US Navy spent $450,000 of taxpayer money on Super Bowl flyover... when the stadium roof was shut

Daily Mail 02/11/2011 17:56

The U.S. Navy has been criticised for spending almost half a million dollars of taxpayers' money on a flyover at the Super Bowl - while the stadium roof was closed.

The estimated $450,000 expense was for four fighter jets that flew from Virginia to Texas and over the retractable roof of Cowboys Stadium in Dallas.

As it was broadcast on screens at the Super Bowl XLV on Sunday, spectators inside the stadium got the same view as people watching the five-second shot at home.

The $450,000 figure was based on the aircraft’s operational cost, the time it took pilots in the F-18 jets to fly the mission and a backup plane, according to official data.

But the Navy said the only costs of the trip that it recorded were the fuel expenses of $109,000 and the flyover provided good publicity to help military recruitment.

However military aviation expert Jay Miller has questioned the expenditure.

He said: ‘What's the military exercise that's involved unless you're trying to pinpoint a target? And a big coliseum's your target destination?’

But military officials added that the flyover was part of a training exercise that gave pilots the experience with instruments and communication that they needed for missions.

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