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N0KFQ > TODAY 03.02.14 17:05l 59 Lines 2536 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 11902_N0KFQ
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Subj: Today in History - Feb 3
Path: IZ3LSV<F1OYP<F1OYP<PI8SNK<N0KFQ
Sent: 140203/1600Z 11902@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.58
Feb 3, 1998:
Marine jet severs ski-lift cable in Italy
On this day in 1998, a U.S. Marine jet flying low over the town
of Cavalese in the Italian Alps severs a ski-lift cable, sending
a tram crashing to the ground and killing 20 people.
Cavalese is located in the Dolomite Mountains, about 20 miles
northeast of Trento, Italy. In 1976, 42 people there, including
15 children, lost their lives when the cable holding up their
ski-lift car snapped. The car fell 700 feet, with its overhead
assembly landing on top of it. There was only one survivor--a
14-year-old girl.
On February 3, 1998, 20 Europeans, mostly Germans and Belgians,
were taking a ski tram up Cermis Mountain when an EA-6B Prowler
operated by the U.S. Marines suddenly flew by. The anti-radar
aircraft sliced right through the steel cable holding up the tram
and it plunged more than 250 feet to the ground. Everyone on
board was killed instantly.
The plane suffered minimal damage and returned to its base in
Italy. The pilot, Captain Richard J. Ashby, and navigator,
Captain Joseph Schweitzer, destroyed a videotape that had
recorded their flight before an investigation began. Still, it
was soon discovered that the plane had been flying at only 360
feet above the ground, in spite of regulations that set the
minimum altitude for flights at 2,000 feet. This revelation
spurred large anti-American protests in Italy. President Bill
Clinton apologized to the victims' families and promised
compensation, but, pursuant to NATO rules, the U.S. military
claimed jurisdiction over the case, despite objections from
Italian prosecutors.
In a military court at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Ashby and
Schweitzer were charged with involuntary manslaughter and
negligent homicide. They claimed that their equipment had
malfunctioned and that their maps had not shown the location of
the ski-lift. Despite Italian claims that American pilots
regularly and intentionally ignored safety regulations to execute
risky maneuvers, the crew was acquitted in March 1999. Ashby and
Schweitzer were court-martialed for obstruction of justice for
their destruction of the videotape and dismissed from the
Marines.
In May 1999, Congress failed to approve a compensation fund for
the victims. Italy, however, later approved nearly $2 million
dollars in compensation per victim, and, according to NATO
regulations, the United States was held liable for 75 percent of
the damages.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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