(13 May 1996) English/Nat
A US federal investigator says there's no way to know whether smoke fumes knocked out the crew of ValuJet Flight 592 before it crashed, killing 109 people in the Floriday everglades. .
The investigator says the Miami airport tower received no response from the plane in two final queries before it crashed.
And President Clinton says he wants a report this week on what measures are being taken to ensure the safety of all airline passengers.
Officials of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board say the site in the Everglades where the ValuJet DC-9 went down is probably the worst they've ever encountered.
Divers and NTSB investigators must deal with razor sharp reeds, in six-inch deep water, and mud that locals say is 30 to 40 feet deep.
The top federal official on the scene says this and other hazards make the search slow and dangerous.
SOUNDBITE:
"That I found it interesting when one of the boats was going out to sea, on the top of the boat there was a sniper with an automatic weapon with a periscope on it and handgun in case of alligators. So this is tough stuff out there."
SUPER CAPTION: Robert Francis, Vice Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board
With the NTSB probe of the crash now in full swing, federal transportation officials say they're launching an intense safety review of ValuJet airlines.
President Clinton, in Washington today (Monday), offered condolences to the families of the crew and passengers of Flight 592, and says the government will do what it can to ensure that ValuJet is a safe airline.
SOUNDBITE:
"The Federal Aviation Administration had been conducting a review of Valujet since February. Last night the F-A-A announced it will broaden the review to assure that Valujet's flights are safe and fully compliant with F-A-A requirements. I have directed Secretary Pena to report to me this week on additional measures the Department of Transportation and the F-A-A can take to ensure that all our airlines continue to operate at the highest level of safety."
SUPER CAPTION: Bill Clinton, U-S President
With concerns rising about the safety of discount carriers like ValuJet, industry officials were defending the industry's record today.
Flying some 500 million passengers in the U-S and abroad annually, airline officials say U-S carriers are still the safest in the world.
But the industry's chief spokesman on safety matters admits there is tremendous economic pressure on airlines to keep planes flying, no matter how old they are.
SOUNDBITE:
"The truth of the matter is that an airplane sitting on the ground is not earning revenue. When an aircraft's up in the air with passengers on board, that's when and be it an old aircraft with a low-cost operator, then you have to keep that aircraft flying like crazy to maximise your revenue."
SUPER CAPTION: Stuart Mathews, President, Flight Safety Foundation
Airline officials and aircraft makers admit tougher safety measures are needed to deal with the industry's aging fleet of planes to prevent another disaster like this one from happening again.
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