"War" and "Warfare." Readers' Responses

Dear Friends,

I received several dramatic responses to my recent "War" and "Warfare" letters. I have posted them below.

Always,

Jan

Teamwork

Jan,

I have a friend who flies F-18's for the Navy from the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Kennedy. I got a tour of the ship years ago and got to see his bunk room, war room, etc. It was a great experience. It is amazing how the ship operates and how close everyone works together. I got a new appreciation for the service as it truly teaches teamwork more than anything else.

Nothing gets me more excited than watching these planes take off or fly overhead. It is why they use them at all the major sporting events to get the crowd stirred up.

Erik

F/A-22 Raptor

F/A-22 Raptor The F/A-22 Raptor fighters were delivered to Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. Langley is the first Operational AFB for the F/A-22. It is a very beautiful AFB, located in a picturesque region near Norfolk and Hampton, Virginia.

The Aircraft flying along with the F/A-22 in the last of these photos is the F-15, which will be replaced by the F/A-22. In actual in-flight (simulated) combat operations against the F-15, two F/A-22s were able to operate without detection while they went head to head against eight F-15s. The F/A-22s scored Missile Hits against all the F-15 Aircraft and the F/A-22s were never detected by either the F-15s or Ground Based Radar.

The F/A-22 is America 's Most Advanced Fighter Aircraft for the 21st Century. They're a titanium and carbon-fiber dagger. They're so advanced that if their on-board locator is switched off even our own satellites can lose track of them.

The F/A-22 is the first military aircraft ever built that is equipped with a "black-out button." The best conditioned fighter pilots are capable of maintaining consciousness up to in the vicinity of 15+ G.

The Raptor is capable of making 22+ G turns. If an adversary builds a missile that is capable of catching up to one of these airplanes and a Raptor pilot sees that a strike is imminent, he hits the 'b.o.b.' and the airplane makes a virtual U-turn, leaving the missile to pass right on by. The pilot will temporarily lose consciousness, so the Raptor then automatically comes back to straight and level flight until the pilot (he or she)wakes up.

OK...To Whom it may concern: DON'T MESS WITH US!

Submitted by Bob B.

USS New York

USS New York The USS New York is the fifth in a new class of warship designed for missions that include special operations against terrorists. It will carry a crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines to be delivered ashore by helicopters and assault craft.

The USS New York was built with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World Trade Center. Steel from the World Trade Center was melted down in a foundry in Amite, Louisiana to cast the ship's bow section. When the steel was poured into the molds on September 9, 2003, "Those big rough steelworkers treated it with total reverence," recalled Navy Captain Kevin Wensing, who was there. "It was a spiritual moment for everybody there."

Junior Chavers, foundry operations manager, said that when the trade center steel first arrived, he touched it with his hand and the "hair on my neck stood up." "It had a big meaning to it for all of us," he said.

"They knocked us down. They can't keep us down. We're going to be back."

The ship's motto? "Never Forget."

Notice the Twin Towers smokestacks.

Submitted by Marty I.

Your "War" letter brought tears.

Dear Jan,

Your "War" letter brought tears...So many people dying in wars.

Remember, when we were at Barkdale AFB? The mannequins posed in the airplanes made it seem SO real -- both inside the museum and on the field.

Thank G-d, my godson, Greg, returned two weeks ago from Afghanistan. He has four little boys. This was his third tour. It is always so frightening to think something could happen and four little boys and a wife wouldn't have him.

My husband Gary has a long family history here. Gary's great grandfather was a surgeon at the Battle of Mansfield. Dr. Whitlock was Gary's mother's grandfather. Her maiden name was Georgia Belle Whitlock. Is that Southern Belle enough?

Submitted by Dodie S.

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