Spudh
I would suggest a little research before getting the digits to type words that might not
factually be correct:
Just one of many errors by the Vincennes on that day was the reporting of the IFF signal.
While the radar operator was examining the oncoming contact (Flight 655) with his trackball cursor, the IFF displayed its reading from the last “tracking gate” location. This “gate” is essentially a box that the
ship’s radar monitors for various signals (such as IFF); if it isn’t explicitly moved, it stays in place. Thus, while the civilian Airbus plane was correctly emitting an IFF Mode III signal, the radar picked up the IFF Mode II signals from F-14’s still at the Bandar Abbas Airport.
The 'gate' was still over the area of Bandar Abbas Airport, the equipment was still searching the airport and picked up the IFF from a military aircraft that had NOT taken off. Flight 655 was airborne and on its correct flight path.
Should personnel get medals for this sort of 'professionalism?' is a question the US military must have asked and decided it was of a standard that they found worthy of recognition
All I ask is that we do not put ANY blame on the crew of that civilian airliner, they were on a regular milk run that ALL US warships were aware of, the USS Sides had positively identified it as a civilian commercial flight, the USS Forrestal an aircraft carrier some hundreds of miles away 'suspected' it to be a commercial flight AND had also informed two patrolling F-14 aircraft that had been scrambled to assist the Vincennes. The only ship that got things wrong was the one fitted with the most modern, most sophisticated equipment in the World!! It got it wrong and we are all aware of the consequences. by all means shoot the messenger but shoot them with facts and not tissues of wannabe imagination.