American veterans criticise comments by US news presenters about UAE’s first female fighter pilot

Sixty male and female veterans of the US Armed Forces published an open letter to Fox News network presenters Greg Gutfeld and Eric Bolling condemning the remarks towards Maj Mariam Al Mansouri, who took part in the UAE's air strikes against ISIL targets.

ABU DHABI // American veterans have criticised comments by US news presenters about Maj Mariam Al Mansouri, the UAE's first female fighter pilot who led the UAE Air Force into action against ISIL targets in Syria.

Sixty male and female veterans of the US Armed Forces published an open letter to Fox News network presenters Greg Gutfeld and Eric Bolling condemning the remarks.

The group behind the letter, a foreign-policy organisation in Washington called the Truman National Security Project, told The National it believed the letter represented the views of most American veterans.

“We sent our letter to 200 veterans in the Truman Project community and within 45 minutes, we had 60 signatures,” said Stephanie Dreyer, spokeswoman for the group.

“After the deadline to sign, we were still receiving commitments to sign the letter and we have received emails and calls from veterans who are not affiliated with our organisation praising our work.”

The presenters made jokes about Maj Al Mansouri that were widely seen as sexist, among which was Mr Gutfeld’s quip: “The problem is, after she bombed it, she couldn’t park it.”

The veterans called the comments "unwarranted, offensive and fundamentally opposed to what the military taught us to stand for", in the letter published on the liberal news website Talking Points Memo.

They pointed out that women had been flying combat aircraft for decades, and that more than a thousand had served during World War Two. They also noted that one of the two pilots ordered to stop United Airlines Flight 93 during the September 11 attacks was a woman – Lt Heather “Lucky” Penney.

“Completely unarmed, she was ready to lay down her own life to prevent further devastating attacks on American soil,” the letter read.

The veterans said the comments hurt the mission against ISIL.

“The less obvious implication of your remarks, however, is that by offending an ally and cheapening her contribution, you are actively hurting the mission.

“We need to send a clear message that anyone, male or female, who will stand up [to ISIL] and get the job done is worthy of our respect and gratitude.”

The veterans apologised on the presenters’ behalf to Maj Al Mansouri, saying that even if they did not take her service seriously, “we and the rest of the American public do”.

Ms Dreyer said the group was “grateful” for the help of UAE and other countries participating in strikes on ISIL, and that it was critical for the US to work with its allies and regional partners.

“We appreciate the sacrifice that men and women like Maj Al Mansouri make every day to keep this world safe from these kinds of threats,” Ms Dreyer said.

The response to the presenters’ comments in the US “have been overwhelmingly negative” and the public had been very supportive of the group’s response, she added.

Mr Bolling has apologised for his comments, while Mr Gutfeld called his own remark one of his “hacky jokes”.

Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE ambassador to the US, had confirmed last week that Maj Al Mansouri had led the country's airstrike mission against ISIL, appearing on the Morning Joe talk show on the network MSNBC.

Maj Al Mansouri, a 35-year-old F-16 pilot from Abu Dhabi, was the first woman to enrol in the Khalifa bin Zayed Air College, graduating in 2008.