Officials Scale Back Recovery Operations in TWA Crash Probe

No longer finding large pieces of wreckage, officials investigating the crash of Trans World Airlines Flight 800 said Monday that they are sending one of two large Navy ships home and will use scuba divers to pick up any small pieces of debris that might still lie on the ocean floor.

The decision to cut back on recovery operations off Long Island comes nearly six weeks after the jet plunged into the sea. With more than 60% of the plane recovered, authorities are under increasing pressure to determine whether the 747 was destroyed by sabotage or mechanical failure.

Also Monday, lead FBI investigator James K. Kallstrom announced that authorities have learned the plane was once used to transport U.S. military personnel to and from the Middle East.

He said the FBI is working with TWA officials to identify those military personnel and determine whether a small trace of bomb residue might have been inadvertently left in the aircraft by someone who worked with ordnance.

Robert Francis, the vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board who is overseeing the mechanical investigation of the plane, said the two primary fuel pumps on the central fuel tank show “nothing exceptional” that would point to a cause for the July 17 explosion.

Authorities theorize the explosion occurred in the center section of the plane. Much of the wreckage from that area, including parts of the central fuel tank, shows patterns of fire and burn damage.

Rear Adm. Ed Kristensen said that the Navy salvage ship Grasp is returning home today to Little Creek, Va. Meanwhile, divers from the salvage ship Grapple will continue to scour the sea bottom for small debris. “We want to make sure we have not lost or missed anything on the floor,” he said.

The admiral said it could take weeks to complete the tedious recovery effort, if officials decide it is worth continuing.

If no cause for the TWA crash is found soon, Kallstrom said, the FBI might dredge the ocean bottom for any pieces left behind.