European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 21, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday March 21, 1986 stars and stripes Page 5 ship returns with possible key to shuttle blast Cape canaveral Fla. A a Salvage ship headed into port wednesday with three Large chunks of one of challenger s Booster rockets including one piece that might be critical to the investigation into the shuttle explosion. The Stena Workhorse delayed several hours by High Waves raised one of the sections from 650 feet beneath the surface wednesday after a robot submarine attached a Sling and lines to the piece which measures 10 feet by 14feet, the Navy said. The other sections were retrieved earlier in the week. One is 4 feet by 5 feet the other 6 feet by 18 feet. The smallest piece if it is from the right Booster could be critical to the investigation because it could contain the segment joint believed to have triggered the Accident. The presidential commission investigating the explosion has said the joint Between the Bottom two segments and the of rings that Seal it Are prime suspects. Photographs show a puff of smoke billowing near the joint on liftoff and a burst of flame from the same area 15 seconds before the explosion. Challenger exploded Jan. 28, 73 seconds after it lifted off. All seven Crew members were killed. A spokeswoman for the Salvage operation Navy it. Cmdr. Deborah Burnetta said experts will not be Able to identify whether the three parts which were found close together Are from the left or right Booster until they Are examined. That examination was expected to begin thurs shuttle debris is hoisted onto Dock in Florida. A photo Day. Burnette also reported the Navy had widened the wreckage search area by 80 Square Miles to 460 Square Miles. She said the decision to expand was based on patterns of debris already recovered and additional radio talc Mctroy data from the shuttle supplied by the National aeronautics and space administration. The area is roughly 20 to 50 Miles Northeast of Cape canaveral. Seven surface ships two Small manned submarines and three robot subs arc working it. Burnette said recovery efforts arc being hampered by stiff winds that kick up High Waves. The Waves wednesday delayed the Salvage ship preserver from dropping divers overboard at the site where Chal Lenger s Cabin and Crew remains were found 12 Days ago. But after seas abated they were Able to go Down. Nasa officials have refused to acknowledge that re Mains have been found but sources close to the investigation said most of them arc ashore and being examined and identified by forensic experts in a Laboratory at Cape canaveral air Force station. The Johnson sea link ii a four Man submarine spotted a Parachute from one of the Booster rocket stretched out in the water. We be located a Chute with an Orange Stripe the sea link s Mother ship Seward Johnson radioed. It s streaming with the current. At the highest Point it s about 20 to 22 feet above the Ocean floor Gander victims families criticize Pentagon response a cd Jive it pm / a r \ i .1. N Washington a More than two dozen relatives of soldiers who died when a military chartered transport plane crashed in Newfoundland last december have told Federal officials they Are angry and distraught at the Way the Pentagon handled the Accident. The Way families have been treated that needs to be dealt with said Christine Manion 35, of fort Campbell by. She is the widow of capt. Edward Manion com Mander of co a 101 St airborne div. The Stormy 90-minute session occurred wednesday the first Day of a three Day trip the families made to find out More about the dec. 12 crash that killed 248 service members in Gander Newfoundland. Who. Was responsible who was the guilty person will some people be punished will someone resign demanded Leray Carter of Fayetteville . His son Mark 23, was among those killed aboard the dc-8 Arrow air charter. The troops had been in route Home for Christmas from the Sinai where they had been stationed on a peace keeping Mission. Officials from the army air Force and Federal aviation administration listened to the complaints but had few answers during the discussion on Capitol Hill. Gen. Edward Honor head of the army s transportation services said he was Dis Turbed by what he heard. He promised to arrange another meeting. The victims families said the purpose of the visit was twofold to get information and to prevent future accidents. The reason they Are Here is to try to change something said de Dias of Butler a. He is the Uncle of Michael Shipley one of the crash victims. Relatives were upset Over reports that the charter had a history of trouble and Federal investigators have said the plane was carry ing at least 12,000 pounds More than the Crew had calculated. One woman said she had heard the plane was not de iced for two hours while it sat on the ground at the Gander Airport. When the Jet took off that was it for those boys she said. The cause of the crash however has not been determined. Public hearings will begin in the Case in Canada next month and the entire investigative process generally takes Between eight and 10 months officials told the families. Dias suggested that the military hire additional inspectors to certify that transport planes Are in Good condition 48 hours be fore flying. Many of the emotional moments came As relatives complained about the military s handling of details. We did t get called did t get berets medals letters Manion said summarizing the problems she said some families encountered. Honor said army officials were Given precise instructions on How to handle questions but some of the participants claimed they were Given the runaround. People Are literally losing Faith Manion said. The relatives said they have failed to get information about their loved one s wills and had not always been Able to find out How the bodies were identified. Could t you please have the Courtesy to Call each family and ask what Are your problems " asked Elizabeth Jones Oburke a. Trident builder to enforce tighter Security measures Groton Conn. A the Only builder of Trident nuclear submarines will begin random checks next week of items carried in and out of its shipyard by employees. The new Security regulation at electric boat in Groton also will restrict the 18,000 employees from bringing any thing larger than 12 inches High wide or deep into or out of the shipyard unless they obtain a pass from a supervisor. The hostile intelligence gathering threat is real and demands that we take whatever precautions Are necessary to prevent a breach of that Trust electric boat general manager Fritz g. Tovar said in a letter distributed to employees last week. As the Only builder of the ballistic missile Trident sub Marine he Navy s largest and most powerful weapon the general dynamics corp. Subsidiary is a prime target for spies Tovar said. The shipyard also builds nuclear powered attack sub marines and is involved in the design of a new generation of fast attack submarines. Employees will have a four week Grace period beginning monday. A fact Sheet distributed to employees did not specify what penalty would result after the Grace period expires april 20. The new regulation is part of an Overall tightening of Sands of time Security measures said Vincent t. Malcolm an electric boat spokesman. In the past Security at electric boat has been focused on Protection of its perimeters following two break ins by anti nuclear protesters. Tighter Security of classified information is one of the requirements in an agreement reached in Early february Between the Pentagon and general dynamics. The agreement is related to the lifting of a corporate wide con tract suspension for financial discrepancies at a Californi division of the company. Spot checks will be conducted by the Security depart ment starting monday on All hand carried items. In the stars and stripes 40 years ago today. March 21, 1946 the new Koo Meleh party has set up an autonomous government and proclaimed a Kurdistan Republic according to press reports from Teheran Iran. 30 years ago today. March 21, 1956 turkish blood for blood reprisal attacks swept Nicosia. Hundreds of angry turks defying Clouds of tear Gas stoned and looted greek cypriot shop Sand battled with police and troops who tried to intervene. 20 years ago today. March 21, 1966 Nasa officials said it was probably a Short circuit that caused a Small mane vering rocket to run wild on gemini 8, sending the spacecraft into its Harrow ing spin that forced an emergency end to the flight. To years ago today. March 21, 1976 the government of Thailand has decided to immediately Termi Nate . Military activities in the country and allow Only 270 american advisers to remain. Vet named outstanding handicapped american Washington a a Vietnam Veteran who lost both legs and an Arm in a land mine explosion near Saigon in 1968 has been named by the president s com Mittee on employment of the handicapped As the year s outstanding handicapped american. The committee on wednesday said Ralph Chad Colley 42, of Barling ark., was chosen for the award largely because of his leadership As National commander of the disabled american veterans in 1984-85. During Colley s tenure As head of the Dav the organization increased its membership from 879,000 to More than 1 Mil lion veterans. He also spearheaded a Campaign by the organization to donate $1 million for the rehabilitation of the statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in new York City to assure that the landmarks Are fully accessible to handicapped people. Colley who owns a real estate company in Arkansas also was cited for his voluntary counselling of newly disabled people in his Community. Talking most with amputees and paraplegics i try to turn around the negative attitudes and despair that so frequently Fol Low catastrophic physical injuries Colle said. Many of these folks see their futures As extremely limited. I guess i m a pretty Good example that this just in t the