The fact that Senator McCain flew combat off carriers, and was a prisoner of war, in no way excuses his apparent willingness to conveniently overlook or twist the facts.
For example, to lambast pilots for "working only 80 hours a month" illustrates either extreme stupidity or outright dishonesty.
To use a similar yardstick, one could say that Senators work less than an hour a day on average. The time spent on research and preparation does not count, the time spent lobbying does not count, etc, etc, only the actual time spent on debate in the senate counts.
On this issue he is clearly playing to a gallery, and it demeans him and his past achievements.