From the: The Orlando Sentinel archive
From the: The Orlando Sentinel archive
Published: Saturday, January 19, 1991 Section: EDITORIAL Page: A22
That a Floridian, Lt. Cmdr. Michael Scott Speicher of Jacksonville, was the first official combat casualty in the Persian Gulf War is not surprising, though the state mourns his loss.
Wherever pilots fly off carriers, they carry with them a tie to Florida. Naval aviation was born here, and Pensacola remains the home of the Naval Air Basic Training Command. There, Navy and Marine pilots earn their wings.
Indeed, Pensacola is called the Cradle of Naval Aviation. It's also known as the Mother-in-Law of Naval Aviation, because so many pilots have won brides as well as wings there.
In retrospect, Florida's connection to war seems almost predestined.
One of the earliest Spanish explorers, Hernando De Soto, stepped ashore somewhere between Fort Myers and Tampa and unleashed the dogs of war - massive Spanish war dogs that ripped apart Indians. De Soto left a trail of destruction.
In the centuries since, Florida has seen the flags of Spain, France, Great Britain, the United States and the Confederacy fly over it. Changes typically followed wars or their aftermath.
And the state has seen war firsthand.
Andrew Jackson twice invaded while Florida still flew the Spanish flag, once in pursuit of the British and again in pursuit of Indians. America's first stalemate of war - the First Seminole Indian War - occurred here. Floridians fought in the Civil War. Later, Teddy Roosevelt launched his Spanish-American War expedition from Florida. World War I brought massive gun emplacements - and the beginning of naval aviation to Pensacola.
In World War II, Floridians didn't have to watch newsreels to see the war. Within sight offshore, Nazi submarines were sinking tankers and other merchant ships; ghastly debris littered the beaches.
Today, Florida maintains its proud ties to American military forces from Key West to Jacksonville to Pensacola. Wherever America's bravest fight for this country, chances are that many will have ties to Florida.
And, as in the sad case of the Speicher family, Florida's contribution to America's defense has always been fraught with sacrifice and tears.
Copyright 1991, Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.