U.S. investigators blame crew for ski resort tragedy

An Italian prosecutor said he would continue his investigation into the accident, but, in general, Italians seemed satisfied with American assurances the Marines would face some sort of punishment in the United States.

A Marine investigation board placed the blame squarely on the four-person crew, who they said broke the rules on how fast and how low they could fly.

Their commanding officer said he would convene the military equivalent of a criminal grand jury.

"The cause of the mishap was aircrew error," Maj. Gen. Michael DeLong, president of the investigation board, told reporters at the U.S. air base in Aviano.

The EA-6B Prowler severed two of the ski lift cables, sending a gondola with 19 skiers from six countries and the operator to their deaths on the snowy slopes. The plane struck the cable just 370 feet above the ground.

The incident soured Italian-American relations, sparking protests at Aviano, calls to close U.S. bases throughout Italy and charges that American fliers routinely "hot-dog" in Italian airspace.

Yesterday, U.S. Ambassador Thomas Foglietta knelt at the Cavalese ski lift in silent prayer for the victims of one of the deadliest training incidents since the end of the Cold War.

"On behalf of President Clinton and the American people, I wish to apologize," he said.

Italy said it wants to prosecute the fliers, but under a NATO treaty the United States has the right to refuse, and it is expected to do so. The crew will remain at Aviano until a decision is made.

Pentagon spokesperson Kenneth Bacon, asked whether there was any chance that the marines would be handed over to Italian authorities, said "It would be very unusual."

But he added the matter has been taken up by the U.S. commander in chief in Europe, Gen. Wesley Clark, who would make the final decision.

Massimo Bi, Italy's undersecretary of defense, told reporters at Aviano the board's report was enough to hold the crew "criminally responsible" and said he agrees with the findings of the Italian air force.

The mayor of Cavalese said "it isn't true that the U.S.A. wanted to close this with a note of reprimand ... They want to punish those responsible."

The board looked at many factors, but concluded that just one thing caused the tragedy: the crew's decision to fly lower than the authorized 1,000 feet and to exceed the authorized speed of 450 nautical miles per hour by 100 nautical miles per hour.

Even more damning, the board concluded, "the cable strike was not a one-time altitude miscalculation."

During the fatal flight, DeLong said "the crew flew lower and faster whenever the terrain permitted, in other words, whenever there was a valley."

Questions arose whether the crew was "hot-dogging," - flying risky maneuvers.

DeLong said witnesses on the ground said the Prowler was flying "aggressive" maneuvers. "That's all we have. That was their words," he said.

The crew refused - on advice of their lawyers - to talk to the board. "I have no idea what was in their minds," DeLong said.

But, DeLong added, the board found no evidence of a pattern that fliers out of Aviano, one of the biggest U.S. air bases in Europe, routinely ignore flight rules.

03-13-98