Webb either does not understand or simply ignores the fact that during Vietnam, the Air National Guard, of which Bush was a member, was not necessarily the "safe haven" that the Army National Guard was at that time. Many Air Guard units were called to active duty, (officers & enlisted) as well as individual pilots being activated and assigned for duty in combat. It mattered more what types of aircraft they were certified in flying than the fact that they were "weekend warriors." And unlike the Army Guard of that era, the Air Guard was required by the Dept. of the Air Force to be at combat readiness at all time and many units, including Bush's interceptor squadron, participated in daily air patrols intercepting Soviet aircraft approaching US air space. It was an active duty job preformed by part time pilots.
Agreed. I was in Arizona from 63-66. The Army Guard units there would have a rumor about every 6 weeks that they were being sent. They would pack up, wait, then be told that they were not going.