European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 28, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Crisis in tha Gulf Dod finds rampant flaws in spare parts by the Cox news service poised for Battle on the Barren arabian desert thousands of american Servic members May soon find their lives hanging on common parts such As rubber of rings a parts All Loo Likely to be flawed a defense department audit has found. Take for example the of ring used to Seal fuel valves in flip wings of f-15 fighter jets. It s just a 4 cent part that the government buys by the tens of thousands but the defense department considers it critical. If it does no to do its Job it could endanger the Crew the aircraft and the Mission. Abut when 20 of these of rings were pulled at random from a government depot tests found that they were defective said a report by the department of defense inspector general. The of rings did t meet the required dimensions and the air Force branded them unusable. Dated sept. 27, the study was released to the Dayton Ohio daily news at the newspaper s request. The report details an audit that tested a statistical sampling of More than 1 billion spare parts bought by the governments defense Industrial Supply Center in Philadelphia. The sampling conducted from july 1988 to february 1990, indicated that 62 percent of the parts accepted by the defense Industrial Supply Center in 1986 and 1987 had some kind of flaw and 27 percent had major flaws the report said. It is the latest documentation of a nationwide problem with questionable parts that have been turning up in everything from nuclear Power plants to the space shuttle. The problem has special significance for . Military operations in the Middle East where maintenance Crews wage a daily War against heat and Sand. Senior military officials have said the harsh desert conditions have driven up the rate at which spare parts Are being used. A the Supply Center did not receive the Quality prod nets for which it paid a the report said. And what it paid was $624 million for parts that had some kind of major or minor flaw the study said. The Supply centers Parent organization the defense logistics Agency disagrees sharply with the report. It said it double checked and found Only 10 percent of the sampling was unusable and none had defects that would cause hazardous or unsafe conditions. But an Agency spokesman admitted things Arentt Exon the desert dial Here s Art updated list o1 . Military Randitt broadcast a in the location frequency Power Dhahran fm107 1.5 Kwh Razran pm 99.7 1.5 Kwh a Jubal pm 99.9 5 Kwh Nariyah fm106 1.5 Kwh Jab Alazzah pm 103 300 w Altawil Jabal. Pm 101.1 50 w Markh Lyat Asu Bahrain pm 106.2 300 w Manama Vas a Civ a break from the thai is rom sus pm Clunan the sign says it All for Busy postal workers in operation desert shield. Spec. Jon Bolen left and sgt. Patrick Baranski with the Minnesota army National guard Lake a Brevillier at a mail sorting facility in Eastern. Saudi Arabia they re with the 109th Light equipment mail co 59jrd area support group. Act by Rosy. A Overall we agree there s a problem with some of the inventory and we re not Happy a spokesman Larry Wilson said. While saying that the Agency should Pul More emphasis on Laboratory testing of parts the report called the logistics facility a a defense department efforts to improve the Quality of items it accepts. In fact the study found that the problems resulted not from a Lack of Quality Assurance programs at the Supply Center but in spite of them. The Supply centers troubles Aren t unique a similar audit report last year concluded that the air f orce Dir g is lies up nubs Warner Robins maintenance depot in Georgia had wasted1 $ 12.9 million on junk pans in just one category ,. A a and combat troops Arentt the Only Ohnsat risk 1 n o n Eon of r or i n g p r of i j it s us e h a s of i fittings electrical equipment and valves have been installed in nuclear Power plants naval submarines and military aircraft a my the space shuttle Quot the general. Accounting office a congressional watchdog organization. Reported in of Tohir. Sheik Isa Bahrain pm 100.3 30 w Riyadh eskan pm 105 250 w Village go Riyadh pm 107 50w Riyadh South pm 103 50 w that pm 101 50 w King Khalid pm 99.9 1.5 Kwh military City. Remark affiliate station. Relay of Dhahran signal planned upgrade to 5 Kwh affiliate station relay of Al Jubal signal planned upgrade to 5 Kwh relay of Razran signal relay of Razran signal relay of arts satellite delivered radio news service relay of Dhahran signal affiliate station relay of eskan Village signal relay of arts satellite delivered radio news service relay of arts satellite delivered radio news service affiliate station planned upgrade to 5 Kwh source Pentagon s4s graphic. By Dave . . Bureau Quot a Raf Alconbury England capt. George Benefield knows he May be among the first in history to take the slow but sure a-10 tank killer into Battle. But if he a worried he a not letting on. A i think the a-10 Hasni to really had a Chance to prove itself so it lacks a Little bit of credibility a said Benefield a Pilot with the 511th tac fighter so at Alconbury. A but. I think the a-1q does better than any aircraft in the inventory for that it was designed to Benefield a Squadron left for the desert thursday us most a month earlier than originally scheduled to join three .-based a-10 units already there. The 511 in one of two a-10 squadrons at Alconbury is the first european based a-10 unit to deploy to the Gulf i Benefield 32, a former air Force Security policeman from Columbus ga., is mindful that his plane the Thunderbolt ii or unofficially the warthog has yet to make its Mark in the annals of air combat. But he and other a-10 pilots know that the threat they be been practising for in Europe was probably fair More dangerous than what they Al find in Kuwait or on the iraqi Border. The iraqi anti aircraft Battery pales in significance to anything they would have faced from the Warsaw fact. It. Col. Keith Bennett a former instructor Pilot with some 3,200 flying hours in fast jets including 1,9 10 hours Over a decade of flying the a-10, is confident that his pilots some As Young As 24, will be Able to meet the Challenge. Bennett said the War in Southeast Asia taught the air Force valuable lessons that Are now incorporated into their everyday training. A i Fly with almost All these Guys and we have some of the strongest Young people in be Ever seen Quot said the native of Wayne Maine. A they know the weapons system. A the majority of Guys we lost in Vietnam. We lost in the first 10 missions a Bennett said. A they just w Erent experienced they just weren to sure w hat to if it comes to a Battle Bennett is confident that the Maverick missiles and 30mm Cannon lie la be toting on his a Lyl will do ,-�?othe first few Days the Mav Crick will probably be our primary weapon a he said a then As things gel ragged around the edges we will use the gun.�?�. The a-10 is the world s Only tank killing plane its been criticized As slow a a deadly drawback in the age of supersonic missiles a hut it is also lauded for its ability to rip open tanks like so Many tin cans. In tests the Maverick missile has proved As accurate As it is deadly and the planets seven barrel 4,200 round per minute Gatling gun the largest Ever mounted on an air plane can Pierce tank Armor dose in and wreck conventional Velides from up to two Niiles away. Its uncanny Hare he agility allows pilots to make Radical movements to avoid being shot Down and use buildings hillsides and tree Iines for cover. A the a-10 was built entirely for the Battlefield scenario a Bennett said. A i think it will prove itself pretty valuable once we get Down since August the 511th has been training to tight in the Gulf Region where members believe be in what they Call a medi urn i Feut environment at altitudes of at least 4,000 feet above Smailj arms fire. From there they can fire their infrared or to guided Mavericks at their target Iron relative safety and up to 14 Miles away. \ if there is a threat to a-10 pilots at All at the top of Bennett a worry list Are the surface to air missiles the iraqis have in their Arsenal. However he s confident that other Allied air Power will take cure of those Early on in any Battle that being the Case the a-10s will be free to Pluck away at enemy tanks and artillery with Mavericks or the gun. They can also team up with army helicopter gunships to Pound targets t it May All add up to a Surprise for the iraqi Leader �?�11 is never faced the air to ground threat that Whf can put against him a Bennett said
