European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 25, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Friday May 25, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 7 agents raid Northrop Fa-18 Assembly line re tolf a Ilc a renal a. By the los Angeles times Al Segundo Calif. A when a squad of Federal agents stormed Northrop Fa-18 Assembly Plant Here tuesday they went straight to the Assembly line and removed allegedly defective parts from the Jet fighters while they were being produced. The extraordinary raid a possibly the first time that Law enforcement officers have confiscated evidence directly from an aircraft production line a reflected the seriousness of allegations that the Navy a Fa-18 hornets contain flawed components. The critical parts in question include Metal and plastic tubing in the aircraft a Hydraulic fuel and pics Sunza Tion systems according to sources close to the investigation. The tubing allegedly failed to meet strict military specifications although Navy officials said wednesday that they do not believe Fa-18snow in service Are unsafe to Fly. The tubing is supposed to be precisely formed and shaped but the tubes supplied to the Hornet Assembly line often failed to fit investigators said. In some cases the tubing was Bent or otherwise forced into position leading to concern that it would fail to withstand internal pressures during operation. Despite such concerns the Navy does not believe coast guard sets blame in Calif Oil spill by the los Angeles times Washington a the coast guard in a report issued wednesday officially blamed the february Oil spill off Huntington Beach Calif., on the Oil company that operated the mooring where a Tanker ran Over its Anchor and on the Pilot who was guiding the ship. The Accident occurred because Golden West refining co. Failed to regularly Survey the depth of the water surrounding its mooring 1.3 Miles Southwest of Huntington Beach the report said. The mooring was the site where the american trader dumped 397,000 Gallons of crude Oil into the Ocean. A second cause the coast guard concluded was the failure of mooring master capt. John Keon 41, a to be fully cognizant of the accurate sea berth water depth a mooring master is an Independent local Captain hired by vessel operators to guide Large ships to offshore moorings. However the coast guard concluded that neither Golden West nor Keon violated any Federal Laws a for which the coast guard has enforcement responsibility a and the Agency said it would take no action against Keon or other coast guard licensed personnel involved in the spill. The Crew and Captain of the american trader . La Ware were not at fault the coast guard noted. That the tubing represents a Hazard to aviators. Navy spokesman it. Dave Wray said. Quot the naval systems come has made a thorough review of the system and has determined that there is no safety of flight Issue a he said. Wray added that the Hydraulic system which operates at the highest pressures of the three systems has two backup systems in the event of a failure. Northrop an installed the backup tubing As Well but officials said it is still unlikely that All three could fail at once. A your big concern is whether this tubing is going to hold when a Pilot pulls a big left hand turn at five is live times the Force of Gravity a a Federal agent said. But he added a if All three systems fail god does no to want you to live the agent asked that he not be identified. Nonetheless Navy officials arc continuing to study the matter. So far Fa-18s in the Navy Fleet arc being flown As usual Wray said and Northrop is continuing Normal production. Northrop produces the aft and Center fuselage sections of the Fa-18, representing about 40 percent of the Content of the aircraft while Mcdonnell Douglas corp. Assembles the aircraft in St. Louis. Last year Northrop delivered 101 Fa-18 fuselages and plans to deliver 94 this year. It is the company s largest program after the b-2 stealth bomber. The allegations were originally made by Northrop employees who have filed suit under the Federal false claims act which allows individuals to sue on behalf of the government and share in any damages. The individuals arc represented by Claremont attorney Herbert Hafif who said he could not identify them a in order to preclude the threat of an internal a fact paper Quot from the naval investigative come said the investigation Quot concerns allegations of product substitution false certifications and possible Cost the term a product substitution refers to the use of defective tubing. The allegations involving false certifications Center on whether Northrop attempted to cover up the problems with the tubing falsified testing and provided improper certifications to the government that the tubing met specifications. The a possible Cost discharging Quot allegation is based on the supposition that if Northrop supplied defective parts then the government did not gel what it paid for and overcharged the government As a result. Federal agents reported that Northrop officials had not been cooperative with them but Northrop spokesman Tony Cantafio denied that assertion. Vhf. The worlds largest hotel the Excalibur is scheduled to open june 19 in Las pick a room any room vegas. Located on the Las vegas strip the Excalibur will have 4,032 rooms. A the Hilton hotel in Las vegas is now the worlds largest with 3,174 rooms. Denver probes whether pit Bull fight was staged Denver police and Abc Are investigating allegations that a television station staged a fight Between two pit Bull terriers for a report on illegal dogfights Kunc to insists it received a videotape of the fight in the mail. The allegations arose from a series on illegal dogfights compiled by Kunc reporter Wendy Bergen and two video camera operators. In Colorado staging a dogfight or attending one is a felony punishable by up to four years in prison and a maximum $ 1,000 Fine. One of the series of reports a broadcast april 29 through May 2 during a ratings a a sweep period a featured the fight Between two a muzzled dogs that police say occurred on a Grassy area near the South Platte River in Sheridan a Denver suburb. After the report sources telephoned some competing Denver to stations and a newspaper with claims the fight was staged for Kunc and that the station paid for it. Their reports identified the sources Only As current or former Kunc employees. Roger Ogden Kunc general manager on wednesday denied the claims saying the station received tape of the fight anonymously in the mail. Investigations were launched by the Sheridan and Lakewood police departments and the District attorneys offices in Arapahoe and Jefferson counties. Sheridan is in Arapahoe county and Lakewood the Hometown of a Man who allegedly owns one of the fighting pit bulls is in Jefferson county. A we Are close to concluding our investigation a Lakewood police spokesman John Hunt said. A we expect within the next few Days perhaps to have some sort of statement a Ogden said an internal investigation is under Way at the Abc affiliated station and the network also is looking into the matter said Abc spokesman Richard cutting in new York. The station released edited tapes of the four part series to police. Police say they identified the owner of one of the pit bulls involved but declined to identify him. The tapes showed people at the dogfight but their faces were distorted to protect their identities said Robin Duxbury executive director of the Rocky Mountain humane society. The organization has called for advertisers to Boycott the station until it releases the unedited versions of the tapes. Kunc news director Marv Rockford declined to say if the station would release the laps. The organization sent letters to businesses asking them to Boycott Kunc but it was too Early to measure the efforts Success Duxbury said. Bergen has declined to be interviewed. Ratings sweeps periods take place four times a year and Are crucial to local stations because they help determine local advertising rates. The controversy heightened debate Over the pressure cooker effect of the sweeps on news operations. Quot the staging of news is unethical David Bartlett president of the radio and television news directors association said from Washington. He declined to discuss the Denver Case until the investigations arc completed
