I was disturbed by the idea that Dan Bartlett had seemingly invented out of thin, atmospheric air the notion that Air Force One had had some contact with a BA airplane en route to Afghanistan. It seemed to confirm for a while the notion that this White House is as stupidly and trivially as duplicitous as the last one. So it's a relief to hear that's not the case. When Dana Milbank concedes the issue, I think it's basically over.

The White House released a statement from Britain's air traffic service confirming that a "non-UK operator" radioed the control center in Swanwick, England, at "0930 Zulu" time to ask if the aircraft behind it was Air Force One.
That seems to check out, but mysteries remain. Who was this "non-UK operator"? And how is it that a British Airways plane could have been with Air Force One "for a good portion" of the flight if the president's plane was averaging 665 mph -- far beyond the speed of commercial aircraft?