Editorial: Eye on the ball

[unhappycamper]

Editorial: Eye on the ball

The Air Force has announced revisions in its nuclear weapons maintenance procedures.

Among the changes: Nuclear and non-nuclear munitions must be stored in separate structures; live and dummy missiles must be more clearly marked; and handlers will be limited to 12-hour shifts at most.

Since the infamous Aug. 29-30 Bent Spear incident, in which six nuclear-tipped missiles were mistakenly loaded on a B-52 at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., and flown to Barksdale Air Force Base, La. — without anyone realizing — the Air Force has been working to shore up public confidence in its ability to handle safely the world’s most dangerous weapons.

But the problems are longstanding. A formerly classified Air Force document, written in 1998, decried the diminished attention for even “the minimum standards of nuclear weapons’ maintenance, support and security.”

Five years later, an Air Force inspector general declared that the pass rate for nuclear surety inspections that year had hit an all-time low — just 50 percent.


Rest of article at: http://www.airforcetimes.com/community/opinion/airforce_editorial_nuke_080211/