Posted on 12/19/2008 4:23:43 AM PST by savedbygrace
Luke AFB is west of Phoenix and is rapidly being surrounded by civilization that complains about the noise from the base and its planes, forgetting that it was there long before they were.
A certain lieutenant colonel at Luke AFB deserves a big pat on the back.
Apparently, an individual who lives somewhere near Luke AFB wrote the local paper complaining about a group of F-16s that disturbed his/her day at the mall.
When that individual read the response from a Luke AFB officer, it must have stung quite a bit.
The complaint:
'Question of the day for Luke Air Force Base: Who do we thank for the morning air show? Last Wednesday, at precisely 9:11 A.M, a tight formation of four F-16 jets made a low pass over Arrowhead Mall, continuing west over Bell Road at approximately 500 feet. Imagine our good fortune! Do the Tom Cruise-wannabes feel we need this wake-up call, or were they trying to impress the cashiers at Mervyns early bird special? Any response would be appreciated.
The response:
Regarding a wake-up call from Luke's jets On June 15, at precisely 9:12 a.m, a perfectly timed four-ship fly by of F-16s from the 63rd Fighter Squadron at Luke Air Force Base flew over the grave of Capt. Jeremy Fresques.
Capt. Fresques was an Air Force officer who was previously stationed at Luke Air Force Base and was killed in Iraq on May 30, Memorial Day.
At 9 a. m. on June 15, his family and friends gathered at Sunland Memorial Park in Sun City to mourn the loss of a husband, son and friend.
Based on the letter writer's recount of the fly by, and because of the jet noise, I'm sure you didn't hear the 21-gun salute, the playing of taps, or my words to the widow and parents of Capt. Fresques as I gave them their son's flag on behalf of the President of the United States and all those veterans, servicemen and women who understand the sacrifices they have endured.
A four-ship fly by is a display of respect the Air Force gives to those who give their lives in defense of freedom.
We are professional aviators and take our jobs seriously, and on June 15 what the letter writer witnessed was four officers lining up to pay their ultimate respects.
The letter writer asks, 'Who do we thank for the morning air show? The 56th Fighter Wing will make the call for you, and forward your thanks to the widow and parents of Capt. Fresques, and thank them for you, for it was in their honor that my pilots flew the most honorable formation of their lives.
Only 2 defining forces have ever offered to die for you.....Jesus Christ and the American Service Man & Woman.
One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr. USA
Thanks for posting this! Having been around AFB’s my entire adult life, I have had the dishonor of living around people like the letter writer. The bases have been there for years, they build a housing complex, and then people complain about noise. In some instances the Air Force has decided to close a base and move to less populated areas and then the people that complained the loudest then complain because they moved.
This is the best response I have ever read to a complaint.
I remember this from the time. I grew up an Army Brat and son of an aviator, so I love loud, fast devices that deliver even louder impacts.
They always have that “what you hear is the sound of freedom” sign on every base I have ever visited.
Anyone have a photo of the sign they have in Beaufort, SC that says, “The Noise You Hear is the Sound of Freedom?”
I read with increasing embarrassment and humility the response to my unfortunate letter to The Republic concerning an Air Force flyby ("A wake-up call from Luke's jets," Letters,
I had no idea of the significance of the flyby, and would never have insulted such a fine and respectful display had I known.
I have received many calls from the fine airmen who are serving or have served at Luke, and I have attempted to explain my side and apologized for any discomfort my letter has caused.
This was simply an uninformed citizen complaining about noise.
I have been made aware in both written and verbal communications of the four-ship flyby, and my heart goes out to each and every lost serviceman and woman in this war in which we are engaged.
I have been called un-American by an unknown caller and I feel that I must address that. I served in the U.S. Navy and am a Vietnam veteran. I love my country and respect the jobs that the service organizations are doing.
Please accept my heartfelt apologies.
Tom MacRae, Peoria
http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/wakeup.asp
Claim: Resident writes to newspaper to complain about fly-by of jets from local Air Force base headed for a fallen serviceman's memorial service.
Status: True.
Origins: This is one of those items for which any additional commentary would only serve as a distracting embellishment, so we'll just present the details here and let the story tell itself.
Thanks for posting that! I still think the guy is a jerk — if he had bothered to look up, he would have seen the Missing Man formation.
You live near a base and you get noise. When Grenada happened, we had 141’s flying over the house out of Norton AFB one right after the other — loud but knew something was up.
We had a lefty Community College professor, buy a cheap house right up to the fence of the Army/Air Force base and then spend the next 30 years trying to get the base shut down.
He’s dead now.
Good.
Luke AFB is west of Phoenix and is rapidly being surrounded by civilization that complains about the noise from the base and its planes
I answer this the same way I answer those in New Orleans that want the Federal Government to bail them out and those in Cal;ifornia that bulid on hillsides do also. if you make a conscience decision to live next to the ocean below sea level them YOPU are repsonsible for the fact that your home gets floded, no one else. if you chose to build your house ona precarious position on a hillside that has for hudreds of years been prone to landslide and your house slides away., then to sad to bad for you.......
If you build next to an airport or airbase then sucj it up about the noise. YOU made a bad choice....
BFE?
Bum
F***
Egypt
Synonym for “Out in the boondocks”.
Nellis - I always thought of it as “Hellish.” Our squadron patch said “Pride of the Desert.” We modified it to read “Tired of the Desert.”
A well stated apology though, nicely done.
Bum F%ck Egypt.
Thanks.
IIRC, teh original letter writer wrote an apology to teh Air Force and it was also published.
Today is a sad day for me. I live a few miles from Selfridge Air National Guard Base. I grew up under the sound of F-4’s and then F-16’s. The 107th Air Wing of F-16’s just transferred out yesterday. They are changing over to A-10’s next year.
Frankly, I love the sound of a fighter jet booming ovehead. It makes me proud of our nation. They also run KC-135’s out of there.
Bet the air conditioner is broke where he's at.
Kudos to the Colonel.
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