The Los Angeles Times today offered details about a previous post of mine that some people have told me is controversial because I deigned to question Sen. John McCain’s heroism during the Vietnam War.
My contention remains that McCain, at least initially, took valuable training and equipment of the American military for granted. But, because he was the son and grandson of Admirals, his carelessness was swept under the rug and he was allowed to become a navy pilot.
His subsequent capture in Vietnam could have easily been predicted, based on his performance during his military training.
The Times interviewed men who served with McCain and located once-confidential 1960s-era accident reports and formerly classified evaluations of his squadrons during the Vietnam War. This examination of his record revealed a pilot who early in his career was cocky, occasionally cavalier and prone to testing limits.
In today’s military, a lapse in judgment that causes a crash can end a pilot’s career. Though standards were looser and crashes more frequent in the 1960s, McCain’s record stands out.
“Three mishaps are unusual,” said Michael L. Barr, a former Air Force pilot with 137 combat missions in Vietnam and an internationally known aviation safety expert who teaches in USC’s Aviation Safety and Security Program. “After the third accident, you would say: Is there a trend here in terms of his flying skills and his judgment?”
Jeremiah Pearson, a Navy officer who flew 400 missions over Vietnam without a mishap and later became the head of human spaceflight at NASA, said: “That’s a lot. You don’t want any. Maybe he was just unlucky.”
Naval aviation experts say the three accidents before McCain’s deployment to Vietnam probably triggered a review to determine whether he should be allowed to continue flying. The results of the review would have been confidential.
The Times asked McCain’s campaign to release any military personnel records in the candidate’s possession showing how the Navy handled the three incidents. The campaign said it would have no comment.
The LA Times story provides invaluable service by digging into some of the details of this sorry affair. What they reveal is instructive because the same pattern would later emerge in Sen. McCain’s political career, especially in the case of the Keating 5 controversy.
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