Page 12
The Battalion
Friday, February 15,1
U.S. Air Force AW AC jets track
allied aircraft on computer screen
OVER SAUDI ARABIA (AP) —Dozens —
sometimes hundreds — of little green symbols
flash on a computer screen. Some inch forward
toward red flasnes on a map of Iraq and Kuwait;
others hang back, awaiting their turn.
Away from the swarm, to the north and west,
other green symbols move about freely in more
open spaces — airspace deep inside Iraq.
The computer screen, which could easily be
mistaken for a fast-paced video game, is aboard a
U.S. Air Force AW ACS plane high above Saudi
Arabia. From this high-tech vantage point, the
Air Force directs a daily ballet of sorts, tracking
an allied air siege that often includes more than
200 planes airborne at one time.
On this night, as on most since the opening
days of the war with Iraq, the Air Force’s traffic
cop in the sky is policing a crowded, but one-way,
street. “AH we’re doing is going up there, drop
ping bombs and breaking all of his toys,” Col.
Gary A. Voellger, commander of an Oklahoma-
based AWACS wing, told a visitor. “Welcome to
the friendly skies.”
AWACS is an abbreviation for Airborne Early
Warning And Control. The planes, bristling with ,
radar and electronic monitoring equipment, are
designed to keep track of allied aircraft and
watch out for hostile ones. Lately, there hasn’t
been much need for the latter.
Still, crew members watch intently for the
enemy that never comes, the red “V” that would,
in this deadly showdown, represent in Iraqi air
plane.
With none in sight, the word goes out from the
AWACS to all the green symbols — the hundreds
of allied warplanes — “Picture Clear.”
This day’s program includes 2,800 allied sor
ties and runs 950 pages.
The warplanes roaming in western, central
and northern Iraq are hunting Scud missile
launchers, bombing bridges, raining laser-
guided munitions down on hardened aircraft
shelters, and circling to protect allies and prevent
Iraqi planes from scooting to Iran.
As midnight approaches, a wave of B-52
bombers arrives on cue. On the screen, they ap
pear the same as the comparatively tiny F-15s.
But as they pass methodically over their target,
an Iraqi missile facility at Taji, it is clear they are
different.
The distant yellow glow on the horizon offers
proof.
Throughout a 17-hour AWACS mission, the
first flown by journalists since the war began four
weeks ago, green symbols were stacked one atop
the other along the crescent-shaped western Ku
wait border.
At the receiving end are troops in southern
Kuwait and two Republican Guard divisions
along the Iraqi side of the Kuwait border.
Always there are “packages” of fighters and
bombers waiting to go next.
“It kind of looks like Safeway on payday —
they’re just lining up,” Voellger said. “We own
the skies.”
Indeed, not one Iraqi aircraft was detected air
borne during an AWACS mission that began at
midday Wednesday and ended just before dawn
Thursday. As the sun rose, allied aircraft were
still pounding Iraqi ground forces, artillery and
forward command posts.
“Punishment, pure and simple punishment,”
Maj. Clark Speicher, the mission control com
mander, said.
This crew flew the first night of the war, when
some Iraqi fighters were airborne and the skies
were filled with anti-aircraft fire. Now, there are
but pockets of fire, and not an Iraqi plane to
worry about.
“They know if they come up, they die,” Sgt.
Jeffrey Boyland, a surveillance officer, said. “It’s
that simple.”
With the skies so crowded with allied aircraft,
on several occasions the AWACS controllers had
to order new routes at the last minute, and track
jets that drifted dangerously off course. As the
AWACS prepared to refuel under the stars, seve
ral aircraft passed within sight of it, including
several across its nose.
Researchers seek usefu
heart disease treatment
Vol. 9(
NEW YORK (AP) — Genes in
jected into the heart muscles of
rats continued to function, raising
hopes for treating heart diseases
or a cardiac complication of mus
cular dystrophy, researchers re
port.
The genes worked for at least
two months in rats treated with a
drug to suppress their immune
systems, but only two weeks in un
treated animals.
The work is reported in the
January issue of The New Biolog
ist by Dr. Jon Wolff and col
leagues at the University of Wis
consin in Madison.
After making surgical incisions
in rats, they injected the hearts
with genes that make cells pro
duce easily detected substances.
In the future, injecting people’s
hearts with genes that promote
production of therapeutic sub
stances may be useful for treating
such conditions as coronary heart
disease, they wrote.
Another target may be cardiac
complications that are a common
cause of death in people with Du-
chenne muscular dystrophy, tb
said.
In Duchenne, musdes wasit
away because they lack a genetki
lets them produce a protein cal:
dystrophin. Injecting dystropfe
genes might block that process;:
the heart muscle.
4
I
The study is “a vital first step;
treating the heart problems t
muscular dystrophy patiem
through gene therapy,” Robe
Ross, vice president and executii
director of the Muscular Dystri
phy Association, said in
statement.
The association helped finam
the research.
Bi
wi
The scientists cautioned tb;
such treatment might requirepn
ting the genes into a larger pei
centage of heart muscle cellsthi
they did. In addition, nobob
knows whether treatment viitl
dystrophin genes would provol
a harmful immune system reat
lion, they said.
WAS
Bush a
that the
talking”
allied b
Soviets
the Pers
“We
Kal Kan
<SSi3fe>
1. Mars, Incorporated is ...
A. A privately owned, multi-billion
donar ' 8,obal " mpany Uncle Ben’s, Inc.
B. #1 worldwide in confectionery
products, pet food and rice
Ethel- M
C. Producer of five of the top ten
confectionery products in the U.S.
t). Looking for bright, motivated
individuals, interested in another
way of doing business
©
E.j All of the above
I NTERNATIONA L
Information Services International
i
Our Representatives will be on campus
interviewing for full-time positions in
Quality Assurance, Process Development,
Packaging and Electrical Engineering
March 1, 1991
Check with your placement office
for more details.
Equal Opportunity Employer
© Mars, Inc. 1990
Poll. Continued from pal
Dr. Bill Stout, speaker
A&M F acuity Senate, says duetij
present state deficit, financial
will have to come from somewbr
“But Texas A&M is goingto
any faculty cuts all the way,
though they are a long wav
Stout says.
The poll indicated 85 percei
sponded that the educationalsn
would be in serious trouble il
Legislature cut more money
college and university budgets.
Zucker says educational [;
probably will not escape any
during the Legislature’s next
get out
State J a
Presii
Kenneb
ers, “W
this job
The
resolve
riq Aziz
aimed a
to the c
Monday
hail S. C
Bush
would c
Gorbad
seek an
“He
Magazine
Continued from page 1
Mathews says magazine
frequent the local area.
To solicit in College Statin:
salesperson must have a saleslicti
which does not include permia
to solicit on University property
If police receive a complaint,:
will check the license. It then
several complaints about one;
son, the license will be revoke!
not renewed.
Matthews says if salespeoplt
not have licenses, they wil
charged with soliciting withoi
permit.
These illegal sales attemptsfd
a definite pattern, Wiatt says
“Students are most suscepti
the fall and the salespeople kno*
he says. “Students do not kno»
salespeople are illegal.”
Between September and Ja«
police questioned 21 unauthon;
solictors, the majority in early
Police could not address all o
E laints because some salespeoplt
efore officers arrived, he says,
Students, however, are not
only victims of magazine sales a
scams. The salespeople also cat
hurt by the business.
Wiatt says solicitors often ans
classified ads which offer money
adventure. Crew leaders pi«
great rewards but they rarely
Hyer.
Magazine solicitors make «
little money and have to pay®
own travel and hotel expenses.Tl
often owe the crew leader me
Wiatt says.
He also says crew leaders do
care about the salespeople. The
ten will send them back to a uni
sity even after a police warning
Wives.
Continued from page 3
Other military wives havejj
through similar experiences.
The wife of a retired sen:
man from College Stations 1
she believes most people d®
want a repeat of the negative^
ings expressed during Vietnam
“I don’t think people want:
to happen again,” says the it
tary wife, who wishes to rent
anonymous. “I think it’s wotidi
ful t he people are coming out*;
saying they support our men.
Bryan resident Serita Brotk f! |
lived near an Air Force bast
Utah while her husband served
Thailand during the Viem 5
War. Thailand was a supf' :
staging area during the confft 1
“We didn’t even know »■
they (support groups) were,
says.
Brothers says she had a gt®
of close friends with whom to
things, and they were the dot
thing she had to support.
“We didn’t call it support
says. “It was just our friends,
Brothers says support grot
are good for those who beio
they need them. These gr» l
provide opportunities for fa*
members to share experift
with others going through
same thing, she says.
“There’s a million other pe®!
in your shoes.”
The
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past
Cou
Bi
A dr
Brazos
mark ot
many T
offende
ticed.
State
report ]
Public S
The.
nent re.
trooper
inform:
utes.
Robe
a ger of
many c.
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