Stewart’s Vietnam missions were unauthorized. He went and flew a handful until the brass hats heard about it and then ordered him not to do it again. He won undying praise from the rank and file for doing it. THAT is the Air Force we don’t have anymore. Maybe we can dig up Curtis LeMay and have him cloned or something.
CC
The subject being heroes, have to give a mention to Pappy Boyington.
I wish I could find the accurate quote by Curtis Lemay to a reporter who asked him why, if our bombers carried enough nuclear weapons to destroy every major city on earth, would he have made the Strategic Air Command motto: “Peace is Our Profession”.
He answered (and I have to paraphrase): “Peace IS our profession. Bombing things and blowing things up, we do that for fun and entertainment...”
The horrified snowflake of a reporter supposedly was speechless...