THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, March 2, 1996 TAG: 9603020279
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Short : 34 lines
Two crashes in two weeks prompted the Marine Corps to temporarily ground 70 AV-8B Harrier combat jets Friday.
Marine Corps Commandant Charles C. Krulak ordered the jets grounded until a team of Navy and Marine air warfare experts determine whether the planes are safe to fly while investigations into the crashes are completed.
``The team is tasked to determine if there are failure similarities between the mishap aircraft,'' Maj. Kurt Owermohle said.
The Harrier is a single-engine, single-seat jet built by McDonnell Douglas and British Aerospace. Capable of vertical takeoff and landing, the plane may be armed with air-to-air missiles, cannon and bombs.
Gen. Krulak's order followed a crash Thursday near Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range in Niland, Calif. The pilot ejected safely.
On Feb. 16, a Harrier crash near Cherry Point, N.C., killed Capt. Ronald C. Walkerwicz.
The Marines have 154 Harriers. About 70 of the planes equipped for daytime attack - as were the two that crashed - are covered by Krulak's order.
The night attack craft are equipped with moving map displays and infrared gear to help pilots navigate in the dark.
KEYWORDS: U.S. MARINE CORPS ACCIDENT PLANE by CNB