American Notes THE NAVY

When the Navy claimed that the 1989 gun-turret explosion that killed 47 sailors on the battleship U.S.S. Iowa was "most probably" caused by sabotage, its investigation was widely criticized as sloppy and its conclusion as unjustified. Last week testimony by the General Accounting Office gave the critics strong support. The GAO found that the disaster may not have been triggered by a crewman, Gunner's Mate Clayton Hartwig, as the Navy hypothesized.

In tests conducted at Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, the GAO discovered that the 94-lb. powder bags used in the Iowa's 16-in. guns could ignite if rammed into the breech at high speed. More significantly, traces of calcium and chlorine found in the cannon did not prove that the blast had been set off by a saboteur's detonator; similar residues were detected in the gun turrets on two other battleships. After confirming the GAO tests, the Navy suspended live cannon fire on all four of its battleships and reopened its investigation of the Iowa tragedy. Physical evidence showed that the powder bags were rammed into the gun at the normal, slow speed. More tests will be conducted to try to resolve the discrepancy.