The Star-Democrat from Easton, Maryland • Page 12

Page 1 2A. Sunday. Dcoeniltcr 14. ll7 Technology exhibit hall closes for lack of visitors TIIK SUNDAY SAQ -foe00" yfv. -f ej AO ,7 Missing fasteners identified as cause of stealth crash "It is our plan to have a good handle on this within 30 days," Brady said.

Officials could not immediately 1 say how large the Columbus Center's deficit is. But in October, they said it was more than $700,000. The first time the Columbus' Center defaulted on its bank loans was in September, when it had to-tap a reserve fund to pay operat-' ing expenses. The' second time' was earlier this month when the center could not moke' its Decem-j ber loan and interest payment of1 about $94,000. 11 The Columbus Center has received $62.2 million from the1 city, more than $47.2 million from the federal government and $18.

7 million from the state. It is unclear whether the Hall of Exploration will open again as1 a revamped tourist attraction. M.J. "Jay" Brodie, board1 member and president of the Bal: timore Development said; the space could be used to house-more research laboratories of retail stores. Brady and Brodie suggested1 that the University of Maryland might be able to shoulder more of the center's costs.

The university' occupies about 170,000 square feet' and, under its lease, pays a por1' tion of operating costs but ntf rent. The center houses the university's Center for Marine Biotechnology. if'-" 4 3 1 4 1 two steel plates to stiffen the wings. The plates covered the missing fasteners, making it impossible for maintenance workers to see their mistake without taking apart the whole assembly a job which would take 14 hours, he said. Investigators don't know who was responsible for the missing fasteners.

Air Force protocol requires paper maintenance records be destroyed after 90 days and put on computer, but the names of those who worked on the plane and person responsible for inspecting the work were dropped in the computer records, Beard said. There was also no indication in the computer records that the assembly that attaches the wings to the plane had been removed and reinstalled in January 1996. What had been a two-week job was reduced to two 8-hour shifts. A subsequent inspection of the Air Force's remaining fleet of 53 F-117As showed no problem with the fasteners. "I don't think it was sloppy work," said Maj.

Michael F. Wagner, a F-117A pilot and member of the investigating panel. "That is not a piece that is normally pulled out and put back in." No one on the ground was hurt when part of the wing snapped off the fighter during an air show at Glenn L. Martin State Airport on Sept. 14.

The plane destroyed one home and damaged several others. The Air Force has paid $280,000 in claims and expects about $80,000 more. Claims range from the destruction of the home to spoiled food in refrigerators caused when the plane hit utility By MARY I'KMUKKTON Associated Press Writer MIDDLE RIVER (AP) A $42 million stealth fighter lost part of a wing and crashed in a huge fireball in a residential neighborhood because military technicians failed to install four fasteners. Air Force officials said Friday. The oversight, which left only one fastener in place, occurred last January while the F-117A was undergoing repairs at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., said Col.

John Beard, head of the five-member investigative panel. Two subsequent maintenance checks failed to detect the missing fasteners. In July 1996, the area of the plane where the wings attach was inspected by three technicians who climbed onto the wing, stuck their heads in a small hole, and checked with a flashlight held in their mouths and a mirror. But none could say all the fasteners were attached, Beard said. About a year later, a pilot noticed that the left wing was about 2 inches higher than normal and had too much "flex." An inspection of the wing found it normal.

There was no entry in maintenance records that the pilot had noticed a problem or that any corrective action was taken, Beard said. "In my opinion the check could have been more thorough," he said. A change in the design of the F-117AS, which look like bat wings, may have made it harder to detect the problem, Beard said. In 1992, Lockheed Corp. added Facility, open for only seven months, houses university's Center for Marine Biotechnology BALTIMORE (AP) A high-technology exhibit hall near the Inner Harbor is shutting down after just seven months because of poor attendance, leaving the $147 million Columbus Center in the hands of state and city governments and the University of Maryland.

The number of visitors to the center's Hall of Exploration was 70,000, far less than the 280,000 anticipated, causing it to default twice on loans. Officials were counting on admissions to help pay for research labs as well as science and technology programs at the center. The Hall of Exploration featured such attractions as a walk-through cell and manmade mountain. The exhibit hall and nonprofit had a total of 38 employees. The four remaining on the payroll will attend to the administrative details of closing the hall, officials said.

The layoffs do not include the 126 scientists working in the research labs. Control of the center shifts from the nonprofit Columbus Center Development Inc. to a new three-member board. James Brady, Maryland's secretary of business and economic development, said he and the other board members will move quickly to solve the Columbus Center's woes, which includes a mounting six-figure operating deficit. Star Democrat Online A I http:vmw.stardem.comy AT THE TRED AVON SQUARE My MLS Hallmark Shop You 'II heel Heller Inside! 410-822-8587 Marlboro Rd at Easton Bypass fun AP LASERPHOTO Air Force Col.

John H. Beard shows the support assembly which failed, causing the crash of an Air Force F-l 17A near Baltimore September 14, during a press conference in Middle River Friday. The left wing of the F-117A Stealth fighter broke off after the assembly, known as the Brooklyn Bridge, failed due to four missing fasteners. wires, cutting electricity to the neighborhood. The pilot of the F-117A Night-hawk, Maj.

Bryan Knight, escaped with minor injuries after he parachuted and landed within Lawyers were listening closely at TWA hearings A)EMOCUAT OUR NEW DIRECT LINE PHONE NUMBERS: Classified 4I0-770-400O, Circulation 410-770-4005, Editorial Sports Fine Sheet Printing 410-770-4010 410-770-4095 410-770-4001 OUR II IW FAA NUMBERS: Advertising 410-770-4012 Printing 410-770-4017 Corporate 410-770-4018 Editorial 410-770-4019 Accounting 410-770-4011 Homes 410-770-4014 St. Michaels upenaays By PAT MILTON Associated Press Writer BALTIMORE (AP) Invests gators weren't the only ones" lis- tening carefully during the week-long public inquiry into the crash of TWA Flight 800. Also taking notes were lawyers suing on behalf of the 230 victims' relatives. After the National Transportation Safety Board hearing, which ended Friday, it is still unclear what caused the plane's center fuel tank to explode after the Paris-bound flight left New York's Kennedy Airport on July 17, 19. Lawyers pursuing millions of dollars in claims against TWA and Boeing hope to use some of the evidence presented at the .1 150 feet of the burning plane.

"This was an isolated incident," Beard said. If the planes are properly maintained, they will fly virtually forever, he said. relatives have been consolidated for a trial in federal court in New York City on the issue of responsibility before they are sent to courts in their individual states on the issue of damages. No trial date has been set. The FBI last month announced that no evidence had been found to indicate that a bomb or missile brought down the plane.

That turned attention to the NTSB's search for a mechanical cause. The NTSB is focusing its investigation on the volatility of vapors in the fuel tank and the possibility that frayed wiring could have sparked the explosion. -Experts agree that whatever caused the blast is extremely rare. The 747, introduced 25 years ago, has been one of the safest airplanes in history. There are now 970 among the nation's fleet of 9,000 airplanes.

HT If I mm mam SOS A I i I A IMTiEHiVCi) know why the Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing did not try to make center fuel tanks less flammable after one exploded on the ground in 1990. That still-unexplained explosion on a Philippines Airlines plane killed eight people. FAA and Boeing witnesses told Hall the accident did not lead to any major changes in design because they never discovered what sparked the explosion. Baumeister and others will try to exploit that point to a jury. The lawyers will probably begin depositions at Boeing by late spring, and expect it will take at least a year to conduct hundreds of depositions there and at the NTSB, FAA and TWA, Baumeister said.

Lawsuits filed by victims' Julie Rochman of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an industry-funded research group. "You can't alter the laws of physics. The faster you go, the longer it takes you to stop and the more severe any crash will be." The institute recently released a study showing that fatalities rose 12 percent in 12 states that increased their highway speed limits in 19. hearing tp convince a jury that negligence and "willful misconduct" contributed to the blast. If the victims' relatives can show that TWA knew about defects in the plane and failed to take adequate steps to address them, they could seek far more in damages from the airline than the usual $75,000 per victim.

They also will try to show that Boeing, which made the 747, knew about dangers in the plane's design and failed to upgrade it to make sure fuel tanks and wiring were safe. "There is no doubt we have a case. There is no doubt this plane should have been grounded," said lawyer Mitch Baumeister, who represents 20 victims' families. He watched as NTSB Chairman James Hall demanded to In next 12 months, there were 18 fatalities on those roads, down from 29 the year before. State Highway Administration officials attribute the higher rate to a natural fluctuation following.

"If anything, we have safer roads out there," said Thomas Hicks, director of the SHA Office of Traffic and Safety. Hicks argued that roads become safer when speed limits are set closer to the speeds vehicles actually travel, because it reduces the speed variation among cars. Safety advocates are unimpressed. "It's kind of like letting the Highway officials defend increased speed limits ANNAPOLIS (AP) Raising interstate highways in July 1995. convicts make the laws," said s4U wt Hand-made Wreaths Exquisite Ribbons Bows Gourmet Fruit Spice Baskets Fresh Flower Arrangements Poinsettias! jct Puff 4 1fiwi Ote-Sty St A 41 5 lalbotbt.

4iu Delivery Service Avauaoie through Christmas 9am 5pm ,7 wire Service i the speed limit to 65 mph on Interstate 95 between Washington and Baltimore could very well lead to more deaths, safety advocates said. But state highway officials defended the increased speed as safe and prudent. Fatalities nearly doubled on 65-mph highways in Maryland during the second year of the higher speeds, said Henry Jasny of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. Thirty-four people died on roads with 65 mph limits in the 12-month period ending July 1997. The state first adopted 65 mph limits on 250 miles of rural Vith Detmarva Oil, ycull never be left out in to TIIlQniDSEfi Ttffaitiffi (3) (Etnxzgfl As an automatir Aa rr turner, you won run I out of fuel.

In the unlikely event that you do Delmarva Oil will provide 50 gallons of fuel free. Holiday 'All service calls will be answered by a Red Bow Sale I serv.ee representative, 7 days a week, 24 hours daevery daX- AH calls will be responded to wrthjn 4 hours or you will receive 50 gallons of 1 inn Art Ludwigsen welcomes Roy Harvey as the newest addition to our propane staff. Roy and Art have over 27 years of experience in the propane industry. if CEd) 25 Offff Any Chandelier or Table Lamp tagged wa Red Bow (In-Stock Merchandise) Open Holiday Hours In Easton! Sat. 9:00 am until 1 pm fort company, it Is like having a professionally trained staff of technicians and a fleet of fuel trucks at your disposal 24 hours a day t.

1-80O-296-5175 Delmarva Oil Heating the Shore since 1969 E. Supply Inc. Dover Rd. Easton 410-822-7179 Talbot Petroleum Service (410) 822-0160 -OR- (110) 228-0907 7 i.