Brown Crash Punishments

August 7, 1996

THE DAILY FED

Brown Crash Punishments

Air Force Gen. Michael Ryan, commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), announced today that 16 Air Force officers had received punishments ranging from reprimands under the Uniform Code of Military Justice to orders to receive counseling in connection with the crash of a CT-43 aircraft near Dubrovnik, Croatia, that killed Commerce Secretary Ron Brown and 34 others in April.

The most serious punishments went to Brig. Gen. William E. Stevens, the commander of the 86th Airlift Wing at Ramstein Air Base, Germany (where the plane carrying Brown was based), and Col. John E. Mazurowski, commander of the of the wing's operations group.

Stevens, according to the Air Force, was reprimanded for "dereliction of duty for negligently failing to ensure" that non-DoD approved procedures were not being used by aircrews without approval from USAFE. Mazurowski was reprimanded for "dereliction of duty for willfully failing to ensure" that the procedures were not being used.

The actions are said to be career-ending, although Air Force officials said no criminal action was planned against the two officers.

Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Cliver, the former director of operations for USAFE, was also reprimanded for "failing to exercise effective oversight of Air Force flight directives." Col. Roger W. Hansen, the former vice commander of the 86th Airlift Wing, received a letter of reprimand for failing to take appropriate measures to ensure the wing complied with regulations regarding non-Dod approved procedures.