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Assembling Bombs at an Air Base

Aired April 03, 2003 - 15:35   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Walter Rodgers is with an advanced U.S. Army unit not far from Baghdad, and he is reporting right now that most of the air support is coming from fighter jets, not helicopters. Our Gary Tuchman is at one of those air bases where those close support missions originate -- Gary.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And, Wolf, we've been talking to pilots here all day, and they do, indeed, tell us almost all of them are flying to the Baghdad area throughout the day today and throughout the evening tonight. The last time we talked to you and Judy, Wolf, we told you we had to evacuate this area near the tarmac, near the A-10 attack planes that go a mile away because a 500- pound bomb accidentally fell off a trolley.

They call it a jammer. It's what they bring out of the planes to load the bombs. It was a precaution. Nothing happened, everything now is safe.

It's very unusual they tell us that a bomb would fall off the trolly before it gets on the plane, but everything is safe and nothing happened. The bomb will actually be loaded on an A-10 plane later.

We do want to tell you that munitions experts at this base right near the Iraqi border tell us during the 15 days of this air war about 8,000 bombs and missiles have been fired upon Iraq. From this base alone, 1,800 bombs and missiles. That's about 22 percent of the total. That gives you an idea of just how large this particular base is.

Now almost all of America's bombs are made at the Army Ammunition Plant. That's in McAllister, Oklahoma. But when they come to various bases, the finishes touches have to be put upon them. Now at this particular base, the finishing touches are done in a place called the bomb dump.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TUCHMAN: The bombs you see here are made in the United States; specifically, the Army Ammunition Plant in McAllister, Oklahoma. But they come to the Persian Gulf disassembled, and this is where they assemble them. These are GBUU-10s. These are 2,000-pound bombs that are used on the F-16 aircraft that are at this base near the Iraqi border.

With us is Sergeant Bill Seefman (ph). Sergeant Seefman (ph), tell us a little bit about these bombs. SGT. BILL SEEFMAN: These are GBU-10 versions. These are mark (ph) 84 bombs. They're 2,000 pounds; 945 pounds of explosive weight in them.

TUCHMAN: So the explosives are like half the weight of the bomb.

SEEFMAN: Correct.

TUCHMAN: OK. Now tell us, for example, this woman right here, what is she doing?

SEEFMAN: They're installing the fuse assembly. That's a FMU-139 (ph) electrical fuse. And that's a Fuzzy 49 (ph) which provides electrical power during the fall (ph).

TUCHMAN: So what are you actually assembling here?

SEEFMAN: We actually assemble the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) groups guidance collar on the front of the bomb, with the fusing inside.

TUCHMAN: How dangerous is this work?

SEEFMAN: It's very safe. They put a lot of safety into the design of the munitions assets. So there's a lot of safety factors designed into the fuse, so it has to go through several stages before it will actually detonate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TUCHMAN: There are certainly other jobs that are safer, but I think he's speaking in relative terms. Now we can tell you there's one more step to take. When they bring the bombs out to the planes behind us, they put on the laser-guided collars and fins. Those turn those bombs into smart bombs. Authorities are telling us from the Air Force that every single bomb they've dropped over Baghdad or populated areas have been the so-called smart bombs.

Judy, back to you.

JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Gary, very much for that report from that air base very close to Iraq.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired April 3, 2003 - 15:35   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Walter Rodgers is with an advanced U.S. Army unit not far from Baghdad, and he is reporting right now that most of the air support is coming from fighter jets, not helicopters. Our Gary Tuchman is at one of those air bases where those close support missions originate -- Gary.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And, Wolf, we've been talking to pilots here all day, and they do, indeed, tell us almost all of them are flying to the Baghdad area throughout the day today and throughout the evening tonight. The last time we talked to you and Judy, Wolf, we told you we had to evacuate this area near the tarmac, near the A-10 attack planes that go a mile away because a 500- pound bomb accidentally fell off a trolley.

They call it a jammer. It's what they bring out of the planes to load the bombs. It was a precaution. Nothing happened, everything now is safe.

It's very unusual they tell us that a bomb would fall off the trolly before it gets on the plane, but everything is safe and nothing happened. The bomb will actually be loaded on an A-10 plane later.

We do want to tell you that munitions experts at this base right near the Iraqi border tell us during the 15 days of this air war about 8,000 bombs and missiles have been fired upon Iraq. From this base alone, 1,800 bombs and missiles. That's about 22 percent of the total. That gives you an idea of just how large this particular base is.

Now almost all of America's bombs are made at the Army Ammunition Plant. That's in McAllister, Oklahoma. But when they come to various bases, the finishes touches have to be put upon them. Now at this particular base, the finishing touches are done in a place called the bomb dump.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TUCHMAN: The bombs you see here are made in the United States; specifically, the Army Ammunition Plant in McAllister, Oklahoma. But they come to the Persian Gulf disassembled, and this is where they assemble them. These are GBUU-10s. These are 2,000-pound bombs that are used on the F-16 aircraft that are at this base near the Iraqi border.

With us is Sergeant Bill Seefman (ph). Sergeant Seefman (ph), tell us a little bit about these bombs. SGT. BILL SEEFMAN: These are GBU-10 versions. These are mark (ph) 84 bombs. They're 2,000 pounds; 945 pounds of explosive weight in them.

TUCHMAN: So the explosives are like half the weight of the bomb.

SEEFMAN: Correct.

TUCHMAN: OK. Now tell us, for example, this woman right here, what is she doing?

SEEFMAN: They're installing the fuse assembly. That's a FMU-139 (ph) electrical fuse. And that's a Fuzzy 49 (ph) which provides electrical power during the fall (ph).

TUCHMAN: So what are you actually assembling here?

SEEFMAN: We actually assemble the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) groups guidance collar on the front of the bomb, with the fusing inside.

TUCHMAN: How dangerous is this work?

SEEFMAN: It's very safe. They put a lot of safety into the design of the munitions assets. So there's a lot of safety factors designed into the fuse, so it has to go through several stages before it will actually detonate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TUCHMAN: There are certainly other jobs that are safer, but I think he's speaking in relative terms. Now we can tell you there's one more step to take. When they bring the bombs out to the planes behind us, they put on the laser-guided collars and fins. Those turn those bombs into smart bombs. Authorities are telling us from the Air Force that every single bomb they've dropped over Baghdad or populated areas have been the so-called smart bombs.

Judy, back to you.

JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Gary, very much for that report from that air base very close to Iraq.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com