European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 19, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 the stars and stripes sunday. March 19,1989 faulty switch raises doubts about missiles warheads by the los Angeles times los Angeles faulty manufacture of a Small electronic switch used in most of the air launched tac tical missiles in the . Arsenal has raised doubts about the reliability of thousands of missile warheads Pentagon sources said Friday. A Navy spokesman said no problems with the Sta Tor switches made by Asher engineering corp of Losangeles have shown up in extensive testing of both the parts and the missiles. The switches arc critical parts of the warhead firing systems. But other Pentagon officials said Asher s admitted failure to verify that the devices met military specifications could Force the military to take apart perhaps hundreds of missiles to determine the risks posed by the switches. A Pentagon official said Friday that the faulty switches May have played a role in some failures of the air Force and Navy s advanced medium Range air to air missile the Long delayed High technology missile scheduled to become those sen ices primary air to air weapon next year. This is a very critical Little Clement you re talking about Here said the official who declined to be identified. Now the question is will they work or not has it been the cause of any failures or not that s going to be a Tough  the stator switch is a circular i or 2-Square-Inch piece of electronic circuitry that completes an electrical connection in a missile warhead firing mechanism. Failure of the part which costs $15 to $18, would Bemore Likely to prevent the warhead from detonating than cause it to detonate prematurely the Pentagon expert  employees told agents of the defense Crimi Nal investigative service last week that they had falsely certified the switches As meeting military specifications at the order of their prime contractor Microni International of Bra calif., said Bud Asher president of the Small los Angeles company. The questioning was part of a criminal investigation of i cronies. Asher s Quality Assurance officials wrote the certifications the Way they i cronies required it without realizing that by writing it they were not doing the right thing Asher said. Asher said i cronies under pressure from military program officers to meet Price and time schedules did not want to spend the time and Money required to have the switches tested by an outside Laboratory As the military s specifications required. The parts went into Many of the fuses manufactured by i cronies from about 1981 through last year Asher said. The los Angeles times reported in october that the Pentagon had launched a criminal investigation of i cronies. Investigators suspected that it was shortcuts taken by the company in manufacturing safety and arming mechanisms or fuses for the Phoenix air to air missile that had forced the Navy to Mothball 500 missiles Worth $425 million. G. Addison Appleby chairman and chief executive of precision Aero tech the la Jolla  com Pany that owns i cronies said Friday that Microni officials never asked Asher engineering to falsify manufacturing records. Rather he said Asher employees simply were asked to Complete revised certification forms at a government inspector s request. Appleby blamed the continuing investigation on false information spread by the government inspector who has since been barred from the i cronies Plant. He came into our Plant saying he had shut the last three plants he worked in Down and that he would try to shut us Down too Appleby said. Epa urges cuts in Energy use to curtail greenhouse effect Washington a the United states must take major Steps to Cut Energy consumption including More efficient automobiles and Home heating sys tems if expected global warming problems Are to be cased the environmental Protection Agency said Fri Day. In a report to a Senate environmental subcommittee the Epa outlined actions that Are needed by the end of this Century if the movement toward a dangerously warmer Earth the greenhouse effect is to be slowed. While the report said the United states should take the Lead in meeting the situation head on Epa administrator William k. Reilly emphasized that the prob the response to this problem cannot be a unilateral  William k. Reilly Tern is International in scope. The response to this problem cannot be a unilateral one Reilly told the Senate subcommittee on Environ mental Protection. If there is no International cooperation he added . Actions could be cancelled out by other  but Reilly said that the United states is going to have to Lead by example and that president Bush has made Clear he intends to take a leadership role., the recommendations in the report will be used by the administration and Congress to assess what Regula tory action or legislation might be needed. The Epa report concluding two years of study acknowledged that there remains considerable uncertainty about the magnitude of global warming. But it said there is a growing consensus in the scientific Community that if nothing is done to reduce the discharge of pollutants into the atmosphere the Earth is expected to become warmer by 4 to 11 degrees fahrenheit Over the next Century. There s no doubt that there is a consensus that the greenhouse phenomenon is very real said sen. Max Baucus d-mont., the subcommittee chairman. Scientists say that pollution is causing a greenhouse effect by trapping the Sun s infrared radiation instead of allowing it to go Back into space. The major contributors to the warming process arc Carbon dioxide methane and nitrous oxides. The Epa report said that no single technology or policy can have significant Impact in mitigating the accumulation of greenhouse gases because of their wide use. Instead it said significant reductions in emissions can be achieved Only by dealing with the prob Lem broadly. One focus the Agency said must be aimed at reducing the use of Fossil fuels that produce Carbon dioxide by far the largest contributor to global wanning. To curtail Energy use the report proposed an increase in cars average fuel Economy to 40 Miles per gallon by 2000. The recommendation contrasts sharply with the stance by the former Reagan administration which in recent years urged Elimina Tion of Federal fuel Economy standards and accommodated Auto Industry requests not to set Floc Twidy stand Ards above 26.5 mpg. Measures to make new single family houses More Energy efficient so they will use an average of 50 per cent less fuel heat in 2000 than in 1980. Fees on Carbon emissions ranging from 7 percent to 20 percent on natural Gas Oil and Coal to encourage less use of these Fossil fuels. The Epa also suggested More research into solar technology to compete with Oil and Gas and a Campaign to have All Industrial countries require catalytic converters similar to those required in . Auto mobiles. But the report emphasized that increased Energy efficiency will not provide the total answer. It said efforts must be made to Stop the reduction of forests around the world. This Effort would be launched in 1990 under a pro Gram to Plant at least As Many Trees As arc Cut Down or destroyed. Trees absorb Carbon dioxide As they grow keeping the Gas from getting into the atmosphere. End the use of chlorofluorocarbons by All Industrial countries Over the next 14 years and take action to sharply curtail the chemical s use by developing coun tries. Chlorofluorocarbons Are believed to eat away at the Earth s Ozone layer which cuts Down on ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Stateside adults Are leading victims of accidental poisoning Atlanta a the majority of Acci dental poisoning deaths in the United states do not involve children eating Drain cleaner or floor Wax. Those dying arc for the most part Young adults taking  National centers for disease control said 5,740 unintentional poisoning deaths were re ported in 1986, the latest year for which Statis tics Are available a jump of More than 1,000 from the 4,331 reported in 1980. The cd said the trend is apparently caused by an increase in the rate of deaths from drug  2,492. Or 58 percent of 1980 s Acci dental poisoning deaths were caused by drugs that figure had jumped by 1986 to 73 percent or 4,187 out of 5,740. Over the same period other poisoning deaths went Down. The number of accidental poisoning deaths from non drug solids and liquids fell from 597 to 544, and fatal accidental Gas Poison Ings fell from 1,242 to 1,009. Mississippi students pick 2 Blacks As top leaders Starkville miss. A students at Mississippi state University have elected the first Black student body president and vice presi Dent in the history of the predominantly White  Cooper a senior Industrial Engi Neering management major from Jackson received 1,267 votes in a Runoff to become presi Dent. He beat John arc dec a Junior communications major from of Utica who received 924 votes. In the Runoff students also elected the first Black student body vice president Kelvin Covington a senior marketing major from  arc about 12,000 students at Mississippi state which has a 12 percent Black enrol ment. Many Yellowstone Elk fall victim to severe cold Yellowstone National Park Wyo. A severe Winter weather has taken a heavy loll on Elk in Yellowstone National Park an nearly one third of the Park s 19,000-Hcad Northern Herd May have died Park biologists  rates were highest following the bit Ter cold in Early february and a second severe storm at the end of the month biologists said. The Elk death rate generally peaks during thelast two weeks of March said Park biologist Frank Singer. This year we hit the Peak alter the Arctic front he said. Singer said the mortality rate was estimated by tracking Elk equipped with radio collars. Nearly one third of those animals have died he  addition to stress from severe cold and Snow summer Forest fires swept some grazing areas already affected by drought forcing the animals outside the Protection of the Park in search of food. Child car safety seats recalled Agency says Washington a More than 1.5 Mil lion Fisher Price car safety seats for children Are being recalled by the manufacturer because they do not meet Federal flammability standards the National Highway traffic safety administration said  Agency said it had received no complaints of fires or fire injuries from the seats which arc models 9100 and 9101 manufactured from 1985 to 1989.the company s tests discovered that the foam scat pad used in the two models Burns faster than Federal standards permit the Agency said. Fisher Price will notify owners who returned warranty cards and will mail displays on the recall to  Fisher Price corporate Headquarters is at 606 Girard ave., East Aurora n.y., 14052. The company s main phone number in the United states is 716-687-3000,