[...]
John McCain was a far more interesting, colorful and controversial man
than most Americans and no journalists know. If you saw the
Sunday
political shows you would think a saint had passed on. John
McCain was
a man driven by two ghosts: His father and grandfather.
Both were
four-star Admirals in the US Navy so John’s appointment to the US Naval
Academy was his destiny, but John McCain graduated 894th in his class
of 899 students. He was known for being wild, chasing young
women. He
was in a student group calling themselves “The Bad Bunch.”
John married Carol Shepp, a swimsuit model who had been married to one
of his classmates with whom she had two children. She and McCain were
parents of a daughter in that marriage. At heart a playboy, John
was
soon bored with domestic life and as advancement was more likely in the
military services in combat he requested active duty in Vietnam. While
there Carol faithfully stayed at home looking after the children.
His plane was shot down in 1967 when he ignored mission instructions to
stay above 15,000 feet he went “down on the deck” and was shot down,
survived and became a Prisoner Of War, POW.
[...]
His father and grandfather were both decorated Navy Admirals. He was
given special privileges and extreme preferential treatment while he
served in the Navy. He was a pilot but according to his colleagues, he
was a very bad pilot. He actually crashed three planes. There was a
horrendous incident that happened on his aircraft carrier, the U.S.S.
Forrestal, that killed 134 men. There has been a rolling debate since
the incident and some are convinced John McCain was responsible.
Witnesses reported McCain attempted a “wet start.” When a pilot
wants
to be a show-off, with a “wet start” his engine start creates a large
startling flame and lots of surprise noise from the rear of a jet
engine on startup. McCain did the “Wet Start.” The flames torched
the
launch of a Zuni rocket on the plane behind him. Zuni rockets
were
notorious for problems. It shot across the carrier’s deck hitting other
parked planes that were packing 1,000 high-explosive pound bombs which
exploded. Destruction and fire went several decks below and
nearly
sunk this major 82,000 ton U.S. aircraft carrier.
This stunt caused the death of 134 sailors and blew off arms, legs, and
caused blindness and burns to another 161 sailors. McCain jumped from
his plane, rolled across the flames, and escaped. He watched the men
dying and the burning from a closed circuit television on the ship.
The ship off line for two years in port for $76 million dollars of
major repairs, not including the cost of the airplanes or
ammunition.
Any other Navy pilots causing this type of death and destruction would
have been arrested and still be in prison, but not John McCain III ....
There is much more
Is he still dead?
ReplyDeleteFirst, right up front, I couldn't stand John McCain, believing him to be all for and about John McCain, not the people and Constitution he swore to serve.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I have to object to the McCain slam blaming him for the Forrestal tragedy.
Cuckoo and self-centered though he was, McCain had nothing to do with the Forrestal fire other than he survived it through quick thinking.
Static electricity caused an aircraft parked on deck (not McCain's), not anywhere near McCain's aircraft, to fire a Zuni missile into another aircraft, which started the chain reaction catastrophe. McCain can be seen crawling out on his refueling probe to escape the flames around him just before the first bomb cooked off.
It's wrong, wrong, wrong, a dishonor to the dead and living who heroically saved lives and their ship, to make political hay of their terrible day.
Whoever originated this needs to do some more fact checking before smearing someone.
Lt. Col. Gen. Tailgunner dick
"There has been a rolling debate since the incident..."
ReplyDeleteSo, who knows? I was waiting for the Songbird nickname story, but he never mentioned it in the article.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.unz.com/runz/american-pravda-when-tokyo-rose-ran-for-president/
I'll go along with the Lt.Col. The instant after McCain announced his run the entire left want crazier and in less than 5 minutes they had something like 500 stories about how McCain caused the rocket to fire or ran away or was in league with Trotsky or something.
ReplyDeleteOTOH, it's easy to see why people might be misled so far astray from the truth given that the navy recently selected an officer for promotion to Admiral despite that fact that as a LT he deliberately shot down a USAF F-4 during a training mission that even a complete moron would know would never call for selecting and firing real missiles. He did it, crippled both officers in the F-4 which was destroyed and was able to stay in the navy system until it was his turn to be selected for admiral. Mind boggling.
Throw out the Forrestal story and you’ll still have a miserable sack of shite
ReplyDeleteThrow out the Forrestal story He's still ...a miserable sack of shite
ReplyDeleteAgreed.
Lt. Col. Gen. Tailgunner dick
Lt. Col. Gen. Tailgunner dick, I agree; McCain did enough skeezy shit that is known and well-documented without making something up. In my 21 years of Naval Aviation (1972-1993, I never once heard anything resembling the "Wet-Start Story"; IIRC the story seemed to surface as soon as he had the nomination for President in 2008.
ReplyDeleteAs regards the "Songbird" nickname, none of his co-POWs has seen fit to comment on it, nor have the alleged propaganda tapes surfaced.
Make no mistake about it; I despise the man. He was a self-centered elitist prick, an incompetent aviator and a sorry excuse for a Naval Officer.
I'm at least thankful that John Kerry will never, ever receive a tribute like this.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.linkedin.com/pulse/john-mccains-final-flight-captain-charles-plumb/
I am guilty of buying into and promulgating the story blaming McCain for the Forrestal fire; ¡Mea culpa! I also admit that I don't know dick about naval aviation.
ReplyDeleteWas I similarly wrong about him being instrumental in weaponizing the IRS against the Tea Parties? How about his efforts to block access to (and cover-up) info about MIAs in Vietnam? And that's not all...
^^^Rickn8or - I've seen one wet start from a jet in my life, and it generated a big flash and a huuuuge ball and column of black smoke; IOW, it was very visible. McCain's A-4's tailpipe was pointed out over the port side, not at another aircraft, and I didn't see any "wet start" in the Forrestal film, but did see the Zuni rocket flash across the deck in front of McCain's aircraft.
ReplyDeleteLt. Col. Gen. Tailgunner dick
Lt. Col. Gen. Tailgunner dick, right you are. I've seen all sorts of explanations about how McCain started the fire, everything from him refusing a waveoff and landing anyway to him jettisoning his bombs on deck in a fit of pique because he wasn't the first one off the pointy end that morning.
ReplyDeleteBut the "wet start" story is the most prevalent. I usually counter with asking the teller what exactly a wet start is and how does the pilot initiate it, then ask them why would someone rawhide the only engine on his airplane that's got to carry him over the water, to the target and back.
Like I said, we've got McCain on too much other shit to make things up.