emoove (tony) wrote in message ...
Former President Reagan's sunset burial had a dissonant note for me. The Navy
flew a missing man formation over the site, and as is traditional the second
element lead position (the airplane that would have been represented by your
ring finger tip as they flew in finger tip formation) left its position,
representing the missing man.

For this man, this president, tradition should have been broken. The missing
man was a Leader. The lead position should have been the vacant one.

(besides the leader) The other aircrews turn their heads 45 degrees
left or right to view the aircraft in front of them. They use it as
reference to their position in the formation. If the lead aircraft
became the missing man, then the other aircraft would have no good
reference points to keep themselves in proper formation.

Don't know if anyone else heard this but on Wednesday during the Air
Force 21 ship salute over Washington, Peter Jennings called the
formation the "Solo Man Formation". Plus the camera man focusing on
the aircraft doing the rapid climb away from the formation. IMHO, the
focus of the "Missing Man" is not on this aricraft but on the
remaining formation.