Watching the Montgomery TV stations cover the departure of 200 members of the 187th Fighter Wing to Iraq made me flash back to my own flight to a war zone...Vietnam in late 1969. What made the connection surreal was watching the uniformed personnel board the giant chartered civilian jet from Omni Air International. That's how I traveled from Fr. Lewis, Washington, to DaNang, and back to the US a year later: on a chartered civilian plane. I don't remember the airline...maybe Eastern? There were stewardesses and the same amenities of any flight of the time...but I had the same thought tonight as a I had back then. With all of the thousands of aircraft the Pentagon owns, can't we do it cheaper ourselves rather than farming it out? Whatever. God speed to them all.
Love the title of this entry!
ReplyDeleteIt ROCKS!
It's story or book worthy!
Sending combatants on civilian airlines is a tactical strategy to prevent loss.
Fly the "friendly skies," on civilian airlines, and avoid being shot down.
It's probably not as much a cost factor as it is a loss-prevention strategy.
For a time, I was considering re-upping in a med unit in Nashville in the TANG. As I've understood it, they're now history - thanks to Bush II and BRAC.
Their mission included regular C-130 Critical Care MedEvac flights to Ramstein AFB in the GDR & Incirlik AFB in Turkey to bring wounded American GI's & select Iraqis back to U.S. soil for additional treatment & rehabilitation.
I would still re-up... only thing, they're now in TX. Wanna' fly to TX once a month just to drill?
Don't get me started on the military emasculation of America! It makes my blood boil!