LETTER: Nellis closure to retirees creates hardships

A couple of months ago, Nellis Air Force Base officials released, through the newspaper, some information that has had a deleterious effect on a large group of people. They told locals and whoever else might be interested that the gates to Nellis would be closed to all retired military members and their families. There were no exceptions to that order.

Apparently some Nellis officials had been charged with the task of preparing an operational plan to minimize the negative effect that the coronavirus may cause on the operational readiness of the command.

I do have some earned military experience, as I retired from the Navy with the rank of captain. I joined the Navy in 1953 and went immediately into their flight training program. I served as a fighter/attack pilot for 29 years. I served as commanding officer of two of the largest aviation squadrons in the Navy.

Now I’m just like any other retired military man who is proud as hell to tell young hard charging men and women what to expect when they join the service. Years ago, when I was getting ready to retire, I received a briefing on what to expect as a retired military person. The money you receive after you leave active duty was called “retainer pay,” not retirement pay. That is probably what bred the life into the system whereby military retirees now have the right (within reason) to certain facilities on active duty bases.

I realize that I don’t have the right to be critical of the decision by the people who came to the banishment action. But I can point out the current vernacular, which proudly states that the U.S. military, when in stressful situations, never leaves one of its own behind.