The Nation - News from Nov. 29, 1988

Flawed parts may have been used in the B-1 bomber and may have contributed to crashes of some of the aircraft, employees at the Rockwell International plant in Columbus, Ohio, said in a broadcast report. WBNS-TV reported that the workers alleged substandard parts disappeared after having been rejected. The workers said they believed the parts were used in building the bomber to keep production on schedule. Tod Sumner, identified as a B-1 inspection manager, said he was told he would be fired if he did not reduce the number of finished parts stored for inspection. Four B-1B bombers have crashed in the four years since the long-range bomber began flying. A spokesman for North American Aircraft, the Rockwell unit that operated the Columbus plant, said Rockwell had investigated similar claims before and found no bad parts had been used.