Military women often in combat

Re: Bob Harrington’s letter to the editor.

The women in your life must be embarrassed. Shame on you, Mr. Harrington. Thank you for your service.

Women have already been in combat for decades. Have you so quickly forgotten the women who were on the front lines in the War of 1812, the Civil War, World Wars I and II, Korea,Vietnam and Afghanistan? These women are heroes alongside their male counterparts. They weren’t sanctioned by our government to fight.

When I joined the USAF as Vietnam was ending, it was made crystal clear that there were no “special sacrifices” for women. In basic we trained alongside the men and there were no “lady” exercises for us. We ran, exercised, went through the gas chamber together along with the obstacle course and weaponry. I was in a combat mobility squadron, with a top-secret security clearance and qualified to operate a lengthy list of specialized equipment up to 375,000 GVW.

Some comments from my records:

“She is an outstanding NCO of the highest caliber who displays a highly professional attitude and bearing and performs superbly under stress which enables co-workers and supervisors to place the utmost confidence in her abilities. Her support and job performance during the 1981 ORI Deployment and redeployment was superior.”

“As a SSGT she performs additional duties as a member of the Base Mobility Team.”

“She is highly motivated and has demonstrated on many occasions that she can run a section and meet mission requirements. Her military bearing is above reproach. She enhances the squadron. She deserves promotion ahead of her peers. She is a valued member of this squadron.”

It’s dumb to think that women have not served in combat units or that they won’t continue to serve.

This story was originally published May 23, 2016 at 4:04 PM with the headline "Military women often in combat."