Navy issues checks, prepares to fix damage from sonic booms

Friday, Feb. 7, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Monday's deafening roar shattered windows and cracked walls in the isolated community in north-central Nevada that sits on the outskirts of the supersonic area of the Fallon Naval Air Station.

Pilots from the Navy's esteemed Top Gun fighter-pilot school were participating in an instructor's refresher course when the incident occurred, the Navy said.

The pilots were flying F-A 18 Hornet jets from the station's Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center.

Anne McMillin, base spokeswoman, said Navy legal claims representatives, investigators and civil engineers met with about 20 Austin residents on Wednesday to arrange repairs.

Most people opted to have the Navy fix their broken windows. A contractor hired by the Navy took measurements on Thursday and work will begin soon, McMillin said. Eight other residents were given checks to arrange repairs on their own.

McMillin said engineers continue to review statements and photographs to determine what structural damage is attributable to the sonic booms. In some cases, Navy Seabees will mend cracked walls and make similar repairs as early as next week.

Residents have two years to file claims with the Navy over the incident.

Besides fixing the damage, the Navy also is changing training rules to try to prevent future sonic boom damage.

Lt. Greg Hicks, spokesman for the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center, said pilots were told to restrict supersonic maneuverings to the middle of the Navy's approved area and away from the border regions.

"We basically told them, 'Let's keep it toward the middle of the court instead of along the edges,"' Hicks said.

The new restrictions will take effect on Monday.