This week, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., brought back his proposal to have Air America employees who served during the Cold War have federal benefits.
In the summer of 2020, Rubio introduced the “Air America Act” with more than a dozen co-sponsors. Rubio brought it back in 2021 with more than 25 co-sponsors. U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., is the main cosponsor.
“Air America was a government-owned corporation that conducted covert operations during the Cold War, Korean War, and Vietnam War. Their employees worked under the direct policy guidance of the White House, Department of Defense, and the Department of State while under the management of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA),” Rubio’s office noted. “Air America employed several hundred U.S. citizens, mainly flight crew members, and approximately 286 were killed in the line of duty while conducting covert operations in designated war zones. The last helicopter mission that rescued personnel from the rooftops in Saigon in 1975 was planned and executed by Air America and the United States Marine Corps. Since 2009, the declassification of CIA Agency documents confirmed that Air Americans were employees of the U.S. Government at the time of their service and are therefore entitled to federal retirement credit. Congress has maintained its interest in resolving the retirement situation of Air American employees for more than 15 years. During this process, the Office of Personnel Management, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the CIA and the Director of National Intelligence have all concluded that congressional action is required.”
While the bill cleared the Senate, it did not make much progress in the U.S. House, where U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wisc., has championed the proposal.
Rubio brought back the proposal with Warner as the main co-sponsor. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, is also co-sponsoring it.
“The brave men and women of Air America deserve an immense token of appreciation for their service to our nation. I am proud to lead this bipartisan bill to ensure our fellow Americans who honorably served our great nation receive the recognition they deserve,” said Rubio.
“I’m proud to introduce this legislation to provide well-earned benefits and formally recognize the courage of Air Americans during the U.S. war effort in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. I hope the Senate will act quickly to do the right thing by those who courageously supported troops, rescued downed American pilots and sustained casualties in the line of duty,” said Warner.
The bill was sent to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, which Warner leads and which Rubio serves on as the vice chairman.
