Maybe the Air Force should reconsider its “garage door” frequencies.

Ever gone to your car in the garage to find your automatic door raised, when you know you lowered it the night before?

This ultra-modern age has brought us many wonders, but there also are bothersome glitches with which to contend. Was your door opener triggered by somebody’s cell phone frequency or some other type of stray signal, such as a transmission from an airplane that was passing over and transmitting at an inopportune time for you.

Crazy idea? Such things happen. In fact, the U.S. Air Force’s new $5.5 million two-way radio system at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., has introduced a new inconvenience: It jams garage doors.

During recent testing at Eglin, homeowners in Niceville, Valparaiso and the Crestview areas of Florida reported their garage door openers failed to work.

Air Force officials quickly reported that the contractor, Motorola, Inc., will try to minimize the problem with frequency alterations. So far, the changes have been effective. Said a high-ranking officer at the air base, “I understand, because I want my garage door to work, too.”

But the word from the Federal Communications Commission was not reassuring. Lauren Van Wazer, a spokeswoman for the FCC, said if the Air Force runs the system within its licensed frequencies (which the AF says it has been doing) then users of garage door openers may have to change their signal alignments.

How’s that for public relations at a time our armed forces are looking for all the friends and support they can get?