Citing Proof
Posted on 2007-11-09 at 23:16
In a response to yesterday's blog entry, someone asked my to cite my sources for those fairly serious accusations.
In "9/11: Interviews by Peter Jennings" on ABC News and airing on September 11, 2002, Peter Jennings interviewed Colonel Robert Marr of the U.S. Air Force (among others). The Colonel was in charge of NEADS (the Air National Guard component of NORAD, the North American Air National Defense Command). In that interview the Colonel said, "We had 14 aircraft on alert, seven sites, two aircraft at each site." The BBC corroborated the quote and offered more details on the ramifications of an unarmed Air Force in an article entitled "US considered 'suicide jet missions'".
More fascinating than that is that 14 was considered above average. On the morning of 9/11, they were doing significant training exercises. On most days, there would have been fewer aircraft on duty across the US.
Our DOD budget exceeds $400 billion, most of which is spent on overseas operations. Our Air Force is in a better position to protect Seoul, Tokyo, Berlin, and London than New York. I stand by my blog-claim: Policing the world and bombing people that pose no serious threat to our interests leaves our country and its borders largely undefended. 9/11 was proof of that. 14 aircraft left to defend the whole of the U.S. airspace (I mean, unless you think that unarmed F-15's taking kamakazi runs into an enemy is a valid defense?) wasn't enough then, and it's not enough now.