|
A probe has revealed that the cause of a KF-16 fighter jet crash into the West Sea last month was poor maintenance. The Korean Air Force operates a fleet of 120 KF-16 fighters, which cost W42.5 billion (US$1=W938) each.
U.S. engine maker Pratt & Whitney, which supplied the KF-16 engines, found problems with some of the turbine blade props made between 1993 and 1994. The U.S. manufacturer advised the Korean Air Force in 2000 to change the parts by 2004. The Air Force should have immediately looked into the matter and replaced the parts. But the jet that crashed had the same problematic components. The maintenance records of the crashed fighter jet say an inspection of all of the 27 KF-16 fighter jets using the problematic parts showed ¡°no problem¡± with the engine.
Engine parts usually carry a 10-year warranty. The defects were discovered before the warranty had expired, so the parts could have been replaced free of charge. But there was no proper investigation and the maintenance records were filled with incorrect facts. This incident demonstrates the level of troop discipline within our military. There are more examples than the KF-16 jet crash. The Air Force randomly chose five out of 34 KF-16 jets manufactured between 1993 and 1994 and inspected their engines, only to discover the same defect in another jet. Maintenance records on that plane also showed ¡°no problem.¡± Only now has the Air Force begun inspecting the engines of the other 29 jets.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kim Sung-il submitted his resignation on Wednesday and said, "Through an investigation of last month's KF-16 crash, I confirmed that Air Force logistics support is unsatisfactory. I was shocked to find that many officers and mechanics will be subject to disciplinary action, and apologize to the nation." Is the slackness in military discipline restricted to the Air Force maintenance crews? And how could the level of discipline in the military deteriorate to this degree, especially with a nuclear-equipped North Korean military just tens of kilometers away from Seoul? Last July, when North Korea test fired a missile, it took the president six hours to convene a national security meeting. He later said it would ¡®t have made any difference whether the meeting took place at 5 a.m. or 11 a.m. Seeing this kind of behavior from their chief, would the ranks be a) more alert or b) less alert? The answer is obvious.
|
