Are we making a huge mistake?

[azsnowman]

Just curious as to what you think, do you think we are making a huge mistake by pulling the USS KittyHawk, USS Constelation and the air support out of Turkey so soon? The Pentagon and President Bush seems there is no reason to keep the air support that flew the Northern No Fly Zone in Iraq, could this be setting us up for some behind the lines bio chem attack from Syria? I don't know, I think we should have left SOME air support there, we only have one carrier left in the Persian Gulf now???? :o

Dennis :o

[weatherlover427]

I think this is a bit too soon. We should wait until we are absolutely 110% sure they won't do anything, not 90%, 95%, or 100%.

[streetsoldier]

That "rapid disengagement" disturbed me, too...glad I wasn't the only one to question it.

[azskyman]

Well, indeed we are very confident these days...and that very confidence plays into the hands of folks who have all the time in the world on their hands to get even...to champion their own cause. Decades and centuries are not a long time for them.

Time will tell if it is a mistake to so quickly move air support away from the region, but we will surely revisit some horror and sadness in the days ahead. Too much hatred for us prevailing.

Keep your fingers crossed.

[mf_dolphin]

Don't forget we have two carriers in the Med as well. The Nimitz, which is the carrier in the Persian Gulf carries a heavy air wing as compared to the two that are leaving. As far as the aircraft in Turkey, what we have pulled out are the extra aircraft that were put in place to enforce the no-fly zones. We still have plenty of tactical aircraft in the region as well as recon assets. Personally I'm very comfortable that we have sufficient resources in the region for the on-going mission.. Just my two cents worth

[Stephanie]

I thought it was kind of quick too, but since they still do have some carriers there, I don't think that we're totally pulling the rug out from under us.

[mf_dolphin]

The Air Force tacitcal assets still in the area include F15's, F16's, AC-130's and A-10's. The Army and Marines still have AH-64 Apache and Super Cobra gunships. There is still plenty of firepower in the region. Keep in mind that the heavier air components such as B-52's, B-1's and B-2's are all capable of striking from their normal bases.