Excercise Jump-Starts response to attacks (NORAD response to 9/11, debunks conspiracy theories)

SAM_PAINE'S ULTIMATE BOLD-FACED PREDICTION: The calls for Bush to "spell out the case for invading Iraq" will be answered with a block-buster revelation that OKC was indeed masterminded by Iraq, but not covered up by Clinton...just "missed."

Sam, I've been saying for weeks that the whole disinformation campaign is going to swirl around into an amazing case of "Let's get the bastard".

Bush is still mad, but he's not going to let that get in the way of doing the job right.

Check out my theory on this thread where I seem to have agitated a few America haters...

>>The article says it clearly..."give me an hour"...

That bothered me. Why would it take 30 minutes longer to put AMRAAMs on than Sidewinders?<<

I am sure there are USAF weapons-loaders out there than can answer this, but. . .
AMRAAMs, like all live weapons, are stored in the weapons dump. It takes time to load a weapon on a truck and transport it to the flight line. You do not race with live ammo, especially with a sensitive weapon systems like the AMRAAM, as their internal guidance systems and radar components would be jarred out of whack. (Hi-G flight doesn't bother them because G's are not like dropping and bouncing). In addition, once you up-load the AMRAAM you have to conduct system checks to make sure the darned thing is loaded right and will function. You don’t want an AMRAAM firing off and in dogfight mode, flying for miles and miles and miles (a heck of a lot more miles than an AIM-9), just looking for any target because it’s internal systems were messed up and are not responding to radar feeds from the launch aircraft.

AIM-9's are less complicated and less heavy and easier to move around, load, and system check. They also have a much shorter range.

The fact that the USAF was willing to load live weapons and start CAP's without going through the usual dick-dance approval process says a lot about individual initiative.

Imagine the confusion, the "we don't know exactly what is going on" environment, and yet, the USAF was working hard and fast to respond WITHOUT the usual paperwork approvals and ponderous executive decisions. Just try and get any state or federal bureaucrat (FBI, for example) to do something out of regs--won't happen.

Our nation was under attack and the services responded wonderfully, demonstrating courage to act as necessary.

"Weekend Warriors", my friend...God love 'em, but nothiing replaces the 24/7 active duty military personnel.

Actually the article says outright that the Reserve and Guard units responded faster than the active ones, and were less bogged down by regulations (can you say, "CYA," the golden objective of today's officers and NCOs?)

Since the 1960s most of the burden of continental air defence has been carried by the Air National Guard. Clinton was a disaster for the military, but in this particular case he, and the Guard, are innocent.

It takes longer to load missiles than guns because of (1) differing storage requirements and (2) more complex load/handling procedures. And that difference is the same regardless of how many days a year the crewmen serve on duty. When the officer quoted the responce times of The Boys from Syracuse (as they were known pre-PC), he was actually praising them.

By the way, it takes a Russian air defence unit longer to load missiles than guns,and longer to load radar-guided missiles than simple heat-seekers. And I guarantee that they can't upload and launch planes in 10, 30 and 60 minutes for guns, heat-seekers, and radar-homing missiles.

d.o.l.

Criminal Number 18F

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