Vermont adjutant general disputes characterization of state’s Guard as a ‘flying fraternity’
By Lisa Rathke for the Associate Press, published by Air Force Times, December 7, 2018
COLCHESTER, Vt. — The head of the Vermont National Guard on Thursday disputed the characterization of the Guard’s culture that was reported in a series of news articles that included allegations of excessive drinking and sexual misconduct among some members.
Republican Gov. Phil Scott joined Maj. Gen. Steven Cray in defending the Guard at the press conference at the Guard’s headquarters.
“In many areas and in many organizations, there will be instances of poor judgment, mistakes made and an occasional bad apple. But individual situations such as these are the exception, not the rule,” Scott said.
VTDigger’s article, “A ‘Top Gun’ culture pervades the Vermont National Guard,” was the first in a seven-part investigative series, “The Flying Fraternity,” about allegations that male officials have mistreated women, abused alcohol and been given preferential treatment by superiors. Air Force Times recently reported on the second article in the series, which revealed that the head of the Vermont Air National Guard was forced to resign after taking an F-16 to Washington, D.C., in a heavy snowstorm to visit his girlfriend.
