Page Sixteen
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
WednesdovyMay 4. 197
Weapons purchase OK'dr
WASHINGTON A -- The Sen-
ate Armed Services Committee
approved yesterday a $35.89 bil-
lion weapons procurement and
reaearch authorization bill, $127
million more than recommended
by President Carter.
Chairman John Stennis (D-
Miss.) announced, however, that
a proposed year end reduction
of 17,100 military personnel and
19,000 civilian employes in the
Defense Department would cut
TOmERS
the total $42.3 billidion defense
budget proposed by President
Carter by $59 million.
THE COMMITTEE added $923
million to the $5.8 billion re-
quested for procurement of
Navy ships.
The addition included $81.6
million for procurement of nu-
clear propulsion items for a
fourth Nimitz class, 90,000-tone
nuclear carrier pending future
determination whether to pro-
ceed with more large carriers
or develop a greater number of
smaller carriers.
The committee proposed, sub-
ject to concurrence by both the
House and Senate, that the sec-
retary of defense be directed to
evaluate the costs and effec-
tiveness of aircraft carriers of
various sizes and type6 and re-
port back to Congress by Feb.
1. 1978 for authorization of the
selected mix next year.
THE $81.6 MILLION for nu-
clear items for another Nimitz
class carrier was designed to
preserve the option of )roceed-
ing with another large nuclear
carrier, but Stennis said it was
not to be regarded as a final
committee decision in favor of
building another ship of this
class.
For ships, the committee rec-
ommended authorization of the
construction of two Trident sub-
marines and an attack subma-
rine, a conventional destroyer
to carrier the Aegis air defense
system, two other destroyers,
eight guided missile frigates,
two fleet oilers and three ocean
tugs.
The committee proposed a
compromise, Stennis said, on
the Navy's proposed submarine
communications project known
as Seafarer, allowing $20.1 mil-
lion for development of a pro-
ject requiring less land. Stennis
said the- proposed full-scale
funding was cut by $3.6 million
on. grounds that the National
Academy of Science has not yet
determined environmental ques-
tions and the Defense Depart-
ment has not finally chosen a
site.
THE NAVY HAS proposed an
underground antenna system for
"This is the only light
the brigae would charge fony"
- (Tennyson)
Seafarer covering approximate-
ly 4,000 square miles on the
Upper Peninsula of Michigan
where it has been opposed by
local residents in a referendum.
The Senate committee also
denied funding for flight testing
of a proposed close air support
plane, the Enforcer, as re-
quested by its designer, David
Lindsay Jr., who is also a Sara-
sota, Fla., newspaper publisher.
Acquisition of the airplane,
adapted initially from the World
War Ii Mustang, is opposed by
the Air Force as unneeded.
The committee reduced the
Navy request for the F14 tac-
tica laircraft from 44 to 36, and
added $91.4 million for procuree-
ment of A7E aircraft.
FULL FUNDING requested by
the Carter administration for
five B bombers, _two Trident
submarines, and research and
development of the XM1 tank
was approved.
The Army request for 859 M60
tanks was reduced to 210 tanks.
The committee added $5.25
million to the $90 million re-
quested in the Carter budget for
civil defense.
THE HOUSE, in passing a
$35.9 billion procurement auth-
orization bill last week, added
$44 million for civil defense. The
House-passed bill totals $60.8
million more than the Carer
budget for military procurement
and research and development.
In approving an active duty
military strength of 2,071,000, a
reduction of 17,100 ty Sept. 30,
1978 the committee included
language requiring an overall
reduction in the number of gen-
erals and admirals by four per
cent a year for the next two
years. This would require a two-
year cut of about 88 tag rank
officers on active duty.
The committee also inc ded
language requiring a six per
cent cut over the next two years
in the number of high level ci-
vilians in civil service grades
12 through 18.
In other actions the con-nit-
tee approved the procurement
of additional Minuteman III in-
tercontinental ballistic misiles
in fiscal 1977 to keep the po
daution line open, added $78
milion to the fiscl 1978 bll for
procurement of 365 non-nuclear
tance missiles. and added $35 3
Sitn O forH aiek missile ground
ittr- ccequipment
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