"U.S. Air Force General Commits Suicide" - Why?

Great find. Very interesting story indeed. The media seems to have played down this whole 'Missing Nuke' scenario. A general shoots himself at home, in the chest, with his wife and kids close-by. For me, that's a bit hard to chew...maybe we haven't seen the last of those 'missing nukes'.

Anyway, good find. Keep our eyes and ears open.

My thought is he was murdered. Elmendorf has a FEMA camp that can hold 500K people and it also has been intercepting Russian planes of late (listen to Steve Quayle's Q-files). Also General Tinsley may have pieced together what was going on with the nuke and was trying to stop something. If you see a nuke go off anytime soon and it is blamed on AL-CIA-DUH a general who could have put everything together is now out of the way.

People who shoot themselves seldom shoot themselves in the chest...

Originally posted by stellawayten
If it was a suicide you would think he would have left a note for his family. Could someone have snuck in the house without the wife and child hearing? Why don't they KNOW it was a handgun. If it was a suicide wouldn't have been there beside him? Also, if it took thirty minutes for him to die, wouldn't he have been able to say something? If it was murder, wouldn't the killer shoot him in the head to make it appear to be a suicide?

Seems to me that a chest shooting reflects more of someone being angry and shooting at him or an accidental shooting? I'm just speculating here.

Thirty minutes to die, shot in the chest..."honey, did you iron my uniform?" He was most likely not able to speak, getting shot in the heart may do that. Statistically, women who commit suicide shoot themselves in the heart, and men shoot themselves in the head. I pray the soul of this person, this General, is well taken care of.

Everything is suspect. It does not sound like a suicide, but he could have know something and wasn't going to play hardball. Anyone could have ordered the kill. Dick Cheney is a powerful man, but so is Elton John...they are both annoying.

sounds like it could be a cover up... some type of assasination... why would he choose to shoot himself in the chest rather than head... especially with family home... thats just my two cents...

Suicide is a tragic thing. It's hard enough to deal with death in the family, especially sudden death. Unresolved family issues can gnaw at one ever afterward.

There may be a mundane (health issues, depression, etc.) reason why he comitted suicide, if he did. The oddities of where and how could be explained, to some extent, if one grants that a person bent on committing suicide is, on the face of it, already acting in poor judgement.

Anyone who has listened to Kay Griggs's interview about what she learned about high ranking American military officers, while married to one, will allow for extreme stress and possible mental health issues in looking at this case.

On the other hand, suicide is such a convenient way for sinister people to mask a murder.

reply to post by kosmicjack


I don't know WHY he killed himself but he probably shot himself in the chest, rather than in the head, so as to spare his wife and daughter the sight of seeing his brains splattered all over the place.

statistics show that in hand gun suicide, almost 25% of people shoot themselves in the chest. So that argument is pointless.

Personally I'd go head by as posted above, some people, just don't, I dunno,less messy?

But as far as the other info, it does seem a tad suspicious.

The only thing I think when I read this story is where are the missing NUKE(s)

ARe they stashed in the basement of another Highrise in America ticking at this very minute
Tick tock Tick Tock

reply to post by robbin_the_hood



It absolutely is an assassination.
They didn't get away clean with what they tried to do, now anyone who knew what was really going on is going to pay for it.

There is no way in hell that all of these people involved were coincidentally killed or committed suicide. And especially in the house with their wife and children. It's not how things work.

I think at this point members of the military need to realize just how expendable they are and re-assess just who and what they are serving.

I don't buy suicide. Possibly a handgun??? As a prior Air Force member and current Air Force civilian I can tell you that there would be not one question as to what killed the General. Security Forces and Air Force Special Investigations would know immediately what killed him and there would be no question about it. Too weird for me. As well, these Generals are the first ones preaching suicide awareness training for all military and civilians in the AF. Generals do not do these things. This guy had a great career, an excellent record, a very nice family (daughter in college).....there is no way he did himself in because of some other idiots F.U.

"The weapon was likely a handgun, Walberg said."

Er...am I the only one that finds this weird? if he killed himself, why can they only assume the weapon was a handgun, surely he didn't stash it after shooting himself (IN THE CHEST?!).

This stinks, doubt they were nukes though.

EMM

[edit on 31-7-2008 by ElectroMagnetic Multivers]

reply to post by FutureAbductee


lol, you beat me to it but I agree, possibly a handgun? STINKS!

Originally posted by Nola213
statistics show that in hand gun suicide, almost 25% of people shoot themselves in the chest. So that argument is pointless.

Personally I'd go head by as posted above, some people, just don't, I dunno,less messy?

Good point, I'd agree with you that it would have been so he could have an open coffin and to avoid showing his kids his brains all over the wall, but he 'shot himself' when the family was in, doesn't seem right if you ask me.

EMM

I love the "missing nukes" comments everyone is making on this thread.


I think Boorda shot himself in the chest when he committed suicide. Also, it could be an ND and not suicide in the case of the AF General (tho the chances are slim that's the case).

A neighbor of a close relative of mine committed suicide. He went outside, took a shot gun and shot himself in the chest (presumably with something long to reach the trigger?). He had just been diagnosed with cancer. He had said many times before if something ever happened to him like that he would take himself out rather than suffer through it (he was in his late 70s). Anyway, the point is he shot himself in the chest (through the heart) so that when his family found him his head would not be missing or severely disfigured, instead he would simply have a huge hole in his chest. Could be similar reasoning on the general's part, less gruesome for family that discovers him (and an open casket wake).

Just a bit more info, though dubious sources:

omaha.craigslist.org...

Was the strange death of this up-and-coming flag officer linked in any way to the rapid fall from grace of his former boss, disgraced former Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen. T. Michael Moseley? Tinsley's last assignment before assuming command of the 3rd Wing was a 22-month stint between 2005 and 2007 as the fired general's executive officer at the Pentagon

Could it be that the command pilot with over 3200 hours in the air, knew something that caused him to sink into a quiet depression he kept hidden from even his closest friends and associates? .

www.militarycorruption.com...

Thomas Tinsley was universally admired. His kind nature and pleasant manner - he remembered the first names of low-ranking airmen at Elmendorf - was in stark contrast to surly lowlifes like Gen. Gary North, whom we have exposed on these pages for sacrificing two of his own Air Force officers and disregarding an investigating officer's report from Afghanistan that cleared both men, in order to "suck up" to Blackwater.

We also are told North knows everything about the Maj. Jill Metzger cover-up and subsequent sweetheart deal. Tinsley, as Gen. Mosley's executive officer at the time, could not have helped but know the details, too. But he was no threat to talk about that. It was not in his character to "betray" his senior officers, even if they engaged in what many believe to be one of the most disgraceful episodes of recent Air Force history.

Again and again we come back to motive. Why would a relatively young - age 46 - brigadier general with a brilliant future ahead of him destroy himself in one terrible moment? He loved his family and was a good and thoughtful father. Why, then would he "check out" of this life with no suicide note or explanation, and let his loved ones hear the shot and find his body the way they did?

a good head shot "suicide" requires entrance of 22. cal into soft tissue area surrounding brain...back of upper spine, ear, etc. ; small caliber is effective for noise suppression, loss of fluid. also, small caliber allows richochet off of interior wall of skull without exit.

Here's his bio:

www.af.mil...

Brig. Gen. Thomas L. Tinsley is Commander, 3rd Wing, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska. The 3rd Wing provides the Commander, U.S. Pacific Command, trained and equipped tactical air supremacy assets with all-weather strike capability, command and control platforms, and strategic airlift resources for contingency operations. The wing flies the F-22A, F-15C, C-17, C-12 and E-3, and maintains a regional medical facility providing care for all forces in Alaska. The installation also hosts headquarters for the 11th Air Force, Alaskan Command and Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region as well as 41 tenant units.

General Tinsley was commissioned in 1984 through the ROTC program at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and subsequently was a distinguished graduate of undergraduate pilot training. He has served as an F-15 instructor pilot, F-15C test pilot, wing weapons officer, exchange officer and instructor with the Royal Australian Air Force. He has served in the Directorate for Plans and Policy on the Joint Staff as South Asia desk officer and executive assistant to the Deputy for Political-Military Affairs for Asia Pacific and the Middle East. He has commanded the 12th Fighter Squadron, Elmendorf AFB, and the 1st Operations Group, Langley AFB, Va. Prior to his current assignment, he was executive officer to the Chief of Staff of the Air Force.

The general is a command pilot with more than 3,200 flight hours in the F-15, F/A-18 and F-22A.

EDUCATION
1984 Bachelor of Science degree in air transportation management, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Ariz.
1989 Distinguished graduate, Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
1995 Master of Science degree in aviation science, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
1998 Masters degree in national security and strategic studies, Naval Command and General Staff College, Naval War College, Newport, R.I.

ASSIGNMENTS
1. May 1984 - May 1985, student, undergraduate pilot training, Columbus AFB, Miss.
2. May 1985 - January 1986, student, fighter lead-in training, Holloman AFB, N.M.
3. January 1986 - August 1988, squadron scheduler and assistant chief of training, 7th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Holloman AFB, N.M.
4. August 1988 - November 1988, student, 405th Tactical Training Wing, Luke AFB, Ariz.
5. November 1988 - March 1989, instructor pilot, 555th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz.
6. March 1989 - January 1991, weapons officer, 405th Tactical Training Wing, Luke AFB, Ariz.
7. January 1991 - October 1991, student, Fighter Weapons School Instructor Course, Nellis AFB, Nev.
8. October 1991 - January 1992, weapons officer, 58th Operations Support Squadron, Luke AFB, Ariz.
9. January 1992 - March 1994, instructor, 2nd Operational Conversion Unit, and lead air-to-air instructor, Fighter Combat Instructor Course, Royal Australian Air Force Base Williamtown, Australia
10. March 1994 - May 1997, test pilot and Chief, Tactics Documentation Division, 422nd Tactical Evaluation Squadron, Nellis AFB, Nev.
11. May 1997 - July 1998, student, Naval Command and General Staff College, Naval War College, Newport, R.I.
12. July 1998 - February 2000, South Asia desk officer, Directorate for Plans and Policy (J5), Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
13. February 2000 - August 2000, executive assistant to the Deputy for Political-Military Affairs for Asia, Pacific and the Middle East, Directorate for Plans and Policy (J5), Joint Staff, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C. 14. August 2000 - November 2001, Director of Operations, 12th Fighter Squadron, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
15. November 2001 - June 2003, Commander, 12th Fighter Squadron, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska
16. June 2003 - June 2004, Secretary of Defense Fellow, General Dynamics C4 Systems, Scottsdale, Ariz.
17. July 2004 - August 2005, Commander, 1st Operations Group, Langley AFB, Va.
18. August 2005 - May 2007, executive officer to the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
19. May 2007 - present, Commander, 3rd Wing, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska

FLIGHT INFORMATION
Rating: Command pilot
Flight hours: More than 3,200
Aircraft flown: F-15A-D, F/A-18A and F-22A