Leaving Afghanistan

[Guest ThatGuy]

Have we ever lost a general in combat before? My condolences goes out to his family and those wounded during the insider attack.

[StoleIt]

Have we ever lost a general in combat before? My condolences goes out to his family and those wounded during the insider attack.

Gen Keith Ware was KIA in Vietnam.

[MD]

Have we ever lost a general in combat before? My condolences goes out to his family and those wounded during the insider attack.

MGen Robert Worley was the 7 AF/CV when he was killed in July '68 after taking battle damage in his RF-4C Phantom and being unable to eject from it after it caught fire while RTB; his RSO was able to successfully eject. His death prompted a prohibition on flag officers flying combat during Vietnam. I believe he remains the highest ranking AF officer killed in combat.

Edited August 5, 2014 by MD

[M2]

Here ya go...

Until Tuesday, no officer in the American military of major general rank or higher had been reported killed by hostile action since the Vietnam War. According to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial database, Maj. Gen. John Albert B. Dillard Jr. was killed on May 12, 1970 when his helicopter was shot down. Rear Adm. Rembrandt Cecil Robinson, the Navy's equivalent of a major general, was killed on May 8, 1972, when his helicopter crashed.

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/06/world/asia/afghanistan-attack.html?_r=0

[DC]

It hasn't been since Vietnam that a General has been killed by the enemy...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Maude

[Guest ThatGuy]

Thanks for the information. Good stuff to know.

[M2]

Army Maj. Gen. Harold Greene killed in Afghanistan

Rest in peace.

[clouseau]

RIP General Greene

Unless I missed it ,why the hell has there been no statement from the CIC over this ?

[ExBoneOSO]

He's too busy getting ready for his dinner tonight with the African leaders who are in town this week..no time for statements today..

https://www.whitehouse.gov/schedule/president

[fox two]

Remind me why we're still saluting in a combat zone? This year dudes even got stood up and yelled at by certain group leadership for not saluting a general on the flightline. For a period of time our step brief included "Make sure to salute O-6 and above on the flightline", which ops sups had to waste time covering before crews stepped to their combat mission. Every other month the biggest threat has proven to be the insider threat. Maybe it's time to scale back frivolous protocol over there?

/rant

Edited August 6, 2014 by fox two

[Ebony zer]

Because you voluntold guys to do a FID mission when they have no business being there. They just don't "get it". When I was there, some of our leadership was more more concerned about minor crap like dress and appearance than actually advising the Afghan Air Force on how to be an effective military.

[Azimuth]

Remind me why we're still saluting in a combat zone? This year dudes even got stood up and yelled at by certain group leadership for not saluting a general on the flightline. For a period of time our step brief included "Make sure to salute O-6 and above on the flightline", which ops sups had to waste time covering before crews stepped to their combat mission. Every other month the biggest threat has proven to be the insider threat. Maybe it's time to scale back frivolous protocol over there?

/rant

I remember being a young SrA in Balad back in '05 and getting my ass chewed, for good reason, by a Marine Capt for saluting.

Edited August 6, 2014 by Azimuth

[discus]

Here at KAIA, there is no saluting anywhere... And no advising going on for a while,either.

[Sim]

RIP

Something tells saluting didn't cause this demise... an issue is somewhere else.

[dream big]

RIP General Greene

Unless I missed it ,why the hell has there been no statement from the CIC over this ?

Because he doesn't give 2 sh*ts?

[hispeed7721]

RIP General...

Because he doesn't give 2 sh*ts?

Sadly this is right on the mark. Edited August 6, 2014 by hispeed7721

[HeloDude]

Let's be honest...this doesn't really bring a more positive light to the situation in Afghanistan, and the President isn't doing well politically, so why would he want to highlight more bad things? Keep in mind the President went to a Vegas fundraiser the day after learning his Ambassador was assassinated and then continued to blame it on a youtube video for a couple weeks later even though they knew it had noting to do with a video.

Unfortunately I'm not shocked about the Major General being killed and I'm even less shocked that there wasn't a direct response from the President, at least not yet. I had hoped he would have had us out of there by now, but that's what 'hope and change' gives you. For all the guys and gals still over there, please stay safe and come home soon.

[wannabeflyer]

The silence on the lastest attack brings up a larger point about the Afghanistan war in general. No one is talking about the post 2014 plan. Last I checked we still don't have a succesor to Karzai, or a SOFA signed by whoever it will be. Without a signed SOFA I don't think we'll be keeping 10,000 troops in the country for another couple of years. Is this going to be a repeat of Iraq, where we decide to pull out everyone at the last minute? Personally I think we should have cut our loses years ago, but pulling out all troops brings its own problems as we will feel responsible for the inevitable civil war that will follow. Might be another missed Christmas for us mobility folks.

[ThreeHoler]

https://mobile.airforcetimes.com/article/20140806/NEWS05/308060062

Hagel still says 5,000 in 2015 and 1,000 in 2016.

[M2]

The "official" explanation as to why there has been no comment from the White House...

Why hasn't Obama said a word about the death of Gen. Greene?

By CNN chief Washington correspondent Jake Tapper

(CNN) – The killing of Maj. Gen. Harold Greene in Afghanistan – the highest ranking officer to have been killed in that war, and the first time a general has been killed on the battlefield since Vietnam - has met with many statements mourning his loss, with one notable exception: the commander in chief.

Why?

A national security source tells CNN that the administration does not like to signal that the particular rank of a casualty merits a different response – every loss of life is equally tragic; every sacrifice is equally heartbreaking.

The source notes that President Obama has tended to go out to comment on military losses based more on when the U.S. loses a significant number of our troops – as when the helicopter was downed in the summer of 2011.

Pure bullshit, in my opinion.

[Learjetter]

That's EXACTLY the right public response. Anything else makes senior folks, and all the folks around them, even more desirable as a target.

Privately, the family should get a personal note and phone call from POTUS, and a significant dignitary at the funeral.

[chim richalds]

That's EXACTLY the right public response. Anything else makes senior folks, and all the folks around them, even more desirable as a target.

Privately, the family should get a personal note and phone call from POTUS, and a significant dignitary at the funeral.

Maybe John Kerry can be that dignitary and throw his purple hearts at the General's casket, like he did when he got back from 'Nam. These clowns don't give 2 shits about the military, why any of you think differently is beyond me. If the General was a professor at Berkely, then the whole crowd would be in tears.

[Fuzz]

That's EXACTLY the right public response. Anything else makes senior folks, and all the folks around them, even more desirable as a target.

Privately, the family should get a personal note and phone call from POTUS, and a significant dignitary at the funeral.

You're right the next time any government leader dies we should just forget about it; JFK shouldn't have gotten the enormous parade and horse drawn carriage cause it just made future presidents "more desirable targets". News flash, anyone with stars on their uniform in a combat zone has been a "desirable target" since the beginning of warfare. This man from all appearances was a well liked leader, who dedicated 30 years of his life to his nation, he should be recognized by the CINC for his sacrifice.

Does recognizing him trivialize the deaths of junior officers or enlisted? No, I don't believe so, this man was a high ranking leader, who's death leaves a gap in the senior leadership that's not as easily replaced as a Sgt. or Lt.; It sounds harsh, yes but its a fact.

Edited August 8, 2014 by Fuzz

[tac airlifter]

That's EXACTLY the right public response. Anything else makes senior folks, and all the folks around them, even more desirable as a target.

I totally disagree.

[nsplayr]

That's EXACTLY the right public response. Anything else makes senior folks, and all the folks around them, even more desirable as a target.

Privately, the family should get a personal note and phone call from POTUS, and a significant dignitary at the funeral.

Agreed.

FWIW Obama mentioned the attack and the loss of General Greene in remarks after signing the new VA reform bill. JQP's facebook page has the link to youtube. TLDR: skip to 13:00.

Edited August 8, 2014 by nsplayr