Unusual Planes Over Bay Area Turn Out to be Part of Choreographed Shoot, Not APEC Transportation
As the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference took over downtown San Francisco, residents were left speculating about the unusual planes circling over the Bay Area on Saturday. Many wondered if the planes were transporting world leaders to the annual summit.
Reports filtered in of a smaller plane following a larger aircraft as they soared over the bay. However, it turns out that the timing of the aerial sighting was simply a coincidence. A spokesperson for United Airlines confirmed with SFGATE that the planes were actually part of a choreographed shoot. The smaller plane was filming the larger one for promotional footage.
The planes took off around noon from San Francisco International Airport and spent six hours flying around before landing back at the same airport. It was all part of a planned and controlled operation, much to the relief of concerned residents.
APEC kicked off on Saturday and is scheduled to run until November 17, with the main events taking place near Moscone Center and Yerba Buena Gardens. The summit is expected to be attended by more than 20,000 people, including world leaders such as U.S. President Joe Biden, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Although it’s not clear when President Biden will arrive, it is expected that he will meet President Xi face-to-face for the first time in a year on Wednesday, as reported by Reuters. The conversation between the two leaders could last for hours and will involve teams of officials from both Beijing and Washington. They are expected to discuss global issues ranging from the Israel-Hamas war, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, North Korea’s ties with Russia, fentanyl, artificial intelligence, as well as “fair” trade and economic relations, according to senior Biden administration officials.
The choreographed plane sighting may have caused a brief stir in the Bay Area, but it turned out to be a separate, unrelated event. Meanwhile, the world leaders and officials attending APEC are set to engage in significant discussions that could have far-reaching implications for global affairs.