Angels Above

I asked Sam a question about Close Air Support (CAS)
Here is his response.
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Dad,

I have a new found love for CAS and HCAS (close air support and helo close air support)...

Taking small arms fire, indirect fire, (mortars or rockets) etc., makes you feel pretty small as a dismounted paratrooper. When those Big Guns show up, it's like a guardian angels in the sky, not just because of their eyes from above, but the fire power they bring to the fight.

We now have A10’s in theater again, that should be pretty sweet. My last mission I saw two F16’s drop out of the sky. The one hovered around 5,000ft using optics for over watch while his wing man came in for a “show of force”. He dropped to about 1000 ft, but it felt lower. I think I could have waved to the pilot in the cockpit, and he would have seen me with his naked eye. I mean he was just screaming, then pulled out real sharply, dropping several flairs into the reeds along the Euphrates river. Whatever insurgents were engaging us then should have ******* their pants.

It was followed by strafing rounds from the AH64’s (Apaches).....

I’ll no longer make fun of wimpy people wanting to be fighter pilots or attack aviation pilots.....

Sam