THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Thursday, September 12, 1996          TAG: 9609120386
SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B5   EDITION: FINAL 
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                        LENGTH:   21 lines

LAUNCH OF MISSILE DIDN'T ENDANGER AIRLINER, NTSB SAYS

A missile spotted by the pilot of an American Airlines 757 late last month was flying in its authorized area and did not pose a threat to the plane, a preliminary investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board has found.

The missile was one of two dozen launched annually from a NASA test site on Wallops Island, safety board spokesman Peter Goelz said, and notice of the launching had been given. The distance between the missile and the plane was greater than requirements, he said.

The report of the missile drew attention because of the crash of TWA Flight 800 two months ago and subsequent speculation that it was shot down by a missile. But Goelz said that the pilot's seeing it on his San Juan-to-Boston flight ``doesn't indicate anything other than that the pilot was alert.'' by CNB