Page 4-Thursday. May 13, 1982-The Michigan Daily
Two Argentine
planes downed
in Falkiands
By The Associated Press
Argentine warplanes made a series of
attacks on British ships near the
Falkland Islands yesterday and a
destroyer shot down two of them about
three miles from the disputed island
chain, the British Defense Ministry an-
nounced. It reported no damage to the
fleet.
A British Sea King helicopter ditched
in the sea near the Ialklands, but its
four-man crew was rescued by two
other Sea Kings, ministry spokesman
Ian McDonald said. There was "no
evidence" Argentine military action
caused the ditching, he said.
HE DID NOT say how many times
Argentine planes attacked. There was
no immediate comment from Argen-
tina on the reported attacks or the loss
of the Sea King.
Britain claimed after the Falkland
Sound encounter that its battle fleet had
a stranglehold on the Falklands, 250
miles eastof the Argentine coast.
Britain claimed it has isolated the
estimated 9,000 Argentine troops oc-
cupying the islands since April 2, and
said that 3,000 British soldiers who left
Southampton yesterday aboard the
requisitioned luxury liner Queen
t P
Luxury itnE
troops to F4
SOUTHAMPTON, England (AP)-
From the rails of the Queen Elizabeth 2,
where untold thousands of well-heeled
vacationers have bade farewell,
soldiers in battle gear waved goodbye
to girlfriends and families yesterday as
the famous 'luxury liner headed for the
Falklands Islands war zone.
To Prime Minister Margaret That-
cher, one of the soldiers' banners said:
"All Our Luv to Maggie, Thanks for the
Cruise."
THE 67,000-TON cruise ship slipped
away from its dock with the help of a
half-dozen tugs and the encouragement
of dozens of small pleasure craft, whose
tenor horns answered the basso of the
QE2's foghorn.
The troops cheered, alternating with
thousands of shouting well-wishers at
dockside. As a band played Auld Lang
Elizabeth 2 would arrive in several
weeks to bolster the armada.
WELL-INFORMED sources in London
said British defense chiefs fear Argen-
tina's three submarines are prowling
the Falkland Islands war zone to sink
British troop and supply ships, and that
British warships and spyplanes have
been deployed to hunt the Argentine
Argentina said Tuesday it would at-
tack any British ship or plane in the
South Atlantic heading to the Falklan-
ds.
The Defense Ministry statement was
the first report of an Argentine air at-
tack on the British fleet since May 4.
The ministry in London said the planes
apparently flew from the Argentine
mainland and attacked through thick
cloud cover.
' IT WAS THE first fighting reported
since Tuesday morning, when a British
ship attacked an Argentine vessel in the
channel between the two main islands.
McDonald said two A-4 Skyhawk
fighter-bombers were shot down by fire
from the warship, but a third Skyhawk
escaped. He said "further Argentine
sorties were made" but "no more
Argentine aircraft were shot down."
?Pr carries
rilklands
Syne, hundreds of Union Jacks flut-
tered and snapped in a stiff onshorea
breeze.
"It's very emotional," said Stephanie
Foxley, 20, who came to wave goodbye
to her husband, David, a 27-year-old
Royal Engineers captain from Maid-
stone, Kent. They've been married nine
months.
"I TOLD HIM to be careful, don't do
anything silly," she said. "But he has to
go and we're all behind him."
Since the QE2 was requisitioned one
week ago, the vessel has undergone a
remarkable transformation at the
Southampton docks.
Its two outdoor swimming pools have
been spanned by a helicopter pad, its
miles of plush carpeting are covered by
hardboard, and its elegant furniture
and appointments were removed in
favor of camp beds and field packs.
In Brief
Compiled from Associated Press and
United Press International reports
Guerrillas seize embassy
GUATEMALA CITY- Leftist guerrillas yesterday seized the Brazilian
embassy, holding the ambassador and six others hostage and warning police
to stay clear of the mission, authorities said.
Police said members of the Jan. 31 Popular Front broke into the building
and grabbed Ambassador Antonio Carlos de Silva and six other unidentified
hostages. They said the guerrillas warned, "We don't want police to get
near."
The Popular Front was formed after a group of Indian peasants occupied
the Spanish embassy in Guatamala City on Jan. 31, 1980.
Police stormed the mission during that seizure and one of the peasants set
off a firebomb, engulfing the embassy in flames thatkilled 39 people.
The ambassador-and one Indian survived the fire, but gunmen later kid-
napped the peasant from a hospital and killed him. Spain immediately broke
relations with Guatemala.
Tornadoes rip through West
Dozens of twisters tore through "Tornado Alley," leaving more than $200
million in damage at an Air Force base and crushing homes and businesses
yesterday in scattered communities from Texas to Nebraska.
At least seven deaths were blamed on the storms in the plains Tuesday and
yesterday. Scores were injured.
Violent thunderstorms churning through the region unleashed drenching
rain that caused flash floods in some areas and dropped hail as big as tennis
balls.
The deaths included four people aboard a light plane that crashed in a
storm before dawn in a cotton field near Idalou, Texas. Authorities say the
plane may have flown into a tornado.
Financier eludes U.S. officials
COSTA RICA- Costa Rican authorities yesterday arrested fugitive U.S.
financier Robert Vesco but freed him in less than a hour; a government
spokesman said.
Vesco flew off in his private plane but his destination was not known.
Costa Rican officials said the millionaire American headed for Managua,
Nicaragua, but Nicaraguan authorities at Managua airport said he did not
arrive.
Vesco, 46, sought for 11 years in a $200 million investment scandal and on
charges. of making an illegal $200,000 contribution to former President
Richard Nixon's 1972 campaign chest, thus escaped U.S. authorities one
more time.
Vesco has a large ranch in a remote region of Costa Rica near the
Nicaraguan border that has a landing strip, but it was not known if he went
there.
Vesco was seized by Costa Rican police in the northeastern city of Liberia
as he landed in his private plane on a flight from Nicaragua, the government
spokesman said.
Reagan meets Brazilian leader
WASHINGTON- President Reagan and Brazilian President Joao
Figueiredo, each backing different sides in the Falkland Islands, called
yesterday for a mediated settlement of the dispute between Argentina and
Britain.
"There would be neither victors nor defeated on either side," Figueiredo
was quoted as telling Reagan when the two discussed the crisis following
White House welcoming ceremonies for the Brazilian leader.
Figueiredo, who is cutting short his U.S. trip by a day and curtailing his
social calendar because of the dispute, said he hoped for a solution in which
"the honorable and just requirements for both sides could be met," accor-
ding to a senior American official.
The official, while refusing to go into the details of the discussion between
the two leaders, said there was no talk of the fact that Brazil backs Argen-
tina and the United States supports Britain.
He said Gigueiredo and Reagan were "very concerned for the immediate
re-establishment of peace," and expressed support for the mediation efforts
of United Nations Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar.
Braniff Airways suspends flights
DALLAS - Branif International suspended all domestic and foreign
flights yesterday afternoon, Braniff vice president Sam Coats said, apparen-
tly because of the carrier's financial difficulties.
Coats declined to say why the debt-plagued airline was shutting down its
operations. He said all personnel who have not been told otherwise should
not report to work today.
An emergency meeting of the airline's board of directors was scheduled.
Braniff executives with throughout the day.
"This afternoon, Braniff Airways began suspending all flying operations.
domestic and foreign. We sincerely regret the inconvenience that this
suspension of service is causing to our customers," Coats said.
Braniff lost $160.1 million last year and $41.4 million in the first three mon-
ths of this year. In the last threg years Braniff has posted net losses of $336 .4
Million.
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