European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 1, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Singer Randy Travis honoured Page 3 the stars and stripes authorized unofficial publication for the . Armed forces vol. 47,no. 287 wednesday february 1, 1989 is daily and sunday d 8693 a air Force Tanker Jet crashes in Texas killing at least 16 Abilene Texas a a military refuelling Jet bound for Hawaii with 19 people aboard crashed in a Ball of flames on Takeoff tuesday at Dyess fab killing at least 16 people the air Force said. The plane s Crew never got it off the ground said witness Vernon Wright 19. The first thing i saw was just the mushroom of the  i heard the plane As it was coming Down said skeet Jackson of Abilene. Engines were backfiring and missing. It curved off to the left and crashed. And then i saw the Ball of smoke and fire go  the wreckage burned for More than an hour after the crash. Airman 1st class Lois Morrell speaking from Dyess said at least 16 people were killed. The plane based at . Sawyer fab near mar Quette Mich., was in route from Dyess to Hickam fab in Hawaii on a training Mission with 19 people on Board said Dyess airman 1st class Beverly Foster. She did not know if it was loaded with Jet fuel and declined to give details of the crash. The air Force said the Kc-135a Tanker crashed at 12 10 . Near the South end of the Dyess runway near . Highway 277 about six Miles Southwest of Abilene. The maintenance record for the plane powered by four Pratt & Whitney Jet engines was not yet Avail Able said it. Col. George Peck a spokesman for strategic air come Headquarters at Omaha neb. There is no ejection system on the plane built in 1963, said Peck. It was the second crash at Dyess in less than three months. A b-1b bomber crashed there nov. 8. The four Man Crew safely bailed out. The Kc-135, dubbed the Strat Tanker is the Back Bone of the air Force s refuelling Fleet. The aircraft a military spin off of the Boeing 707, normally takes a Crew of four or five. It can carry a sizeable Load of passengers even when carrying fuel. The military began using the first Kc-135as in 1956. The tankers have a Range of 11,050 Miles while carrying 120,000 pounds of Transfer fuel. They Cost $20.1 million. A Kc-135 crashed oct. 11, 1988, at Wurtsmith fab near Oscoda Mich. That plane also based at Sawyer crashed and burst into flames on Landing killing six and injuring 10. An investigation into that crash has been completed but Sac has not made it Public. Bush vows of tighten military buying controls Norfolk a. A president Bush tuesday said he will insist on tighter controls and higher Quality from Mili tary contractors in a drive to wring thelast drop of waste and mismanagement out of the Way we buy our  he said those Steps Are vital to build ing a National consensus in support of a Strong defense. Bush on his first trip out of washing ton As president made his remarks in a speech on the deck of the aircraft Carrie America at the huge Norfolk naval base to an audience of thousands of Navy personnel and contractor employees. Standing costless in temperatures in the 50s, Bush coughed frequently an spoke in a Raspy voice evidence of a cold that has plagued him for nearly a  the cough Here he said. After the speech Bush had lunch on the ship with enlisted men. He said he was feeling better but his Throat was bothering him so much he thought he might not be Able to make it through his speech and had been just croaking away during it. Touching on Cost overruns and the cur rent criminal investigation into Pentagon purchasing practices the president said even if overruns Are not new they see Bush on Back Page publicity in North Case hinders jury selection Washington a the Iran Contra trial of fired White House aide Oliver North opened tuesday and immediately ran into problems when Man prospective jurors said they had heard testimony the defendant gave Congress in return for immunity from prosecution. . District judge Gerhard a. Gesell was to hear arguments later in the Day on a plan to excuse about 40 people from 54 prospective jurors because they had watched North in 1987 give Congress details about acts for which he now faces criminal charges. The congressional hearings into the Sale of . Weapons to Iran and the diversion of proceeds to the Contra rebel sin Nicaragua attracted Large television audiences. After quickly excusing five jurors be cause they had seen portions of North congressional appearances Gesell re viewed questionnaires and pulled out three dozen who said they had heard North s  the judge said he wants to spend Tim considering How we re going to Deal with this  this relates to the Tri ability of the Case he said. Defense attorney Brendan Sullivan also sought to Rule out any jurors who in see North on Back Page carnival Keg for Kohl West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl holds a barrel filled with special Fasching Beer Given to him in Bonn by Franz Ketzer left president of the Dusseldorf car Nival committee. The occasion was the official chancellery reception held by Kohl for West German Carniv lists As the mad Fasching season nears its Climax