US Denies French Fighters Emergency Landing Rights

[Flagg]

US Denies French Fighters Emergency Landing Rights

By DAVE LINDORFF

Talk about fair-weather friends!

When nine French fighter jets and a weather plane from a French carrier taking part in a joint exercise with Canadian Naval forces in the Atlantic off New Jersey ran perilously low on fuel last Friday because of a freak storm that prevented them from returning to their ship, they figured, no problem. They weren't too far from the U.S. mainland, and so they could just land at McGuire AF Base in southern New Jersey.

No dice, the Francophobe U.S. military told them. According to a State Department source, quoted in the Philadelphia Inquirer, they were denied landing rights at the facility.

Faced with the choice of ditching their planes or finding an alternative landing site, the French pilots, with the help of frantic State Department and Federal Aviation Administration officers, managed to arrange landing permission at the commercial airfield in Atlantic City, though this necessitated delaying and rerouting several commercial flights because of the number of planes that were coming in at once.

No national American media mentioned this stunning--and potentially life-threatening--breach of basic air etiquette by the U.S. military. And not for lack of knowing about it: many news organizations covered the whole thing as a humor item, focusing on the French pilots spending a night in the debauchery of America's East Coast Vegas.
<snip>

Even Soviet planes, at the height of the Cold War, weren't turned away in emergencies.

And this was an ally.

At least the people of Atlantic City were gracious hosts to the plucky French pilots, reportedly offering them meals and hotel rooms.

One wonders what the American reaction would be if a French military airport turned away American pilots in similar circumstances-or what the French reaction would have been if the planes hadn't made it safely to Atlantic City.

He can be reached at: [e-mail]
Article featured with the kind permission of Dave Lindorff
Source: US Denies French Fighters Emergency Landing Rights

http://www.counterpunch.com/lindorff06072005.html

[meganmonkey]

1. This is from June 7 - not LBN...

[annabanana]

2. WTF!

That's just terrible.. I'd love to know what idiot is responsible for that incredibly BAD CALL.

[ixion]

3. indeed... if this had been reversed, all hell would be breaking loose

you'd have very near declarations of war against France from the neocons, to be sure.

[gordianot]

4. Unreal n/t

[Ysolde]

5. OMG!

Well, at least the US people treated the French well. What insane game is this administration playing? You don't treat your allies like that. And, where the hell is the US media? Those lapdogs are nauseating in their kiss-up behavior to this administration.

Thanks for the link. I intend to forward to all of my contacts (lots of Republican, military supporters).

[Norquist Nemesis]

6. The operative word: "WAS" an ally.

One doesn't have to wonder what the American reaction would be if the French military turned the US away in an emergency. It would be Breaking News and Flash News and civil defense alarm sirens on Faux Views reporting the outrage. Rice and Rumsfeld would be front and center with press briefings and the networks would be notified of the President's address to the nation at 8 pm.

[politicaholic]

7. It's par with the WH diplomatic skills...

hating the French just shows how destructive the WH propaganda machine is and how the administration promotes ignorance to further its agenda.

[OKNancy]

8. I'm sorry, this is not Latest

Breaking News. Articles should not be more than 24 hours old.

Here is a link to LBN posting rules

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x87249