European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 18, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday september 18, 1988 the stars and stripes Pago 9 stealth bomber s Price climbs 16% Pentagon says costs w/7/ be capped Washington not Pentagon officials have confirmed that the Price of the secret stealth number has grown 16 percent from previous estimates but they said the program now is being Man ii cil in a a to control costs. The new Cost estimate which was Dis cussed n1 a congressional hearing and confirmed by air Force officials is s42.5billion in i s1 dollars without adjusting the figs res for inflation. The previous estimate was  .6 billion in 1981 Dol Lars. The air Force in comparing different bomber prices usually expresses prices in i is dollars Hiu because of inflation the new figure translates into roughly s6h billion in today s dollars or More than Jisoo million for each of the 132 planes that the air Force plans to buy. The stealth bomber which is designated the 11-2. Is a highly classified project. The aim is to build a plane Thill is Able to penetrate enemy territory by eluding radar or other sensors. After years of development under nearly local Waite to gain Freedom soon paper claims Beirut. Lebanon a a  claimed in an Issue published saturday thai missing anglican Church envoy Terry Waite will be released soon. Ash Shiraz which cited no sources far the Story Saui Waile will be released Asa result of an orchestration Between Brit Ain and Iran including  s denunciation of i rail for using chemical weapons a inst the  Ash Shiraz broke the Story of secret . Amis sales to Iran in 1986. But has not been accurate in recent reporting on foreign hostages in Lebanon. Waite 48. Disappeared Jan. 20, 1987,after leaving a Seaside hotel in moslem West Beirut to negotiate Wilh the Kidnap pers of american imitates. There has been no Cunt ironed claim of responsibility for his abduction. Ash Shiraz sail saturday hat ran is now directly in charge of the hostages affairs in  the report said inc release of German hostage Rudolf Cordel on monday sparked anger and confusion within Hezbollah party of go because in was carried out without consulting the  Hezbollah made up of shiite mosle zealots Loyal to Iran s Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini is believed to be the umbrella group for those holding foreign hostages in Lebanon. Cordis release leaves seventeen for Eigners missing in Lebanon including nine americans. The longest held hostage is american Terry Anderson chief Middle East correspondent of the associated press. He was kidnapped in Beirut on March 16, 1985. Secrecy the first plane is expected to be displayed in mid november and to begin flight tests a few months later. The new Cost figures were approved last week at a meeting of the defense acquisition Hoard a panel of senior Pentagon officials and were described thursday at a closed session of the House armed services committee but committee members some of whom had already been informally advised of the Cost figures were More concerned about whether the growth in Cost represented the kind of mismanagement that Many members believe has characterised other air Force programs such As the 1j-ib bomber and the my missile. Air Force officials said the Rise in Cost docs not indicate future difficulties. In fact an official said the service Hopes to Cut costs by 10 percent by finding manufacturing efficiencies in the years ahead. This official said the Cost growth in the Early stages of the program was re lated to developing the unusual design of the plane whose main Structure is Little More than a huge sweeping Wing without a fuselage. A major redesign of the Wing five years ago led to substantial growth in the costs in recent years he said. According to those familiar Wilh the discussion at the armed services com Mittee on thursday Robert Cost cello the undersecretary of defense for acquisition told lawmakers that the air Force had already renegotiated future prices in ways expected to Cut St billion from the program s costs and that As much As id billion might be saved through other Steps already identified bul not Yel car ried out by the air Force s program manager. Despite this optimistic talk costello like senior air Force officials expects technical setbacks As the plane is brought into production. One problem is Ial the new technology involved in stealth aircraft including the use of composite materials and advanced electronics requires production techniques that Are not Well understood by the contractors including the North Rop corp. The Pentagon has found in difficult to estimate the production costs of the pro Gram because technologies arc constantly changing officials said. Tic Rand corp., As an outside adviser to the air Force on managing the stealth program i studying ways to better estimate the costs of building composite structures such As those in the new bomber and the Pentagon and Congress alike Recagni a that the very expensive pro Gram will Strain air Force budgets in the years ahead especially if it is purchased on a schedule that puts the plane into operation in the Early 1990s. In this summer s internal reviews of Pentagon budgets officials said there has been consideration Given to delaying the schedule somewhat or even cancelling the program although cancellation was never seriously debated. Congress has not been told when the bomber will be put into operation. A Pentagon report on this question has been delayed by several months. The Golden giant its Beauty is not Only in the Eye of the beholder bul in he Diamond s flawless facets. Man Lane Bohan an employee of Christie s auction House in London displays on Friday the 407.4tt-Carut Diamond nicknamed the Golden giant the huge Stone is second in size Only to the 530-cural Cullinan Diamond. The Gem which is estimated to be Worth Between $20 million and $25 million. Is on 11 Lour of the world. It will he auctioned Oil next month by Christie s in new York. Court s reversal allows relaxed fuel rating rules Washington a a Federal appeals court struck Down on Friday two orders that had directed the Environ mental i to Lection Agency to recalculate automobile fuel Economy ratings the order by the . Circuit court of appeals in Washington relieves the Epa from complying with the court s pre Vious orders to recalculate the ratings according to a method that could Cost Ford motor co. And general motors corp. Millions of dollars in fines. Friday s decision made in a Brief order by Ilic court s ii members re versed a 5-5 vote taken May 17 that upheld a 1936 ruling by a three judge panel. In the previous vote the court divided along bitter ideological lines Over whether the Center for Auto safely and other petitioners had standing to Challenge the Epa s 1985 decision to relax the fuel Economy standards. The Epa action lowered penalties thai Ford and pm would be assessed for fail ing to meet flex wide fuel Economy Stan Dards set under the environmental policy and conservation acl of 197s. The Law requires manufacturers to be fined is for each tenth of a mile that a car Model Falls Short of the Milev per Eal Lon Standard set by the Epa. Manufacturers Are Given credits for models that surpass he standards that can be carried Over to subsequent Model years the court said Friday that after considering the Epa s motion to reconsider Hai decision we have decided that our original disposition was not an appropriate  we now hold that As a majority of the. Court was unable 10 satisfy itself that the court had jurisdiction the court should not have taken any affirmative action on the merits including reinstate ment of the panel opinion the court said in an unsigned order. In May the court said that in would uphold the 19s6 ruling but that the Deci Sion would not become a precedent be cause the circuit judges could not agree on the Issue of Legal standing