Toni Seger’s guest column Nov. 8 stated that proposed lower-level military flights were disrespectful to Western Maine.

I think the article is disrespectful to those who are charged with defending this great country from its enemies. The military must conduct training exercises in all sorts of environments and conditions in order to be adequately trained for its mission.

During the Cold War, East Germany was occupied by the Soviet Union, which oppressed the citizens. Those in West Germany were fearful of the Soviets and were grateful for the presence of American troops to protect them.

I was once in a small West German town located near a U.S. Army artillery range that operated around the clock. The townspeople were subjected to the constant pounding of exploding ordnance. I once asked a waitress at a local gasthaus how they could stand the incessant noise. The waitress replied that they didn’t mind it because “That’s the sound of freedom.”

Military flights over Maine may at times be annoying and disturb our tranquility, but that, too, is the sound of freedom.

John W. Nickerson, Poland