"… SEND 'EM UP—I'LL WAIT." *
"When an Iranian Air Force monitor threatened to send
interceptors after a U.S. fighter on patrol in the Iraqi
No-Fly Zone, the pilot replied …" -- News item
In the bad old days after DESERT STORM,
When Saddam was caught like a rat,
When America ruled the No-Fly Zone,
With the enemy's force smashed flat,
A lone warplane skimmed the cloudless blue,
Through the high thin desert air,
And a saucy Iranian radar crew
Cried, "What are you doing there/"
"You've crossed the border, you're in our space—
Get out, you intruder bold!"
"Not so," said the pilot, "I'm on our side."
And his voice was cool, controlled.
"Out! Out!" said the monitor, in a rage,
"Or I'll scramble our fighter jets!
We've got you fairly across the line,
Picked up on our radar sets!"
But the conversation was being taped
By a circling airborne ear,
Our listeners couldn't refrain from smiles
As the answer came back clear,
"I'm a U.S. Marine Corps fighter, friend,
Fully loaded with ordnance freight,
You want to tangle? I'd love the chance,
Go ahead, send 'em up—I'll wait."
There was long, long silence at this reply,
No further word from below—
For even the smart-mouth Iranian jerk
Wants no Marine as a foe!
7-18-14
* This little anecdote received wide circulation, and was widely believed to have taken place.
Unhappily for those who passed it on as true, the Snopes website has classed it as "urban legend",
nice to hear, but quite without factual basis. I merely replayed it for the amusement
of our classmates, many of whom are former pilots who could shoot it down in a flash.
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