C00212851 Document 47 of 25 for FBIS DGCNJ 000602688 PDTG P 1815532 SEP 95 FM FM F 3I S LONDON K TO TO RUCWAAA/FBIS RESTON VA RAYW33K/DIO CANBERRA AS RAYWEFA/ONA CANBERRA AS RHDLCNE/CINCUSNAVEUR LONDON UK//N211 RHEBA.AA/DOE IOD WASH DC//DASI FOR RAIE// RHEPAAB/ACCIS LANGLEY AFB VA RRFPAAA/UTAIS RAMSTEIN A8 G=//IN0:7// RHFTAAA/OSIA EUROPE RHEIN MAIN AB GE RHHMMCY/JICPAC HONOLULU HI RHHMUNA/USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI RUALJDT/JDET YOKOTA AB JA RUCBAIC/AIC NORFOLK VA RUCBAIC/AIC NORFOLK VA//DIIC// RUCMACC/CDR PSYOPGP FT BRAGG NC//AS. -POG-SB// RUCO?KA/COMICEDEFOR KEFLAVIK IC//J2// RUCOXAQ/FITRON ONE ZERO ONE//320// RUCWAAA/FBIS RESTON VA//POLCH// RUDKL%ZKB/FBIS LONDON UK//BBC// RUDKTA/A.Z?MEASSY TALLINN RUDMONI/ONI WASHINGTON DC//2140// RUD?MAX/FAISA FT BRAGG NC RUDPWDC/DA AMHS WASHINGTON DC RUEABND/DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMIN HQ :: S:!INGTCN DC//OIS// RUEAIIS/STORAGE CENTER FBIS RESTON VA RUEALGX/DEFINTAGNCY WASH DC RUEBFGA/VOA WASHINGTON DC RUEDADA/AFIA AMHS BOLLING AFB DC RUEDADA/AFISA AMHS BOLLING AFB DC RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHINGTON DC//INR/CIE// RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA RUEH.MO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW RUEHSK/AMEMBASSY MINSK RUEHVEN/USMISSION USVIENNA RUERWAA/DIR OPERATIONS GROUP CA.RISLE BKS PA RUESDJ/FBIS OKINAWA JA RUESFV/FBIS VIENNA AU RUESFW/FBIS WARSAW PL RUESMF/FBIS MOSCOW RS RUETIAV/MPC FT GEO 0 FADE MD RUFDBJA/CDR USASETAF VICENZA IT//AES=-040// RUFQBBA/US SURVEY SEC SHAPE BE RUFTAKA/UCIRF AUGSBURG GE RUHBABA/CG III MEF//G-2// RUWSMXI/AMC INTEL CEN SCOTT AFB IL//INO// RUWSMXI/USCINCTRANS INTEL CEN SCOTT AFB IL//J2-0/J2-J// RUWTAEA/NAIC WRIGHT PATTERSON AFB C3//TAI// RUWTNOK/HQ USSPACECOM PETERSON AFB CO//POLAD// RXDBHW/CINCNORTHWEST UAJ RXFNDA/COMMNORTH//JOINTINT// RXFPSH/SHAPE BE//PIO// RXFPSH/SHAPE BE//UAJ// ACCT FBLD-EWDK BT CLAS UNCLAS 3L/FAX B#LAP CISMIL 866 355 WARN WARNING: GENEVA: POLITICAL SECTION ATTN WSPO?O SERI SERIAL: MMIS09155395 PASS PASS: ATTN WIRE SELECT Approved or Release No C00212851 COPY TO fW COUN COUNTRY: BELARUS SU3J SUBJ: RED TAPE PREDICTED TO a:NCJER BALLOON DOWNING INQUIRY SOUR SOURCE: MOSCOW IZVESTIYA IN RUSSIAN 16 SEP 95 P 3 TEXT TEXT: //((REPORT BY VLADIMIR .MIKHE` EV: "BEF O.R2E TAKING OFF, A U.S. BALLOONIST SAID THIS RACE WOULD BE HIS LAST")) ((FBIS TRANSLATED EXCERPT)) FOUR DAYS ON, IT IS POSSIBLE TO FORECAST QUITE CONFIDENTLY THAT THE INVESTIGATION WHICH HAS BEGUN INTO THE DEATHS OF TWO U.S. PILOTS OF THE BALLOON DOWNED BY A BELARUSIAN AIR DEFENSE HELICOPTER TUESDAY IN THE REGION OF OSOVTSY MILITARY AIRFIELD WILL INEVITABLY CO.' UP AGAINST A MUDDLE OF PAPERS AND A BUREAUCRATIC LACK OF COORDINATION ON THE PART OF VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS. AN INVESTIGATION WILL HAVE TO BE CONDUCTED INTO WHETHER OR NOT IT WAS KNOWN IN BELARUS THAT FOREIGN BALLOONISTS MIGHT BE FLYING OVER BELARUS. IF IT WAS, WERE THOSE OFFICIALS WHO, BY VIRTUE OF THEIR JOBS, ARE MEANT TO BE INFORMED ACTUALLY NOTIFIED OF THE PROBABLE *APPEARANCE OF "UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS" IN THEIR SOVEREIGN AIRSPACE? INCIDENTALLY, THE LAST POINT COULD ALSO BE THE SUBJECT OF INVESTIGATION: IS IT DIFFICULT TO MAKE THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN A GAILY COLORED BALLOON, WITH A HEAVY BASKET, AND ANOTHER AIRCRAFT? THIS QUESTION IS APPROPRIATE, BECAUSE COLONEL LAZER, DEPUTY CO[T-LANDER OF AIR DEFENSE IN CHARGE OF FIGHTER AIRCRAFT, ORIGINALLY MAINTAINED THAT A METEOROLOGICAL OR OTHER KIND OF SONDE HAD BEEN DESTROYED BY FIRE FOR EFFECT. THERE IS ALSO CONFUSION IN THE CHRONOLOGY OF CONTACTS BETWEEN THE BELARUS IAN AUTHORITIES AND THE INTERNATIONAL AERONAUTICAL FEDERATION, WHICH IS OBLIGED TO WARN OF TRANSNATIONAL FLIGHTS BY ITS BALLOONISTS. THE FEDERATION INFORMED MINSK BACK IN MARCH OF THE LONG-DISTANCE FLIGHT COMPETITION THAT WAS BEING PREPARED, VALERIY TSYAPKALA, BELARUSIAN DE?UTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DECLARED. ANOTHER DEPUTY HEAD OF THE FOREIGN POLICY DEPARTMENT -- PETR BELYAYEV -- MAINTAINED THAT THE NAVIGATION SERVICES HAD RECEIVED NOTIFICATION IN MAY. REUTERS REPORTED THAT AN EXECUTIVE ON THE SECURITY COUNCIL -- YURIY SIVAKOV -- IN TURN RELATED THAT BACK IN JULY MINSK HAD LINKED ITS CONSENT TO THE PROVISION OF "NOTIFICATION" OF THE ESTABLISHED INTERNATIONAL KIND. ACCORDING TO SIVAKOV, HOWEVER, "WE DID NOT RECEIVE SUCH NOTIFICATION AND DID NOT GIVE TEE ORGANIZERS (OF THE COMPETITION) FORMAL PERMISSION." THIS CLAIM IS INSOLUBLY AT VARIANCE WITH THE POSITION OF THE INTERNATIONAL AERONAUTICAL FEDERATION. A SPECIAL STATEMENT PUBLISHED IN ITS NAME BY THE ORGANIZER OF THE GORDON BENNETT-95 RACE -- THE SWISS AEROCLUB -- STATES THAT IT HAD "RECEIVED ALL THE NECESSARY PERMITS TO ENTER THE AIRSPACE OF BELARUS," TO WHICH THEY HAD PASSED A PRECISE INDICATION OF THE ROUTE. STRICTLY SPEAKING, IT IS NOT EASY TO PREDICT WHERE THE PREVAILING WINDS WILL BLOW BALLOONS. THE GERMANS, FOR EXAMPLE, WHO WON THE RACE, LANDED IN LATVIA BECAUSE THEY STAYED IN THE AIR FOR 92 HOURS. THE AUSTRIANS FLEW ON TO UKRAINE. ANOTHER THREE U.S. CREWS FOUND THEMSELVES INSIDE BELARUS, AND TWO OF THEM LANDED SAFELY ON TERRA FIRMA THEMSELVES. LANCES ARE ALREADY BEING BROKEN OVER WHETHER THE CASUALTIES COULD PAVE HAD TIME TO TRANSMIT THEIR IDENTIFICATION SIGNALS. THEY HAD AT THEIR DISPOSAL INSTRUMENTS ENABLING THEM TO FIX THEIR LOCATION AND TO MAINTAIN COMMUNICATION WITH AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS. IN PARTICULAR, THEY HAD MULTICHANNEL RADIO TRANSMITTERS AND A SYSTEM OF SOLAR BATTERIES FOR THEM. THIS WOULD SEEM TO SWEEP ASIDE THE VERSION PUT FORWARD BY RUTH LUDWIG OF THE BALLOON FEDERATION OF AMERICA. WHO ASSU?ED? SO A? RrPORTFD_ lr-1AT Tf s`;:a urrnvcr ours-a 000212851 SUPPLY HAD CO,-fE TO AN END -- THE BATTERIES WERE FLAT. ((PASSAGE OMITTED)) THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT HAS VOICED SEVERE DISSATISFACTION WITH THE FACT THAT MINSK'KEPT QUIET ABOUT THE INCIDENT FOR 24 HOURS AND THEN CONFINED ITSELF TO AN EXPRESSION OF REGRET, WITHOUT EXPRESSING REPENTANCE OR MAKING A FORMAL APOLOGY. AS STATE DEPARTMNT SPOKESMAN MIKE MCCURRY FORMULATED WASHINGTON'S POSITION, "WE POSSESS INDIRECT EVIDENCE WHICH MIGHT ENA3LE US TO MAKE THE ASSUMPTION THAT THIS TRAGIC MISTAKE NEED NOT HAVE HAPPENED." WHETHER OR NOT THIS IS SO HAS TO BE ASCERTAINED IN THE COURSE OF THE INVESTIGATION. THIS REPORT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS. (ENDALL) 16 SEP 18/1557Z SEP .46 BT 01929