It is 3:57 pm eastern time and EWTN is advising the Shepherd One has landed at Andrew’s Air Force Base. I was surprised to learn that President and Mrs. Bush will meet him at the Air Force Base and give him a ride into town. This is the first time that Mr. Bush, and maybe any other president, has greeted a visiting head of state at the airport.
There is much expectation of what Benedict will have to say and I am sure that the main stream media will parse every word and look for hidden words in his speeches.
The door is open on the plane and the world awaits his visit. Many dignitaries are on hand to greet him including the Archbishop for the US Military.
I wonder if the pilots were nervous flying the Pope to the US, I know I would be.
I was reading an online account of flying on the plane with the Pope. The press pays about $4,500 for the round trip flight on the Alitalia flight. The Pope does not have his won plane he borrows one from Aliatalia when he needs to fly somewhere. So he comes not only as religious leader but as head of the Vatican City State and is greeted as such with all the pomp and circumstance that any visiting head of state would get in the US.
There is a very ominous man standing at the door of the aircraft not letting anyone on. Noe the Nuncio has just gone on the plane to meet the Pope. The commentators on EWTN do not know what to say at this time.
The President and First lady and one of the Daughters his coming out now and the crowd is cheering. There was a movement on to have churches ring bells when the Pope arrived and EWTN is reporting that bells are ringing.
4:11pm the Pope has stepped on US soil. The ladies are dressed in Black and it looks like the US ambassador to the Vatican is there and she is in yellow.
No speeches here just greetings the official speeches come tomorrow in the Rose Garden.
