THE PILOT WHO WOULDN'T FLY

"Juvat" wrote in message
...
After an exhausting session with Victoria's Secret Police Ed Rasimus
blurted out:


snip


The incident you refer to after four years of flying service including
UPT, operational qualification in the F-102 and achieving operational
alert status in the TANG was a request for four months detached duty
at Montgomery while working on a political campaign.

Fair enough, do you recall what your service commitment was upon
graduation from UPT was? I think mine was 6 years. Perhaps the service
commitment was shortened during 1972, but I doubt it.

A couple of other factors likely entered into the picture. GWB had been
trained to fly the F-102, which was leaving the ANG inventory rather quickly
in the 72-75 timeframe (IIRC the last ANG F-102, from the HIANG, left
service in early 76). GWB's unit had alrady received its first replacement
aircraft in May 71 (the F-101), and by 1974 all of its F-102's were gone.
With new aircraft coming into the inventory, and pilots increasingly
available from the active component who were likely already qualified in the
new aircraft, the likelihood of the ANG releasing pilots rather than pay to
have them requalify in a new aircraft is not all that unlikely, espeially
given that Bush's unit was destined to become the ANG's training unit for
F-101's and would therefore have probably *preferred* to have the more
experienced pilots serving as IP's.


The NYT has reported the corrected details of the events. Bush was
unable to meet commitments.

You are being more than kind my friend. On one hand he has
authorization to drill with the AL ANG, and said he did, but later
says he was unable to. Skeptics would say this claim came after the CO
of the AL unit, said GWB never showed up as planned.

And some would point out that the ALANG officer in question later backed off
from that initial assertion offering ""I don't think he did, but I wouldn't
stake my life on it. I think I would have remembered him."
(www.sundaysalon.org/press_reference.asp ) Now how many then-LTC's could be
expected to recall the names of 1LT's who performed a couple of weekends of
duty under their (probably somewhat remote) control some thirty years later?
As a Guard officer I had junior officers from other states and units perform
"split assemblies" in our S-3 shop on numerous occasions, and *five* years
later I could not recall their names if I *had* to. Further:

"Colonel Turnipseed, who retired as a general, said in an interview that
regulations allowed Guard members to miss duty as long as it was made up
within the same quarter. Mr. Bartlett pointed to a document in Mr. Bush's
military records that showed credit for four days of duty ending Nov. 29 and
for eight days ending Dec. 14, 1972, and, after he moved back to Houston, on
dates in January, April and May. The May dates correlated with orders sent
to Mr. Bush at his Houston apartment on April 23, 1973, in which Sgt. Billy
B. Lamar told Mr. Bush to report for active duty on May 1-3 and May 8-10.
Another document showed that Mr. Bush served at various times from May 29,
1973, through July 30, 1973, a period of time questioned by The Globe."
(NYT, Nov 3, 2000) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1071031/posts



He requested and received approval to make
up drill periods at a later time. This is standard ANG procedure.

OK he recieved approval to make up the missed drills, and yet never
met his "obligation." He didn't...he never flew again.

Where in his legal military obligations does it require him to remain in a
flying status in a unit that is dumping the very aircraft he was current in?

He was removed
from flying status for failing to meet his "obligation." I have
difficulty with the notion that a guy that managed to get a flying
slot in an ANG fighter squadron would simply be "unable to meet
commitments," and you buy into that. Your charity is extremely kind
considering where you were at the time.

Ed likely understands the timeline of Bush's service in the F-102, and the
nature of what it was like flying in an ANG unit, better than most of us.


He was current in a "combat aircraft in use in Viet Nam". The F-102
(including ANG crews) was deployed at Udorn, Danang and Tan Son Nhut
among other place.

Ed, we've covered this before. F-102s were no longer in SEA during
your second tour. So it is factually incorrect to claim they were in
use (at that time). For those that don't believe me, check the lineage
of the F-102 units in PACAF and see when they converted to F-4s or
were deactivated. Absent that look in the Appendices of "To Hanoi And
Back", specifically the AOB for 1972...you will find no F-102s in SEA
[period].

Meaningless. Bush volunteered for Palace Alert while it was still underway
(unless you think the USAF made a practice of soliciting volunteers for
programs that had already been terminated).


So, follow the thread, contribute relevantly, get your facts straight,

Hehe...even the best of us make errors.

So far, your's seem to be more evident than any of Ed's.


and reduce the level of your personal agenda.

Come on Ed, George thought this thread was about not meeting one's
obligation (a pilot that wouldn't fly) and it logically, naturally
leads many to think of the current occupant of the Oval Office.

"Logically, naturally" leads to that conclusion only if one has an already
rather well sharpened axe to grind vis a vis the current C-inC, you mean.

Brooks

That's
what I thought it was, I only read it because I have Agent set up to
read threads you post to. I obviously agree with George on this, and
without any agenda.

Juvat