6 Die in U.S. Jet Bombing Accident in Kuwait

A Navy warplane on a training exercise in Kuwait accidentally dropped a bomb on a group of military observers Monday, killing five U.S. troops and one New Zealander. Five other U.S. military personnel and two Kuwaitis were injured, authorities said.

The F/A-18 Hornet dropped the 500-pound unguided munition at the Udairi training range, about 30 miles from the Iraqi border in northwestern Kuwait. The fighter was based on the carrier Harry S. Truman, which has been patrolling the Persian Gulf, and was taking part in quarterly U.S.-Kuwaiti training exercises, officials said.

The U.S. casualties were from the Army and Air Force, officials said, although it was unclear how many were with each service. Two of the injured Americans were immediately treated and released from the hospital. The three others remained hospitalized, but military authorities said their injuries were not life-threatening.

Authorities did not identify the U.S. victims, pending notification of relatives. The New Zealander was Acting Maj. John McNutt, 27, New Zealand officials said.

The accident came at an especially difficult time for the Navy, which is struggling to overcome the diplomatic fallout from the fatal Feb. 9 collision of the submarine Greeneville with a Japanese fishing vessel off Hawaii. That accident killed nine Japanese and has strained U.S.-Japanese relations.

The Navy’s performance also was questioned after the Oct. 12 terrorist bombing of the destroyer Cole in Yemen, which killed 17 sailors. A review in that case found many security shortcomings, although senior officials concluded that even if those mistakes had not been made, the terrorists still probably would have succeeded.

Most Kuwaitis strongly support having U.S. troops in their country as a defense against neighboring Iraq. But especially because of the injuries to the Kuwaitis, the accident is likely to spark calls from others in the Arab world for a reduced U.S. presence in the region, some U.S. officials predicted.

The incident may also raise questions about the Navy’s hopes to begin bombing exercises near Big Sur using dummy ordnance.

Officials of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet want to train F/A-18 pilots with bombing runs at the Army’s Ft. Hunter Liggett. They have argued that the fighters are highly precise and pose no danger of “collateral” damage.

U.S. Navy officers reacted with shock and sadness to the news of the Kuwait accident, and some predicted that the service’s reputation was in for a battering, at least in the short term.

The United States has maintained a large force in Kuwait since the 1991 Persian Gulf War and the military buildup that preceded it. About 5,000 U.S. troops are now stationed in the country.

The accident occurred about 7 p.m. The Truman was carrying two squadrons of Navy planes and one squadron of Marine planes. The training exercise, called “Intrinsic Action,” also involved British forces.

Though other details remain sketchy, military officials said the plane had been practicing a “close air support” exercise and had been flying toward the target in the training range with the help of a forward air controller on the ground. It was unclear whether the error was made by the pilot or by the controller.

“This is the kind of thing that our investigation will find out,” said Lt. Col. Joe Lamarca, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla.

Navy pilots who have used the Udairi range said bombing exercises are closely overseen.

Warplanes follow narrow, designated routes toward the bombing range and remain under the guidance of forward air controllers--in airplanes or on the ground--at all times. They must receive clearance to enter the range’s airspace and to leave it.

They also must receive clearance before they drop their bombs.

Fliers are given visual cues and coordinates for their instruments to help them find their targets.

But the Udairi range is tougher in that respect than many bombing ranges in the United States, some pilots said in interviews, because it is a vast, dusty plain, with few features identifiable from high altitude.

Military officials insisted that the Navy and Air Force must continue to train with live ammunition to be fully prepared for war.

“We have to train just like we fight,” Lamarca said.

The accident may bring calls from the Navy and its supporters for renewed use of its large live-fire ammunition training range on the small island of Vieques, off southeastern Puerto Rico.

Because of increasing opposition among Puerto Ricans, Navy carrier battle groups have recently been unable to conduct live-fire exercises at Vieques before departing for regular deployments in Europe and the Middle East.

A Navy spokesman, Capt. Joe Gradisher, said there is “a possibility” that the absence of such live-fire training contributed to the accident in Kuwait.

While bombing accidents are rare, the Navy was forced to interrupt its use of the Vieques range because of such an accident two years ago. On April 19, 1999, two Marine jets accidentally bombed a lookout post at the Vieques training ground, killing one civilian. Four other people were injured, including three civilians.

President Bush, traveling in Panama City, Fla., mentioned the Kuwait accident at the opening of a speech on his budget proposals and military spending.

“I’m reminded today of how dangerous service can be,” Bush said. “We lost some servicemen today in Kuwait in a training accident.” He led a moment of silence for the troops and their families.

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Bombing Accident

The Navy F/A-18 Hornet’s crew was practicing a nighttime “close-air support” exercise at the Udairi bombing range in Kuwait when it accidentally dropped a 500-pound bomb that killed six military personnel on the ground.

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A Typical Bombing Drill

Bombing runs such as this one give soldiers experience flying over water and terrain similar to what they would encounter in Iraq.

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F/A-18 Hornet

The carrier-based Hornet can protect naval ships from enemy fighters and missiles, function as a fight escort and deliver 17,000 pounds of gravity and laser-guided bombs.

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Sources: U.S. Central Command; John Pike, GlobalSecurity.org Researched by JULIE SHEER/Los Angeles Times