Speed Trap
Top this for a speeding ticket. Two California Highway Patrol
Officers were conducting speeding enforcement on I-15, just north of the
Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar. One of the officers was using a hand
held radar device to check speeding vehicles approaching the crest of a
hill. The officers were suddenly surprised when the radar gun began reading
300 miles per hour.
The officer attempted to reset the radar gun, but it would not reset
and then turned off. Just then a deafening roar over the treetops revealed
that the radar had in fact locked on to a USMC F/A-18 Hornet which was
engaged in a low flying exercise near the location.
Back at the CHP Headquarters the Patrol Captain fired off a
complaint to the USMC Base Commander. The reply came back in true USMC
style:
Thank you for your letter. We can now complete the file on this
incident.
You may be interested to know that the tactical computer in the
Hornet had detected the presence of, and subsequently locked on to, your
hostile radar equipment and automatically sent a jamming signal back to it,
which is why it shut down. Furthermore, an Air-to-Ground missile aboard the
fully armed aircraft had also automatically locked on to your equipment
location. Fortunately, the Marine Pilot flying the Hornet recognized the
situation for what it was, quickly responded to the missile system alert
status and was able to override the automated defense system before the
missile was launched to destroy the hostile radar position.
The pilot also suggests you cover your mouths when cussing at them,
since the video systems on these jets are very high tech. Sergeant Johnson,
the officer holding the radar gun, should get his dentist to check his left
rear molar. It appears the filling is loose. Also, the snap is broken on his
holster.
Thank you for your concern.
