European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 26, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Vol. 51, no. 9 500 sunday april 26,1992 d 8693 ac-130 Hercules hit by machine gun fire length 97 it. 9 in. Height 38 it. 3 in. Wingspan 132 it. 7 in engines four t56 turboprops cruise Speed 345 Mph Crew 4 on flight Dock capacity 92 troops . Military plane shot by peruvian Jet Tamara i Lime Peru Law a a a om.4\ a c-130 Hercules hit by machine gun fire 60 Miles off the peruvian coast near Tamara a amps a Lima Peru apr a peruvian military aircraft strafed a . Air Force drug surveillance plane and an Oneri can airman fell from an open door in the attack. A peruvian official saturday called the strafing an Accident and said the . Plane was off course. The White House said that a search had been launched for the missing airman. The incident occurred on Friday off the coast of Peru and involved an unarmed c-130. Two other airmen were injured one superficially Pentagon spokesman Pete Williams said in Washington. He said that he did not know How Many were aboard. He said the . Plane landed safely outside the Northern coastal town of Tamara near the Ecuador Border. Lima a main radio station radio pro Gramas quoted peruvian air Force col. Jorge Barboza As saying the . Surveillance plane was 500 Miles off its Normal route and did not respond to radio Calls from the peruvian air Force. He said it was forced Down by Accident. The radio said president Alberto Fujimori called president Bush to apologize. White House spokesman Sean Walsh said Fujimori had a expressed his re Grets Quot and that the governments were in Contact with each other on the matter. He said the United states was a looking into what had happened. A Rescue operations arc ongoing for the missing airman a Walsh said. He said the incident occurred at 6 01 . Edt Friday about 60 Miles off the peruvian coast while the american plane was on a a counter drug Mission Quot approved by the . And peruvian governments. The missing crewman apparently fell through an open door of the c-130 after the plane was struck by machine gun fire see plane on Page 2stripes stars head paper s birthday Bash by Chuck Roberts staff writer Griesheim Germany a Andy Rooney said he was glad to be Back but that it is time to go. The columnist and lbs commentator was in Germany this weekend with about 125 other former stars and stripes employees participating in the newspapers 50th anniversary Celebration. Rooney began his see related stories on Page 3 journalism career As a stripes reporter in the battlefields of Europe As in his weekly commentary at the end of lbs tvs 60 minutes Rooney kept his comments Short and to the Point at a ceremony saturday during which a plaque honouring four former stripers who were killed in the line of duty in the 1940s was dedicated a i Hope you All recognize a Rooney told the crowd of hundreds a despite the optimistic talk Here that what a see stripes on Page 2 s&8 Jim Oor wlm cartoonist Bill Mauldin observes a moment of silence in Honor of stripes employees who died in the line of duty major quake rocks Northern Californi air Force chief runs up Bill of $160,000 on f-15 trips Eureka Calif. A an earthquake Shook much of Northern California on saturday and the . Geological Survey in Golden colo., said it measured More than 7.0 on the Richter scale. Fire s were reported near the epicentre in female. No injuries were immediately reported. The quake was entered in the Pacific Ocean about 35 Miles Southwest of Eureka said Guy Urban a seismologist with the geological Survey in Palmer Alaska. Eureka is on the Pacific coast about 250 Miles North of san franc so and 90 Miles South of the Oregon Border. It has 27,000 residents making it the largest City in Humboldt county an area that derives its living from Timber and tourism. The quake which struck at 11 06 . Post was Felt As far South As san Francisco and in Southern Oregon. One radio station said callers reported seeing water in their swimming pools moving and windows rattling. A it was definitely a roller a said Scott Shoblom a Eureka resident interviewed by Cable news network. A it lasted really Long and there were several  an earthquake of 3.5 on the Richter scale can cause slight damage in the local area 4 moderate damage 5 considerable damage 6 severe damage. A 7 Reading is a a a major earthquake capable of widespread heavy damage 8 is a a great Quot quake capable of tremendous damage. By the Washington Post Washington air Force chief of staff Gen. Merrill a. Mcpeak is being forced to explain his use of f-15 fighter jets to Streak around the country at a Cost to taxpayers of $4,061 per hour. Mcpeak who flew 269 combat missions in Vietnam and talks of restoring the services a Warrior orientation a has never made any secret of his regular flights in the single seat aircraft. But the 56-year-old fighter Pilot found himself on the defensive after an Abc news report thursday questioned the use of the High performance jets when cheaper transportation is available. His use of combat fighter aircraft is a new variant in Washington a debate Over Perks which was sparked by disclosures about the former House Bank and has since expanded to include other branches of government. Since assuming the chief of staffs Job in october 1990, Mcpeak has taken 20 trips in f-15s, logging 40 hours of flight time and costing the government about $160, my according to air Force records. A this View is. A in be got to be Able to Lead by example. In be got to know what s going on in this air Force a a see Bill on Page 2