"I told him to scramble; we'll get clearances later," Arnold said. His instincts to act first and get permission later were typical of U.S. and Canadian commanders that day. On Sept. 11, the normal scramble-approval procedure was for an FAA official to contact the National Military Command Center (NMCC) and request Pentagon air support. Someone in the NMCC would call Norad's command center and ask about availability of aircraft, then seek approval from the Defense Secretary--Donald H. Rumsfeld--to launch fighters.
Hmmm... The whole story sounds like a fluff PR job as you pointed out. But, the above paragraph really reveals that this is nothing more than a thinly veiled propaganda piece. Seek approval from Defense Secretary Rumsfeld every time a plane goes off course or has a malfunctioning transponder that requires the military to scramble jets?!? If that was part of his job description he wouldn't have time to do anything else, like run the military. Did they seek his permission when they intercepted Paine Stewart's jet? It is my understanding that commercial jet interception by the military is a routine procedure when a plane has lost contact with controllers or has gone off course. The FAA contacts NORAD and the supervising military command gives the go ahead to scramble planes. Why would such a routine operation need the approval of the Defense Secretary? That's like calling the Defense Secretary every time the Military Police need to iniate an investigation of some sort.
As we watch the TV, another airliner shows up on the screen, aimed for the second tower [9:02 a.m.]. The shocking reality becomes apparent. This is no longer 'an accident.' New York City is under attack."
At 9:24, the Langley-based alert F-16s were scrambled and airborne in 6 min., headed for Washington. By 9:26 a.m., the FAA command center stopped all departures nationwide. At 9:41, American Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, elevating tension levels even further.
So, according to this article the military realized at 9:02 AM that this wasn't an accident, that NYC is under attack. But, the Langley-based alert F-16s weren't scrambled to defend Washington, DC until about 9:30 AM?!? This speaks volumes. They're admitting in this fluff article that the military waited 1/2 hour to scramle planes to defend DC, even though it was evident that a terrorist attack was under way.
This story was probably written by some CIA plant to make the government and military look good on 9/11, like they were doing their job they way they were suppossed to be doing it. It has been revealed that the CIA has had 100s of journalists on their payroll over the years. |
