Marine’s Defense Rejects Idea of Rogue Jet Crew

The crew of a Marine Corps jet that severed a cable car support wire in the Italian Alps sending 20 people to their deaths was not trying to join any “cable car club” by flying recklessly low and fast on a mountain training mission, an attorney for one of the men said Tuesday at the start of a military hearing into the case.

In an opening statement, Capt. Paul Kaplan, a Marine Corps defense attorney, rejected what he said would be claims by government prosecutors that the EA-6B Prowler crew was “flat-hatting, cowboying or goofing around.” Flat-hatting is military slang for flying for thrills at low altitude and high speed.

Prosecutors, however, did not allege the existence of a “cable car club.”

The hearing is to examine the actions of the two officers positioned in the rear of the jet who were operating the electronic jamming equipment, Capt. William L. Raney II, 26, of Englewood, Colo., and Capt. Chandler P. Seagraves, 28, of Nineveh, Ind. At the request of defense attorneys, the pilot, Capt. Richard Ashby, and the navigator, Capt. Joseph Schweitzer, face a separate hearing scheduled for June 15.

A Marine investigation concluded that the crew was flying “aggressively” and that the accident occurred because the jet was flying too low and too fast.

All four officers are charged with involuntary manslaughter, negligent homicide, dereliction of duty, destruction of military property and destroying civilian property. If convicted, each faces more than 200 years in prison.