowledged that the NYPD, which is bigger than the FBI, has been up to in the decade since 9/11. Kelly also talked about the NYPD's agents abroad ("They’re there to act as trip wires or listening posts. Is there anything going on there that (as I say) can help us better protect the city.") as well as the increase in CCTV cameras that ring around the city. Though London still has us beat, Kelly's crew is (for better or worse) working on it. There are more than 2,000 cameras set up in Lower Manhattan and that number will soon climb to 3,000.
"We’re the number one target in this country. That’s the consensus of the intelligence community," Kelly said by way of explanation. "We’re the communications capital. We’re the financial capital. We’re a city that’s been attacked twice successfully. We’ve have 13 terrorist plots against the city since September 11th. No other city has had that."
Meanwhile, were we the only people a little disturbed while watching this segment that terrorists refer to the Brooklyn Bridge as "the bridge in the Godzilla movie?" Really, terrorists? You're watching Matthew Broderick's easy paycheck movies now?
Tagged
60 minutes
anti-aircraft weapons
counter-terrorism
nypd
Ray Kelly
Garth Johnston
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