DATE: Thursday, September 18, 1997          TAG: 9709180280

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: STAFF AND WIRE REPORT 

DATELINE: WASHINGTON                        LENGTH:   71 lines

MILITARY TO GROUND TRAINING FLIGHTS FOR A DAY

Defense Secretary William Cohen on Wednesday ordered a rare, one-day halt to U.S. military training flights after a collision of two F-16 fighters off the coast of New Jersey cost the Pentagon its fifth aircraft in two days.

``Perfection is impossible, but that is our goal for aviation safety,'' Cohen said. ``I know that everyone in the department takes accident prevention seriously and that we can do better.''

The temporary halt, or stand-down, was to allow a complete review of training flight frequency, procedures and maintenance, Defense Department spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Scott Campbell said.

It does not apply to operational flights, such as combat aircraft patrols in Bosnia and the Mideast.

Cohen left it up to each service secretary to decide when to hold his or her branch's 24-hour stand-down, though he wants them completed by a week from Friday.

Navy officials in Norfolk were awaiting word Wednesday when the safety stand-down would be.

No decision had been made as to when the Navy's squadrons would conduct their inspections and safety reviews, said Cmdr. Joe Gradisher, public affairs officer for the Atlantic Fleet Naval Air Force.

Nor, Gradisher said, was it known whether the directive would affect the Neptune Festival's air show planned at Oceana Naval Air Station on Saturday and Sunday.

Likewise, officials with Air Combat Command Headquarters at Langley Air Force Base in Hampton said they had not been told when to implement the order.

One ACC spokesman said he doubted it would come before Monday. The Air Force is celebrating its 50th anniversary with activities around the globe this weekend.

For the pilots and air crews aboard the Norfolk-based carrier Enterprise, which is ending a 10-day training period at sea, their attention already has been heightened.

``Early this morning, because we were approaching the end of our time at sea, I got the senior leadership together and said we have to stay focused,'' said Capt. Mike Malone, the ship's commanding officer.

Speaking by satellite telephone Wednesday, Malone said his crew has been giving carrier qualification training for the past week to some young aviators, many who are learning to land for the first time on the carrier, day and night.

``This is a very unforgiving business,'' Malone said. ``I think most of our senior leadership know that.''

Although he has received no direct orders on how to conduct the safety stand-down, Malone said his staff already is deciding what it will do to emphasize flight safety.

The Enterprise is scheduled to return this weekend.

Campbell, the Defense Department spokesman, said there was no evidence indicating that the accidents are part of a pattern.

Tuesday's F-16 crash involved two Air National Guard fighters that collided over the Atlantic Ocean during training. No one was hurt.

On Monday, a Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet crashed during training near Cape Hatteras, killing two crew members.

On Sunday, a Navy F/A-18 Hornet pilot was killed in a training crash in Oman and an Air Force F-117A stealth fighter went down in a residential area near Baltimore during an air show. No one was seriously hurt.

On Saturday, an Air Force C-141 Starlifter transport with nine crew members aboard crashed in the Atlantic off South Africa, in an apparent collision with a German military transport.

Cohen noted that the Pentagon's aviation safety record had been improving, citing 1996 as its best year ever. Before the current spate of accidents, the military had been hoping to report an even better safety record this year. MEMO: This story was compiled from reports by The Chicago Tribune and

staff writer Jack Dorsey.

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu