TRAGEDY IN PERU

The downing of a missionary plane raises questions that must be answered

Although all of the facts are far from known, it is becoming increasingly
clear that the U.S. had little control over the events that led to the
tragic downing of a missionary plane over Peru's Amazon, killing a young
mother and her newly adopted child. But the lack of control should not be
viewed as absolution for U.S. authorities. To the contrary, it is reason to
closely examine our relationship with the Peruvian armed forces, and to
make changes that will guard against similar tragedies in the future.

The missionary plane was shot down by a Peruvian Air Force fighter jet on
patrol for suspected drug couriers. Whether the fighter pilot attempted to
identify the aircraft by making radio contact is far from clear. According
to early reports, the pilot insisted that he received no response after
repeated messages to the missionary plane. But the pilot of the missionary
plane, who was wounded, has a different account, including being fired on
after the plane had crash landed.

The details of what actually happened may well be resolved once U.S.
officials release tapes of the encounter. But already there are signs that
the Peruvian pilot might have been trigger happy. Preliminary reports
indicate that he had flown close enough to the small plane to read its tail
number. That is a key step in a long list of procedures designed to ensure
accurate identification before aggressive pursuit. But it appears that the
pilot did not check the tail number with Peruvian ground officials. Had he
done so, the incident might well have been avoided after ground officials
ascertained that the small craft belonged to a missionary organization.

The air patrols are part of a program operated by the Pentagon, private
contractors, the U.S. Embassy in Peru, the CIA and the Peruvian government.
At the time of the encounter, a U.S. surveillance plane also was tracking
the missionary aircraft, and CIA contract personnel on board had urged the
Peruvian pilot to obtain the small aircraft's tail number. The partnership
between American and Peruvian tracking crews is governed by strict
procedures, which include firing warning shots before taking aim. But it is
apparent that stricter adherence to these procedures is needed.

Since 1995, more than 30 planes have been shot at, strafed or forced to
land. How well procedures were followed in these encounters is anyone's
guess. At the moment, though, it appears that a "top gun'' culture thrives
among Peru's Air Force pilots. If that proves to be the case, then the U.S.
must exert more control over these flights, or end the partnership. Two
innocent lives lost is two too many.