-------------------------------------------------------------------- EUROPEAN BALLOONISTS SET RECORD On Friday a three-man team of balloonists beat the 12-year-old record for the longest non-stop flight without refuelling, mission organizers said. The previous mark, nine days and four minutes, was set by a light plane flown by two Americans in 1986. The hopes of the European crew trying to fly Brietling-Orbiter 2 around the world nonstop were dashed when China delayed the craft's entry into its airspace Thursday. The balloon is currently headed for a possible Saturday landing in Burma. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F2C00004 Date: 02/06/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 05:47pm \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: News-020 U.S. Marines try to clarify statement on ski-lift disaster AVIANO, Italy - Feb 6, 1998 10:19 a.m. EST - U.S. military offi- cials sought on Friday to clarify statements made earlier this week by a senior officer about the ski-lift tragedy in northern Italy involving a U.S. marine jet. In a statement released here on behalf of the U.S. Air Force, U.S. officials said that Brigadier General Vander Linden had not sought to contradict Italy's ministry of defense on Thursday. Linden told a news conference that the plane involved in the ski-lift disaster was "over" the designated flight route when it sliced through cable car wires sending 20 people plunging to their deaths in the Cavalese ski resort. The statement issued Friday offered what it called a "clarifi- cation" about the point at which the aircraft made contact with the cable. "The point of impact was within the 10 nautical-mile-wide cor- ridor, but not on the centerline of the flight track. The point of impact is well below the approved minimum altitude," the statement said. "The general's statement (Thursday) was not intended to contra- dict the previous statement by the Italian (Ministry of Defense). Nor was it calling into question the MOD's point that the aircraft was not in the proper position at the point of the accident," the communique added. On Thursday, Defense Minister Beniamino Andreatta said that the aircraft was 6 miles off its authorized path and flying well below its permitted height of 650 yards. In statements attributed to the pilot of the Grumman EA-6B Prow- ler aircraft, Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper reported Captain Richard Ashby as saying he had no idea of his altitude because of an instrument malfunction. "The altimeter, for some unknown reason, was not working prop- erly and the radar was also malfunctioning," the 30-year-old Ashby said. The pilot said the wires of the cable car suddenly appeared in front of his eyes as he was carrying out the low-level flying exercise. "I did everything I could to avoid them. I veered to the left, but touched them with the right wing and then again with the tail fin," Ashby stated. "I had thought I was at the regulation altitude of 500 feet," he said, adding that while the plane had strayed from its flight path earlier, it was on course when the accident occurred. The newspaper did not indicate how it had obtained Ashby's statement. ------------------------------------------------------------------- President Clinton Signs Bill to Honor Ronald Reagan National Airport Renamed Washington, Feb. 6 - President Clinton today signed into law a bill passed Thursday by Congress to rename Washington's National airport as "Ronald Reagan National Airport." "He is in our thoughts and prayers," Clinton said, "As the na- tion celebrates President Reagans 87th birthday, we wish him and his family well." Congressional Republicans had placed Clinton in an unenviable situation: veto the bill and risk outraging Reagan sympathizers, or sign the bill and submit to the will of the GOP, which controls both the House and Senate. During a debate Wednesday on Capitol Hill, the Senate voted 76-22 in favor of a bill to rename National as the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Later in the day, the House voted 240-186 in favor of a slightly different bill that dropped the word "Washington" from the title. A Fitting Tribute House Speaker Newt Gingrich praised the renaming as a fitting tribute to an ailing president "who transformed the world" by help- ing bring down inflation and ending the Cold War. Reagan now suffers from Alzheimer's disease. "I hope that the president and Mrs. Reagan, watching this hap- pen, will have some small sense that there is enormous affection in this country for Ronald Reagan, and there is a deep sense of grati- tude for the leadership that he showed," Gingrich said. Added House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas: "Ronald Reagan is the most loved man in America today." Reagan's wife, Nancy, later issued a statement in Los Angeles expressing gratitude to "-members of Congress of both parties for their efforts in delivering this wonderful gift in time for my husband's 87th birthday." Opposition: Partisan and Wrong Despite the outpouring of sentiment, opponents of the bill argued earlier this week that the measure violates the federal government's lease to a local airport authority, which Reagan signed into law in 1986. Rep. James P. Moran Jr., a Democrat who represents the Northern Virginia district where the airport is located, also said changing the name would cost nearby businesses hundreds of thousands of dol- lars to change signs and stationery. He proposed an amendment, which subsequently failed, to make the change subject to the approval of voters in Arlington County, Va. Randy Schwitz, executive vice president of the Air Traffic Controllers Association, said: "Ronald Reagan never did anything for aviation in this country. Congress just poured salt in the wound." But others scolded opponents - chiefly Democrats - for playing politics with the legacy of a national leader. "The purpose of this bill is to honor a great American president who is in the evening of his life," said House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde, R-Ill. "This great honor for him has become the victim of what really is raw and petty politics. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F2C00005 Date: 02/07/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 07:06am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: News-021 One U.S. pilot dead in Persian Gulf jet collision WASHINGTON - Feb 6, 1998 4:34 p.m. EST -- Two U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18 "Hornet" fighter jets apparently collided in flight over the Persian Gulf Friday, killing one of the pilots, defense officials said. Both pilots were recovered by search and rescue units and flown to the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73), the carrier from which they had both taken off. U.S. Naval Cmdr. Gordon Hume said the other pilot was in good condition. "An investigation has already begun to check into the cause of this accident," Hume said. "There is an indication that it was, in fact, an apparent mid-air collision of the two F-18s, and certainly the circumstances will be a part of the investigation," he added. The incident took place 80 miles east of Kuwait City over the Persian Gulf as the two pilots were returning to the aircraft car- rier from what was described as a routine patrol of the southern "no-fly zone" over Iraq, the Navy said. The F-18 is a single-seat, high-performance fighter. Navy and Air Force aircraft based in Saudi Arabia regularly patrol the skies over southern Iraq to enforce the no-fly zone that was imposed after the 1991 Gulf War. The George Washington is one of three U.S. carriers in the gulf as President Bill Clinton contemplates using force against Iraq to force compliance with U.N. weapons inspections. The names of the pilots were being withheld until their relatives were notified. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Second pilot is fourth to die in TVA copter accident MEMPHIS - A fourth person has died from injuries suffered in the crash of a TVA helicopter. William Boatwright, 54, Baldwin, Miss., died Thursday at the Regional Medical Center at Memphis, according to the hospitaL Boatwright was one of two pilots aboard the Huey helicopter that crashed Thuesday in Savannah, Tennessee, after striking a 100-foot utility tower. The helicoptor was stringing power lines across the Tennessee River. Knoxville News Sentinel 6 Feb 98 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Balloonists land safely in Burma after smashing second world record RANGOON, Burma - Feb 6, 1998 11:43 p.m. EST - The hot air balloon Breitling Orbiter 2, which abandoned its round-the-world journey at- tempt but set two other flying records, landed safely in Burma on Saturday morning. The balloon touched down safely about 9:26 a.m local time (9:56 p.m. EST) at the village of Okpo, about 90 miles north of the Bur- mese capital Rangoon, Burmese officials said. The landing took place in a rice paddy field about a mile from a main road, they said. The crew of the Breitling Orbiter 2 achieved the longest-ever nonstop unrefueled flight Friday as their balloon floated toward Burma from India on the final leg of its journey from the Swiss Alps. The team's bid to be the first to circle the world was abandoned Wednesday because China initially refused to let the balloon enter its airspace. "For us the goal was really to fly around the world, but it is great to get a second world record," spokesman Gerard Sermier said. China belatedly gave the team the go-ahead Thursday to fly through its airspace, but by then the balloon had already changed course, missing its chance to pick up the jet-stream winds needed to propel it across the Pacific. From Burma, crew members Bertrand Piccard, Wim Verstraeten and Andy Elson were to be flown Sunday to Geneva for a celebration party. Burma, a security-conscious country that only began slowly open- ing to the outside world 10 years ago, gave the crew the go-ahead to land on Thursday. The balloon took off Wednesday from Chateau d'Oex in Switzerland. Its crew had to overcome problems that included a leaky gondola, the loss of one-third of its fuel and military risks in Iraq. By Thursday afternoon, the balloon had traveled 4,730 miles, a spokeswoman at the control center said. The team's new world record bests the December 1996 feat of American Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, who circled the world in nine days and four minutes in the experimental twin-engine light plane Voyager. On Tuesday, the Breitling team broke the world record for the longest time spent in the air by a balloon. That record was set last year by U.S. balloonist Steve Fossett. Fossett's world balloon distance record -- 10,000 miles -- remains intact. In January, Fossett and Rutan were both forced to abandon rival attempts to circle the world in a balloon. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F2C00006 Date: 02/07/98 From: CHRISTOPHER TARANA Time: 09:43pm \/To: ROBERT LINENWEBER (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: News-000 -=> Quoting Robert Linenweber to Christopher Tarana <=- CT> the president uses for everything besides his dates. AF1 is laid out RL> Had to chuckle when you ran that one past. Thanks. It's always the sharp-eyed ones that catch the puns! :-) Christopher ___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR] --- PCBoard (R) v15.22/M 2 * Origin: Ed's BBS * Holiday,Florida * 1:3619/45 (1:3619/45) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F2C00007 Date: 02/07/98 From: CHRISTOPHER TARANA Time: 09:43pm \/To: RAYMOND YATES (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: News-000 -=> Quoting Raymond Yates to Christopher Tarana <=- RY> Air Force one is the designate for ANY Air Force aircraft the RY> President is travelling on. Air Force Two is the designate RY> for ANY Air Force Aircraft the Vice-President is travelling on. RY> The same system translates over to other services, I.E. Marine RY> One, Two, Coast Guard One, Two, Navy One, Two, Army One, Two. RY> The designate is NOT aircraft specific. If the President is in RY> one of the 89th SMAW Gulfstream's.... That is Air Force One. Sounds good to me, Ray. I'm always willing to sit corrected when the evidence is in. :-) Christopher ... Reality-ometer: [\........] Hmmph! Thought so... ___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR] --- PCBoard (R) v15.22/M 2 * Origin: Ed's BBS * Holiday,Florida * 1:3619/45 (1:3619/45) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F2D00000 Date: 02/08/98 From: CHRISTOPHER TARANA Time: 12:16pm \/To: ROBERT LINENWEBER (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: News-000 -=> Quoting Robert Linenweber to Christopher Tarana <=- CT> the president uses for everything besides his dates. AF1 is laid out RL> Had to chuckle when you ran that one past. Thanks. It's always the sharp-eyed ones that catch the puns! :-) Christopher ___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR] --- PCBoard (R) v15.22/M 2 * Origin: Ed's BBS * Holiday,Florida * 1:3619/45 (1:3619/45) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F2D00001 Date: 02/08/98 From: CHRISTOPHER TARANA Time: 12:16pm \/To: RAYMOND YATES (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: News-000 -=> Quoting Raymond Yates to Christopher Tarana <=- RY> Air Force one is the designate for ANY Air Force aircraft the RY> President is travelling on. Air Force Two is the designate RY> for ANY Air Force Aircraft the Vice-President is travelling on. RY> The same system translates over to other services, I.E. Marine RY> One, Two, Coast Guard One, Two, Navy One, Two, Army One, Two. RY> The designate is NOT aircraft specific. If the President is in RY> one of the 89th SMAW Gulfstream's.... That is Air Force One. Sounds good to me, Ray. I'm always willing to sit corrected when the evidence is in. :-) Christopher ... Reality-ometer: [\........] Hmmph! Thought so... ___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR] --- PCBoard (R) v15.22/M 2 * Origin: Ed's BBS * Holiday,Florida * 1:3619/45 (1:3619/45)