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US Senators Shot at Leaving Iraq
(CNN) -- A U.S. military plane carrying three U.S. senators and one member of the House of Representatives came under rocket fire Thursday night and had to make evasive maneuvers as it left Baghdad for Amman, Jordan."Our plane leaving Iraq was fired upon, and it was a close call, but this is something that our men and women in combat face every day," Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Alabama, said in a statement. "The flight crew was outstanding, and I credit them for the way they handled the situation." Sens. Mel Martinez, R-Florida; Richard Shelby, R-Alabama; and James Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, were also on the flight. Three Republicans and a Blue Dog Democrat; we may have a motive. Or maybe it's just because it's an American plane. Shelby told CNN affiliate WVTM in Birmingham, Alabama, that the rockets were "near misses." "I was looking out the window, a little small window, and I saw a shell or something," Shelby said in a phone interview from Amman, where the plane landed safely. "And then I see a flare. Our plane started maneuvering and changing directions and shaking all around." The flares are part of the missile avoidance system aboard the lawmakers' C-130 aircraft. Heat from the flares distract rockets that have heat-seeking guidance systems. Where were the RPGs fired from? I didn't think those generally had the range to reach a C-130 using the twisty-turny landing and takeoff program at BIA unless the grenades were fired from inside the airport grounds. If they were, then someone let their guard down. Posted by: Glenmore 2007-08-31 |
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