Reflecting on Mother's Day and the Women Serving America
11:53 AM May 9, 2011
Mother's Day offers us an occasion to reflect upon the opportunities and advantages we would not have enjoyed without the hard work, care, and support of America's mothers. Children of enlisted and commissioned mothers find this an especially poignant holiday, as their mothers balance two heroic duties, raising a family and serving our country. It is imperative that these brave women in uniform are appropriately honored not only this Mother's Day, but throughout the entire year. Despite the selfless courage displayed by so many women, the Department of Defense continues to consider procuring aircraft that does not accommodate many female pilots, thereby limiting their career advancement.
The Air Force is considering two planes to fill its request for a Light Air Support (LAS) and Light Attack and Armed Reconnaissance (LAAR) aircraft. One of the planes is the American made Hawker Beechcraft AT-6. This plane was designed to accommodate roughly 95 percent of the military's potential male and female pilot population. The competitor, Embraer, has designed an aircraft using outdated standards, and it will fail to accommodate a large percentage of female pilots. Given the rigorous demands of military flight training, it would be reprehensible for our Air Force to choose an aircraft for the LAS and LAAR contract that will exclude so many qualified female pilots based on height and weight standards.
As Mother's Day approaches we should remind the Department of Defense how many honorable women have sacrificed so much to protect our country at home and abroad. We should not punish them by selecting an aircraft that they cannot safely pilot. The women and mothers protecting our country deserve better.
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