Useful Fools

The interception of the US RC-135 electronic surveillance plane last week was an attempt to force the plane down and capture the aircrew. This means that four armed fighters intercepted the aircraft and ordered the pilot to land.

The brave pilot and crew, an the face of those interceptors, chose instead to call their bluff and depart the area. They could easily have been shot down and they knew it. The North Koreans have previously shot down US electronic surveillance aircraft, killing the crew.

This crew’s bravery saved the US from a major crisis just as we were going to war in a different theater. They are the first heroes of the new Korean War.