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Colonel Condemns Denigration of President and Guard
By Thomas D. Segel
March 8, 2004

"An element of the Democrat Party, as represented by Senator John F. Kerry from Massachusetts and Terry McAuliffe of the Democrat National Committee, will stoop to any depth to obtain political power, to include attacking the motives of our service members, Air National Guard and reserve. It is a fringe element that is willing to undermine the confidence of our fighting forces in the midst of our global war on terrorism. It is a fringe element that places political power higher on their priority list than the United States national security; otherwise they wouldn't be denigrating and diminishing Air National Guard and reserve service in an effort to undermine the credibility of the Commander-in-Chief of our Armed Forces." These are the words of Air Force Colonel John H. Wambough. Now retired, he speaks from a position of knowledge and experience, having been both a fighter pilot and a major unit commander.

The colonel reflects back to the time of the Vietnam War and notes, "George Bush and I were fighter pilots. Lieutenant Bush flew F-102s in the Air National Guard and I flew F-105s in combat. Both of our flying assignments were inherently dangerous...Lieutenant Bush's because of the high performance nature of the fighter interceptor aircraft he was flying, the training required to fly an F-102, and the high risks that come with all weather, day and night intercept missions."

Wambough is enraged at what he calls the flippant slandering of the president by the Kerry-McAuliffe and anti-war left wing of the Democrat Party. "They have relentlessly attacked the service of Lieutenant Bush and by inference other pilots and members of the Air National Guard and reserve forces as cowards and shirkers of responsibility for not being in Vietnam." he says. He also feels using such tactics in an attempt to win an election go beyond the pale.

"Neither Lieutenant Bush nor I had control over mission assignment, where we would be deployed, or how the service would task the units to which we were assigned. Lieutenant Bush would gladly have gone to Vietnam or anywhere else his unit was deployed...but, the reality was Bush had no say as to how his unit would be utilized to support our country's national security interests. Lieutenant Bush's mission, as a squadron fighter interceptor pilot, was to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft inbound to the United States... for example Soviet Nuclear Bombers. Remember, we were still in the Cold War in the 1970s, with Air Defense a high priority mission. Today these same Air Defense forces protect us against aircraft with terrorists on board." he reflects.

Experienced fighter pilots will all agree that flying operational fighter jets is highly dangerous. During training and during routine missions air crews and aircraft are lost. They crash in air-to-air training. They crash on take-offs. They even crash on final approach at their bases. There are weather related dangers, mechanical problems, and problems associated with the human element. In other words, according to Colonel Wambough, "Cowards or people who lack courage don't take the risks Lieutenant Bush took when flying fighter interceptor aircraft. Flying jets in wing formation in weather, and carrying explosive ordnance on board is dangerous work. The pilots of these squadrons did what their country asked them to do. They performed their assigned missions and did it well," he said.

In November 1970 the Commander of the Texas Air National Guard, Lieutenant Colonel Jerry B. Killian, called Lieutenant Bush "a dynamic outstanding young officer". When rating his flight performance, the commander said he was "A top-notch fighter interceptor pilot" and that his skills "far exceed his contemporaries". Killian also wrote, " He is a natural leader whom his contemporaries look to for leadership. Lieutenant Bush is also a good follower with outstanding disciplinary traits and impeccable military training."

In speaking of Bush's release from service to attend Harvard Business School, Wambough recalls that thousands of pilots had been trained and as the Vietnam War begin to phase down there was a surplus of pilots along with relatively few flying jobs. Thus, the active duty, guard and reserve forces were accommodating to those who wanted to pursue alternative career paths.

Colonel Wambough is particularly incensed about the Democrat claims that nobody could remember seeing Lieutenant Bush at training. He says, "Having been a Squadron Commander, I can tell you this...we know the status of our assigned personnel all the time...everyone is accounted for. We report the status of all our squadron personnel daily to a higher level in our organization. Likewise, Lieutenant Bush's Squadron Commander of 30 plus years ago would have known where Lieutenant Bush was and how to contract him should that have been necessary. The bottom line, Lieutenant Bush's documented Air National Guard service exceeded the requirements set forth in his Guard contract and he received an Honorable Discharge."

What is of greatest concern to this retired officer is the opening of old wounds. "Like many veterans of Vietnam, I returned to a country that was, for the most part, unappreciative of the service rendered by our fighting forces. It is sad that this attack on our commander-in-chief results in reopening the feelings and wounds of bygone years..."

He feels it is fair to recognize Senator Kerry's four-month war record and medals. However, he says it is far more important to subject what Kerry did after leaving the military to the greatest scrutiny. "He became a turncoat by misrepresenting to the American public what our soldiers were doing in Southeast Asia. As part of the anti-war movement with Jane Fonda, he maligned, mocked and discredited our soldiers while they were still engaged in battle. He defamed our brave fighting men. He lied about what our soldiers were doing in combat. The ultimate insult our citizens could inflict on the armed forces of the United States would be to vote into office, as commander-in-chief, the person who betrayed his comrades in arms while they were still fighting and dying on the battlefield and in air combat."

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Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.