Biggest, deadliest weapons remain in arsenal
WASHINGTON (Al‘) Amorim's
most powerful and modern weapons
will still Im ready. In missile silos on
land and aboard nuclear submarines
prowling the oceans, even after the cut
Sim ks President Bush is ordering in the
nation's arsenal
"The world has changed, hut insur
mice is still a good Idea," Defense Set re
tary Dick Cheney said over the week
end "Under this plan, we believe we
will have enough
And "enough"means some 2,(HM) nu
clear warheads ready to lie hurled aloft
by r>f>() intercontinental nuclear mis
siles. as well as the more than 5,000 nu
clear warheads that could lie launched
from the Navy's 24 ballistic missile sub
marines
Cheney says nuclear force is insurance policy
Thn core of I ho nation's nuclear do -
frnsc remains a mighty one, particularly
until Iho Soviets say they are willing to
agree to further cuts in the most deadly
weapons the land based, multiple
warhead ballistic missiles
liven though Hush ordered startling
cuts in the nation's arsenal of nuclear
weaponry, much remains untouched by
Ins initiative.
In iiis Friday speec h, the president
moved to sharply reduce the numlrer of
nuclear arms used at sea and on the bat
tlefield. known as tactical nuclear weap
ons Ho also took off hair-trigger alert
status the front line of the1 nation's nu
clear bomber forces, as well as the old
csi sector of its intercontinental hallistii
missiles, tho Minuteman !ls
But the premier weaponry " ill remain
in placo.
AVe are doing nothing tii.il would put
tho nation .it risk.,'' (Jon. C.olin I’owi ll
said.
Rush ordered the 450 single-warhead
Minutenuin II missiles off alert and ac
celerated moves that will mean their
eventual elimination
But that still leaves the nation de
Iended hy 50 Bear ekeoper missiles, with
it) warheads each, and 500 triple-war
head Minuteman III missiles in their si
los
That means Unit a force now armed
with 2,450 nuclear warheads will retain
the destructive power of the 2.000 most
modern nuclear warheads.
And there Is no change in the alert
status of the Poacekoopors or the Mm
uteman Ills. Air Force officials said
Even though Bush ordered the 2B0
premier long-range bomliers, and their
tankers, off their alert status ending
the practice of keeping a portion of
them ready to roll, engines running, on
their runways, in case of sudden attack
all the B-52s and the B-lBs vs ill he
maintained.
Their nuclear bombs and nuclear
cruise missiles will also be kept in stor
age, hut could he reloaded in the bomb
ers within a day’s time, officials said
Freedom of Expression,
the University and the Media
Everette E. Dennis
executive Director
The I rccdom ioruni
Media Studies Center
New York
LUHSDAY, OCTOBER I, ]W| ♦ EMU BALLROOM, 3:30 I’M.
1991 CONVOCATION
Sponsored h 1/ the School of I ournal ism
hollowing the convocation lecture member* of the umeersity community will join
l Vmi/-’ for a fuincl i/l-h ussion i>n I ir>t Amendment is*ne*. t he panel will he moderated
hi/ journalism dean Arnold Ismaeh. Other panelists will he
Tim Gleason
•\ssou.itr I’rotesM'i. |iuirnalism
James Klonoski
1’roti‘ssor rolitic.il Sv inn i>
Paul J lolbo
\sstH uito I’riu o>t ti'r At .uli'mk Affairs
Lauren Kessler
Professor, journalism
C hristopher Blair
l ditor, ( hi'^on Daily I mrrald
Public Reception, EMU Ballroom, 5:30 p.m.
University of Oregon
School of journalism
Cold Warriors
brace for new
world reality
FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE
BASE, Wash. (AP) — Air Foret:
pilots who onto tensely await
ed orders to launch nuclear air
strikes against the Soviet Union
found their aircraft disarmed
and their futures uncertain
Monday.
"1 never thought we'd live to
see the full reduction,” said
Maj. |oe Nelson, a KC-135 pilot.
”1 though it was a misprint
when 1 read it in the paper," he
said of President Bush's "stand
down" order.
Since 1057, the Air Force has
placed B-52 long-range bomb
ers and the KC-135 tankers that
refueled them in flight on 2-t
hour alert. They often waited
with engines running, braced to
launch strikes against the Sovi
et Union the instant the com
mand was given.
But the command never
came, and stunning changes in
U S.-Soviet relations resulted
Friday in Bush's decision to re
duce the nation's nuclear arse
nal.
The Soviet Foreign Ministry
said Monday it would send a
top diplomat to Washington to
open talks on Bush's arms con
trol proposals It said unilateral
cuts wore not ruled out, hut So
viet President Mikhail S Gor
bachov said he was in no hurry
to give specific answers to
Bush's suggestions.
Since Friday, crews at Fair
child and 10 other Strategic Air
Command bases removed nu
clear cruise missiles from the
bombers and locked them away
in storage.
The planes were sent to
maintenance shops to be ready
for regular flight-lino duties.
"Our families will like it. The
divorce rate should go way
down," Master S g l Jack
Sprague said. "We're still wait
ing to see what happens next.
We're wondering if we will still
have Jobs."
As many as eight of the 325th
Bombardment Squadron's 21) or
more bombers — the exact
number remains classified —
were on the alert "pad" at all
times, armed, fueled and ready
to go.
Waiting on alert could in
volve sitting in a plane for 12
hours at u stretch.
That could he boring, but it
had its exhilarating moments,
said Master Sgt. Keith Krebs, a
B-52 gunner.
It Classifieds Iff 1
346-4343 {