Some of the threads on this post are ridiculous.
No commander, no pilot, is going to order, or fly, a jet that is not safe.
Naturally, the F-35’s are taken to safety first, and maybe there weren’t any trained pilots to take the others away.
In the Navy, during emergencies, or wartime, planes damaged to non-flyable condition are routinely jettisoned over the side, into the deep blue.
There are always some planes down for maintenance, awaiting parts, or grounded otherwise. With a major hurricane bearing down, you don’t have the time to repair them. So they got the ones that were in flyable condition off the base by the time “Michael” hit the base.
Planes, in emergencies, are expendable...no matter what the cost.
The F-22’s are long-since paid for; There’s a good chance that some of them can still be put back into service, but once the storm is 30 miles off shore, and there are no parts, it’s just a little late for that.
Past jets, such as the Century F-series jets, were just as expensive in their day, but the ones that are not on static display, in museums, or at the “Boneyard”, were converted to remote control drones and used as targets.
Trump promised a lot of things, and he’s kept most of his promises, but he did not “promise” (or cause) the hurricane.
It’s not about unions, it’s not about any of that...it’s about an uncontrollable storm and the things that were caught in it’s path.
How about the rest of the area, how about Mexico Beach? Did Trump do that, too, for the “builders” unions?
Grow up people, shit happens.
The world is full of clueless people. They all, it seems, have an internet connection. Take care of the people first, and then do whatever you can about the equipment. I would love to see one of these bozos playing a Wing Commander. More than likely, they couldn’t manage a paper route.
The storm isn’t the problem. The fact that so many planes are unflyable and no contingency for the storm is the problem.
If you are on the coast you will have a hurricane eventually. If the loss was a couple of planes, oh well. Twenty planes is a whole different case. The time to do something isn’t when a hurricane is bearing down on you.