I don’t normally comment on political matters, but 2 years ago in November, my husband had to eject out of an F/A-18 into the Philippine Sea while on deployment. He and the WSO were ok physically and picked up within 30 minutes. https://twitter.com/markberman/status/1301721697033351168

It was hours before I was able to talk with him on the phone. All I knew is he was conscious. Another 2 weeks before I could pick him up from the Hiroshima airport. He had two black eyes and lost an inch in height from the compression of being catapulted out of the cockpit.

It took months of interviews and listening to cockpit audio for them to determine he was not at fault. It was a mechanical issue that put him in a situation that could not be fixed in the air.

But yes, let’s make the immediate decision to not recover someone because they “performed poorly.” Either Trump said these words, or someone made them up to pass on to a journalist. Either way, it’s reprehensible and shakes me to my core.

Less than a month later, a C-130 and F/A-18 collided mid-air near our base in Iwakuni. Six men were killed. One of them, the pilot of the jet, was alive in the water for 9 hours and 45 min, according to his smart watch. His body was found 52 min later. https://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/marine-pilot-survived-in-sea-for-nearly-10-hours-after-deadly-midair-collision-smartwatch-shows-1.607406

If my husband hadn’t been picked up right away, he might have never met this cutie. (I’ll step off my soap box now)