U.S. lawmakers' plane fired uponStory Highlights
Onboard: Rep. Bud Cramer; Sens. Mel Martinez, Richard Shelby, James Inhofe

"I saw a shell or something," Shelby says

Flares were deployed to attract rockets away from plane

Next Article in Politics »




WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A U.S. military plane with three U.S. senators and a U.S. House member onboard came under rocket fire while leaving Baghdad, Iraq, for Amman, Jordan, Thursday night and had to take evasive maneuvers.

"I was looking out the window, a little small window, and I saw a shell or something," said Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama in a phone interview from Amman, where the plane landed safely. "And then I see a flare. Our plane started maneuvering and changing directions and shaking all around."

Don't Miss
Bush: 'All our' partners in Iraq needed
The rockets were "near misses," he told CNN affiliate WVTM in Birmingham, Alabama.

The flares were part of the missile avoidance system onboard the C-130 aircraft carrying the Congress members. The flares' heat are used as a countermeasure to attract rockets that have heat-seeking guidance systems.

Onboard with Shelby were Rep. Bud Cramer, an Alabama Democrat; Sens. Mel Martinez, a Florida Republican; and James Inhofe, a Republican from Oklahoma.

"Our plane leaving Iraq was fired upon and it was a close call, but this is something that our men and women in combat face every day," Cramer said in a statement. "The flight crew was outstanding and I credit them for the way they handled the situation."

__________________

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

National Write Your Congressman

I heard it was three RPG's that were fired. RPG's have a limited range, are not very accurate, and are not heat sensative.

__________________
When seconds count, Police are only minutes away.

I just printed the article because I thought it was interesting. I thought others would find it interesting also.

__________________

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

National Write Your Congressman