Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 2, 1989)
e Battalion TATE & LOCAL ursday, February 2,1989 itnesses: Doomed jet ‘backfired’ nvestigation hampered by lack of black boxes, service records ABILENE (AP) — Witnesses say a Bel-laden Air Force tanker plane was “popping” or “backfiring” be- fpre it crashed on takeoff, but the in stigation may be hampered by the Jck of a flight data recorder and the apparent loss of maintenance re- rds aboard the plane. I All 19 people aboard the KC- I “!5A Stratotanker died when it ashed upon takeoff about a hab ile south of a Dyess Air Force Base nway shortly after noon Tuesday. Skeet Jackson, who saw the crash from his back yard, said the plane faever got more than about 60 feet off the ground. ■ “That left wing hit the ground and (crashed) just like these pictures of atomic bombs you’ve seen,” Jack in said. “The engines were backfiring or ipping. He (the pilot) made a arp turn . . . and crashed.” Air Force officials declined to Peculate on what might have caused he noises. Maj. Suzanne Randle, spokesman at Strategic Air Command head quarters in Omaha, Neb., said the KC-135A could fly if one of its en gines was out. Its ability to fly with even less power would depend on a number of factors including weight, temperature, pressure and altitude, Randle said. The Air Force said the plane that crashed had been in service since 1963 and was still carrying its origi nal four Pratt 8c Whitney engines. The tanker, based at K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base in Michigan, stopped at Dyess en route for a training mis sion. It was scheduled to refuel some F-16s in the air before flying to Ha waii and then Guam. The plane was carrying military members and their dependents and carrying 30,000 gallons of jet fuel, officials said. Members of the Air Force Acci dent Investigation Board were ex pected to arrive at Dyess late Wednesday. Their investigation could be ham pered by the fact that no flight data recorder was aboard the modified Boeing 707, said 1st Lt. John Ames, deputy chief of public affairs at Dyess. Ames said he didn’t know if a cockpit voice recorder was aboard. Sawyer officials said the plane’s maintenance files were aboard be fore it crashed, which also could handicap the investigation. “Some were duplicated, but not all,” said Capt. Paul Bicking, Sawy er’s chief of public relations. Air Force personnel on Wednes day used stakes and red flags to map out about 2 square miles of scorched grassland and woods around the crash site, said Master Sgt. A1 Dostal, a Dyess spokesman. “Once it’s staked out, it can snow and these flags have numbers, they can still see where things are,” Dostal said. Sam Matta, an Abilene justice of the peace who spent Tuesday at the site to record deaths, said the plane ffiifeenator: Sex education classes Iso should teach abstinence etend tohavi i)l illusion >etter defim high beta! kly), exploid another for; ' dependent] with anotln >e “unbearai stance in itionship AUSTIN (AP) — Sex education in public schools hould include abstinence as the only “100 percent, f ruly effective” means of preventing pregnancy and • ng the saint preading disease, a state lawmaker said Wednesday. Sen. Kenneth Armbrister, D-Victoria, sponsored a esolution heard in the Senate Education Committee fling for the State Board of Education to adopt curric- ilum teaching abstinence, self-control, ethics and ways |o resist peer pressure to have sex. “We’re just saying that if you are teaching all these ther things, you should at least have a unit of instruc- ion to show that there is only one, 100 percent truly ef fective method in the prevention of unwanted preg- ancy and disease control, and that’s abstinence,” rmbrister told the committee. The resolution asks that abstinence be included in isting sex education courses. With it, Armbrister filed n pared to ik d discomfoi _ar of naked' and imagiitt naked. i bill that would force the Education Board to adopt ibstinence curriculum. Some committee members opposed legislation re tiring abstinence instruction, saying lawmakers should lot mandate curriculum. - nose exp a sociolog )ve is aneS' inner oals. ) our li ; of certa s right, tbt g, the need i he need tt wed by er die need it (ration, tk our needs te need it aate. >• process.! way, andi omoreps; list for Tk >es ” “The egis e interesting sensational! Armbrister said the bill filing shows “clear legislative intent,” and he hoped it would strongly encourage the Education Board to adopt abstinence curriculum. “I am concerned as a father about what is being in structed in public schools,” Armbrister, who has a daughter, 13, and a son, 16, said.’T know what we in struct in our home and I know the training they get in our church. “I just want to ensure that the information they’re re ceiving in school also includes that abstinence is a desir able condition of their age group,” Armbrister said. Students should be taught self-control, discipline and ethics in making decisions on sex, the resolution says. It also asks that schools teach failure rates of birth control methods and of condoms in prevening disease trans mission. Schools should also teach laws about financial re- sponsiblities involved in pregnancy and childrearing, and should show students how to rebuff unwanted sex ual advances and resist peer pressure, the resolution says. was in many pieces, the largest of them the tail section. “There were a bunch of small pieces everywhere,” Matta said. “There’s a few big sections, 10 to 12 feet long. There’s a big wing, pretty badly burned.” Matta and military officials were meeting Wednesday to decide where to take bodies of the victims. The flight manifest showed 17 passengers from Sawyer, and two from Dyess, Dostal said. Seven were crew members, four were active duty military members, four were retired military, and four were dependents, including a boy between the age of 6 and 8, he said. One of the retired military members was from Abilene, officials said. Three crew members were main tenance workers who accompany the craft during long flights. Names were withheld until rela tives were notified. Military regulations allow active- duty personnel, dependents and re tirees to ride on routine missions when space is available, said Capt. Jay Defrank, an Air Force spokes man at the Pentagon. The KC-135 is the backbone of the Air Force tanker fleet, which has about 500 of them averaging 29 years of age. As the military derivative of the Boeing 707, the first commercially successful jet airliner, the Strato tanker has earned a reputation as a workhorse that is generally safe to But an aviation expert said the plane is not without its faults. “The KC-135 has been unquestio nably underpowered and it has been particularly vulnerable to engine failure during the takeoff roll, par ticularly while either extremely heavyweight or extremely light weight,” said Robert S. Hopkins III, an aviation writer and historian who is writing a book about the Strato tanker. Documented cases have shown that Stratotankers exceptionally full of fuel have “never become airborne or once they did, never had enough airspeed to fly and crashed with cat astrophic results,” Hopkins said. IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME STUDY f]™ $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 Wanted: Symptomatic patients with physician diagnosed $100 Irritable Bowel Syndrome to participate in a short study. $T00 $100 incentive for those chosen to participate. 00 K K $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 S ASTHMA STUDY $200 Individuals who have regular asthma to participate in $200 P 00 an asthma study. $200 incentive for those chosen to $200 S P^icipate. goo $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $200 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $!oo SORE THROAT/STREP THROAT STUDY $100 For individuals 12 years and older with sore throat willing $100 to participate in a study to treat strep throat. Diagnosed $100 strep throat welcome. $100 incentive for those chosen to $100 participate. $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 CEDAR/WINTER ALLERGY STUDY flOO S100 Looking for mountain cedar allergic individuals to partici- c-jqq pate in a short allergy study. $100-$200 incentive for si 00 those chosen to participate. Free skin testing available c-iqo to determine eligibility. ^ 00 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 ACUTE BRONCHITIS/PNEUMONIA $100 y° u ti ave any °f the following? 1. Productive $100 cou 9h 2. Fever 3. Rattle in chest. Call for information $100 about a three week antibiotic reseach study with close MD $100 supervision. $100 incentive for those who qualify. $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 - - $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 PEDIATRIC SORE THROAT STUDY Children 2 to 12 years with sore throat pain to participate in a currently over-the-counter available pain relief medica tion study. No blood drawn. Free strep test. 2 hours in the office-4 hours at home. $50. for those who qualify. $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $5 0 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 ision, ntf;' ■e I ought i® nnected to- By the 4- ay l high 1 ' ho likes co»' ■jf wester • econoffli c ' The BaP $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 gg HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE STUDY $300 individuals with high blood pressure medication $300 $300 daily t0 P artici P ate in a high blood pressure study. $30o $300. incentive for those chosen to participate. $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 $300 PAIN STUDY Do you take at least one over-the-counter pain reliever per month for any reason? If so, you may be eligible to participate in an at-home analgesic study. Monetary incentive for those cho sen to participate. CALL PAULL RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 776-0400 M’ C il'CWN HaVLIL Welcomes: M C ENTIRE jm ■ I ,/ mm® ftifjf IN CONCERT WITH RICKY VAN SHELTON Friday - February 10th G. Rollie White Coliseum 8:00 p.m. TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE Tickets are $15.50, available at the MSC Box Office & Dillards in the Post Oak Mall. For more information call 845-1234. CALL BATTALION CLASSIFIED Teleconference discusses black history, concludes ‘Still much further to go’ By Richard Tijerina STAFF WRITER Blacks have made a tremen dous impact on American society over the past century, but they still have much further to go, according to a teleconference concerning the historical impor tance of blacks in the country. “Beyond the Dream: A Cele bration of Black History” served as the national kickoff of Feb ruary as Black History Month. The teleconference documented achievements blacks have made on society through education, politics, economics, the military, the arts, sports, entertainment and social issues, and was pre sented at Texas A&M by the Black Awareness Committee. Several speakers in the telecon ference said they felt the progress blacks have made is small com pared to the goals that future generations will accomplish. Mary Futrell, president of the National Education Association, said she felt black children delib erately perform poorly in school because they feel it is expected of them to do so. “A lot of our (black) kids have the ability to learn, and they have the ability to do well in school, but they have decided that achieving is being white,” Futrell said. “They think not achieving is be ing black, and if they want to be accepted by their peers then they deliberately do not succeed in school.” Todd Duncan, a singer and ac tor, said the history of blacks in the arts and entertainment indus try is shrouded in discrimination and exploitation. “I sang in every state in this union,” Duncan said. “I had all this money in my pocket, but there was not a restaurant in town where I could eat, there was not a bathroom I could go to. Those are the things that hurt.” Doris Jones, founder of the Ca pitol Ballet Company, said blacks in the entertainment industry have to finally decide that no one can make a difference for them except themselves. “We can’t depend on someone else,” she said. “We have to make our own companies and our own small groups, and I see that hap pening. We have wonderful dancers, composers and actors. We have it all — we just have to pull it together.” Sen. Cleo Fields, D-La., said the major problem facing blacks today is the registration of voters. “The way you inspire young peo ple to participate directly is by urging them to take part at an early age,” Fields said. “It’s not age, it’s attitude.” Fields said it is important to re alize that the influence of blacks in politics would not be what it is today if it was not for early black leaders who paved the way. “You have to understand the history of black politics,” he said. “Booker T. (Wa'shington) started to teach so Rosa Parks could take her seat so Martin Luther (King) could march. He marched and marched so Jesse Jackson could run. Jesse ran so we could win.” Dorothy Brunson, the founder and president of Brunson Com munications, said she believes the problem with blacks in business is that blacks simply don’t believe they can make an impact on the business world. “(Blacks) have a traditon which comes out of the church that preached humility,” Brunson said. “We have not understood how we can impact our own envi ronment. We don’t know what we can accomplish. We don’t need any more entertainers or athletes —we need business people.” Sybil Mobley, dean of the School of Business at Florida A&M University, said many black-owned businesses fail today because they are debt-financed. She said blacks must start busi nesses that make sense in order to succeed. Sunday Specials 5pm-Close Every Sunday Present your current A&M ID for Traditional Buy 1 get 1 free dinners Check our Sunday Margarita Specials Come in Thursday for Thursday night drink specials not good with any other specials or coupons Post Oak Mall Open ’til 10pm 7 days Contact Lenses Only Quality Name Brands (Bausch A Lomb, Clba, Barnes-Hinds-Hydrocurve) S7Q00 pr. "-STD. DAILY WEAR SOFT * ^ LENSES $QO00 PL *-STD. EXTENDED WEAR SOFT LENSES $QQ00 pr. *-STD. TINTED SOFT LENSES DAILY WEAR OR EXTENDED WEAR SAME DAY DELIVERY ON MOST LENSES Call 696-3754 For Appointment CHARLES C. SCHROEPPEL, O.D., P.C. DOCTOR OF OPTOMETRY * Eye exam & care kit not included 707 South Texas Ave., Suite 101D College Station, Texas 77840 1 block South of Texas & University 845-2611 For FAST Results