Re: If a fighter pilots shoots down 5 UAV's?

On Mon, 11 Aug 2008 09:21:23 -0500, Dan <B2431B@xxxxxxx> wrote:

George Z. Bush wrote:

But weren't there observers in those baskets defending themselves with some
sort of guns? Or was there some sort of glory attached to shooting down an
unmanned, unarmed sitting duck target? If there was, it doesn't seem to
have been worth much AFAIAC.

George Z.

The WW1 balloons were filled hydrogen so the observers tended to bail
out from baskets equipped with parachutes. The defenses were ground based.

Dan, U.S. Air Force, retired

The criteria at the time were that observation balloons were counted
as aerial victories. Whether that was proper by standards developed
later is decidedly moot. It was what it was.

Frank Luke gained his fame (and his ace status) as a "Balloon Buster."

Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
www.thundertales.blogspot.com
www.thunderchief.org
.

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