I previously posted this as a reply on the original thread, but that thread
is getting so old I thought a bunch of interested folks might miss it, so I
thought I'd repost it as a new thread. I've taken the time to correct and
clarify some of the things I wrote in the original version.

Jay and perhaps some others seem to think that we should have launched every
available alert aircraft during the 9-11 attacks.

Big snip of fascinating post

Thanks, Scott, for the great post. Very interesting -- and scary --
stuff.

Two quick points, and a question:

1. I didn't say we should have launched everything we had on 9/11. I
said we DID launch everything we had in the D.C.-to-New York area,
according to published reports. That's the scary part, cuz it
amounted to a tiny handfull of fighters to defend our most important
assets.

2. I'm not sure that highlighting the incompetence of our Cold War-era
Air Force is a good way to prove that handing over our home defense to
the Air Guard has been a good idea. The fact that at the height of the
Cold War our air and support crews predictably took weekends and
holidays off -- and broadcast this status over walkie-talkies -- does
NOT inspire confidence. It just doesn't get much dumber than that,
tactically.

3. Did word of the Soviet incursions into German air space ever leak
out at the time? I don't remember reading anything about this, back
then -- and you'd think it would have been big news.

Thanks,
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"