George W. Bush's "Mission Accomplished" Jet
Pensacola, Florida
On May 1, 2003, dressed in a Top Gun flight suit, President George W. Bush was flown onto the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln off the coast of San Diego. The aircraft, a Lockheed S-3 Viking, was stenciled "George W. Bush, Commander-in-Chief." Bush then gave a speech declaring that, "Major combat operations in Iraq have ended," beneath a big banner reading, "Mission Accomplished." Even Bush supporters later admitted that the whole charade was embarrassing.