THE US NATIONAL Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is asking Trans World Airlines (TWA), Boeing and Pratt & Whitney for $8 million towards accident-investigation costs in the continuing probe of the July TWA Boeing 747 crash.
Meanwhile, traces of a chemical used in plastic explosives have been detected on recovered wreckage, but the authorities maintain that more evidence is needed before a bomb or missile can be considered to be the crash cause.
It is not unusual in the USA for parties to an accident to help finance an investigation. ValuJet's insurer provided funds for the investigation into the airline's McDonnell Douglas DC-9 crash on 11 May. Birgenair, Boeing and Rolls-Royce helped cover the $800,000 cost of salvaging the flight-data recorder and cockpit-voice recorder of the Boeing 757 which plunged into the Atlantic Ocean north of the Dominican Republic on 6 February.
NTSB chairman Jim Hall is seeking $5 million from TWA, $2 million from Boeing and $1 million from engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney. TWA has indicated reluctance to fund what it sees as a US Government investigation. Boeing and P&W say that the request is under review. Investigators have found traces of PETN - a compound used in plastic explosives - but say that other evidence is needed before a conclusion can be drawno
Source: Flight International
