Dave Shutter
Registered User
quote:March 12, 2001
Web posted at: 8:23 p.m. EST (0123 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A U.S. Navy jet accidentally bombed a group of observers Monday during a training flight in Kuwait, killing six people.
The dead include five Americans and a military observer from New Zealand, according to U.S. officials. The U.S. Pentagon said at least five people were wounded, including two Kuwaitis. All were watching a joint U.S.-Kuwaiti exercise on a bombing range in northwestern Kuwait at the time of the accident, U.S. officials said.
The wounded were being flown to a U.S. military hospital in Germany.
Kuwaiti Military Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Ali al-Muamen: "We are extremely sorry for this tragic incident"
Lt. Gen. Ali al-Muaman, Kuwait's military chief of staff, expressed his "deepest condolences" to those killed in the accident.
"We are extremely sorry for this tragic incident, which happened to our comrades-in-arms from the U.S. armed forces," al-Muaman told CNN.
The accident occurred about 7:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m. EST) when a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet from the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman dropped a 500-pound bomb during the training exercise. U.S. and Kuwaiti forces routinely fly joint training missions at the Udairi training ground, about 31 miles (50 kilometers) south of the Iraqi border.
Speaking in Florida on Monday, President Bush said the accident was a reminder of the dangers faced by U.S. service members. He led a moment of silence before a speech promoting his tax-cut plan. "God bless," Bush said.
The F/A-18 that dropped the bomb took off from the USS Harry S. Truman in the Persian Gulf
U.S. forces have operated from bases in Kuwait and have trained with the Kuwaiti military since the 1991 Persian Gulf War, when a Western-Arab coalition pushed Iraqi troops out of the emirate.
The Hornet is the Navy's primary ground attack plane and also serves as a fighter. The supersonic jet first flew in 1978 and has been in service since 1983.
Aircraft from the Truman and bases in Kuwait were used to strike at Iraqi air defense targets near the Iraqi capital Baghdad last month.
Prayers and best wishes to the freinds and families of those killed.
D
Web posted at: 8:23 p.m. EST (0123 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A U.S. Navy jet accidentally bombed a group of observers Monday during a training flight in Kuwait, killing six people.
The dead include five Americans and a military observer from New Zealand, according to U.S. officials. The U.S. Pentagon said at least five people were wounded, including two Kuwaitis. All were watching a joint U.S.-Kuwaiti exercise on a bombing range in northwestern Kuwait at the time of the accident, U.S. officials said.
The wounded were being flown to a U.S. military hospital in Germany.
Kuwaiti Military Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Ali al-Muamen: "We are extremely sorry for this tragic incident"
Lt. Gen. Ali al-Muaman, Kuwait's military chief of staff, expressed his "deepest condolences" to those killed in the accident.
"We are extremely sorry for this tragic incident, which happened to our comrades-in-arms from the U.S. armed forces," al-Muaman told CNN.
The accident occurred about 7:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m. EST) when a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet from the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman dropped a 500-pound bomb during the training exercise. U.S. and Kuwaiti forces routinely fly joint training missions at the Udairi training ground, about 31 miles (50 kilometers) south of the Iraqi border.
Speaking in Florida on Monday, President Bush said the accident was a reminder of the dangers faced by U.S. service members. He led a moment of silence before a speech promoting his tax-cut plan. "God bless," Bush said.
The F/A-18 that dropped the bomb took off from the USS Harry S. Truman in the Persian Gulf
U.S. forces have operated from bases in Kuwait and have trained with the Kuwaiti military since the 1991 Persian Gulf War, when a Western-Arab coalition pushed Iraqi troops out of the emirate.
The Hornet is the Navy's primary ground attack plane and also serves as a fighter. The supersonic jet first flew in 1978 and has been in service since 1983.
Aircraft from the Truman and bases in Kuwait were used to strike at Iraqi air defense targets near the Iraqi capital Baghdad last month.
Prayers and best wishes to the freinds and families of those killed.
D