My brother was in an F-111 on that raid. He thinks he might have seen his friends hit the water that night (one F-111 didn't make it). A bright fiery plume on the sea surface - which would happen as water is injested into a jet engine. Who knows. But the fatigue from an incredibly long journey around self-serving France might have played a part.
Thanks for reminding me. I need to take this over to the other thread on this subject where one particular frenchman is arguing that France kicks the US in the teeth out of some high-level mutual strategery to influence non-aligned countries. He'll probably show up on this thread as well.
Don't forget the jihad is getting closer to home for the French - namely the French oil tanker sunk by the jihad.
The French have hated American guts since de Gaulle.
We literally jerked millions of Frenchmen from the gulags.
Had we not liberated France in WWII, the German occupation would have turned into the German annihalation.
We bailed them out of Vietnam (much to our national shame).
The French have never been grateful for the American blood shed for thier liberty at places such as Normandy.
Viva la what?