Monday, June 17, 2013

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION CAUGHT IN LIES ON BENGHAZI

Submitted by: Diane Ward

Air Force Expert on Benghazi




This is a sad state of affairs. I think we    have criminals in charge of our country and our military, at least the Air    Force.  This Benghazi incident massacre should never have happened but    even worse for them to try to cover it up.  For those who might not know,    "Sig" is Sigonella Sicily Italy where we have a Navy Base. I've been    there. 

"Hands" Handley is a well-respected USAF fighter pilot. Here is    his short resume and what he just wrote about Benghazi below that. If    anything, Handley is pessimistic in his timeline of when F-16s could have    reached Benghazi.
I think they could have been airborne even sooner and    turned quicker at Sig. The decision to not try was not based on capability. We    had the operational capability in every way.  

I hope    Handley's taxes are in order. His IRS audit is    forthcoming. 

 
Eagle Biography 
 
Colonel Phil "Hands" Handley 
 
Colonel Phil "Hands"    Handley is credited with the highest speed air- to-air 
gun kill in    the history of aerial combat. He flew operationally for all but 
11    months of a 26-year career, in aircraft such as the F-86 Sabre, F-15 
Eagle, and the C-130A Hercules. Additionally, he flew 275 combat    missions 
during two tours in Southeast Asia in the F- 4D and F-4E.    His awards include 
21 Air Medals, 3 Distinguished Flying Crosses,    and the Silver Star.
---------------------------------------------- 
 
Betrayal in Benghazi
Phil "Hands" Handley Colonel, USAF (Ret.)

The combat code of the US Military is that we don't abandon our dead    or 
wounded on the battlefield. In US Air Force lingo, fighter pilots    don't run 
off and leave their wingmen. If one of our own is shot    down, still alive and 
not yet in enemy captivity, we will either    come to get him or die trying. 
 
Among America 's fighting    forces, the calm, sure knowledge that such an 
irrevocable bond    exists is priceless. Along with individual faith and 
personal grit,    it is a sacred trust that has often sustained hope in the 
face of    terribly long odds. 
 
The disgraceful abandonment of our    Ambassador and those brave ex-SEALs who 
fought to their deaths to    save others in that compound is nothing short of 
dereliction-of-duty. 
 
Additionally, the patently absurd    cover-up scenario that was fabricated in 
the aftermath was an    outright lie in an attempt to shield the President and 
the Secretary    of State from responsibility. 
 
It has been over eight    months since the attack on our compound in Benghazi. 
The White House    strategy, with the aid of a "lap dog" press has been to run 
out the    clock before the truth is forthcoming.
 The recent testimonies of the three "whistle    blowers" have reopened the 
subject and hopefully will lead to    exposure and disgrace of those 
responsible for this embarrassing    debacle. It would appear that the most 
recent firewall which the    Administration is counting on is the contention
"that there were simply no    military assets that could be brought to bear in 
time to make a    difference" mainly due to the unavailability of tankerÂ
support for    fighter aircraft. 

This is simply BS, regardless how many    supposed "experts" the Administration 
trot out to make such an    assertion. 
 
The bottom line is that even if the closest    asset capable of response was 
half-way around the world, you don't    just sit on your penguin ass and do 
nothing. 

The fact    is that the closest asset was not half-way around the world, but as 
near as Aviano Air Base, Italy where two squadrons of F-16Cs are    based. 
 
Consider the following scenario (all times Benghazi    local): When Hicks in 
Tripoli receives a call at 9:40 PM from    Ambassador Stevens informing him 
"Greg, we are under attack!" (his    last words), he immediately notifies all 
agencies and prepares for    the immediate initiation of an existing "Emergency 
Response    Plan." 
 
At AFRICON, General Carter Ham attempts to mount a    rescue effort, but is 
told to "stand down". By 10:30 PM an unarmed    drone is overhead the compound 
and streaming live feed to various    "Command and Control Agencies" and
everyone watching that feed knew damn    well what was going on. 
 
At 11:30 PM Woods, Doherty and    five others leave Tripoli, arriving in 
Benghazi at 1:30 AM on    Wednesday morning, where they hold off the attacking
mob from the roof of    the compound until they are killed by a mortar direct 
hit at 4:00    AM. 
 
So nothing could have been done, eh? Nonsense. If one    assumes that tanker 
support really "was not available" what about    this: 
 
When at 10:00 PM AFRICON alerts the 31st TFW Command    Post in Aviano Air 
Base, Italy of the attack, the Wing Commander    orders preparation for the 
launch of two F-16s and advises the    Command Post at NAS Sigonella to prepare 
for hot pit refueling and    quick turn of the jets. 
 
By 11:30 PM, two F-16Cs with drop    tanks and each armed with five hundred 20 
MM rounds are airborne.    Flying at 0.92 mach they will cover the 522 nautical 
miles directly    to NAS Sigonella in 1.08 hours. While in-route, the flight 
lead is    informed of the tactical situation, rules of engagement, and radio 
frequencies to use. 
 
The jets depart Sigonella at 1:10    AM with full fuel load and cover the 377 
nautical miles directly to    Benghazi in 0.8 hours, arriving at 1:50 AM which 
would be 20 minutes    after the arrival of Woods, Doherty and their team.. 
 
Providing that the two F-16s initial pass over the mob, in full    afterburner 
at 200 feet and 550 knots did not stop the attack in its    tracks, only a few 
well placed strafing runs on targets of    opportunity would assuredly do the 
trick. 
 
Were    the F-16s fuel state insufficient to recover at Sigonelli after 
jettisoning their external drop tanks, they could easily do so at    Tripoli 
International Airport , only one-half hour    away. 
 
As for those hand-wringing naysayers who would worry    about IFR clearances, 
border crossing authority, collateral damage,    landing rights, political 
correctness and dozens of other reasons    not to act" screw them. It is high 
time that our "leadership" get    their priorities straight and put America's 
interests    first. 
 
The end result would be that Woods and Doherty    would be alive. Dozens in the 
attacking rabble would be    rendezvousing with "72 virgins" and a clear 
message would have been    sent to the next worthless POS terrorist 
contemplating an attack on    Americans that it is not really a good idea to 
"tug" on Superman's    cape. 
 
Of course all this would depend upon a Commander In    Chief that was more 
concerned with saving the lives of those he put    in harm's way than getting 
his crew rested for a campaign fund    raising event in Las Vegas the next day. 
As well as a Secretary of    State that actually understood "What difference
did it make?", or a    Secretary of Defense whose immediate response was not to 
the effect    that "One of the military tenants is that you don't commit assets 
until you fully understand the tactical situation." Was he not watching    a 
live feed from the unarmed drone, and he didn't understand the    tactical 
situation? 
 
YGBSM! 
 
Ultimately it comes down to the question of who gave that order to    stand 
down? Whoever that coward turns out to be should be exposed,    removed from 
office, and face criminal charges for dereliction of    duty. The combat forces 
of the United States of America deserve    leadership that really does "have 
their back" when the chips are    down. 
  

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