Inside Report (2)

The Navy's F/A-18 Hornet fighter has made its first kill, according to Rep. Bruce Vento (D) of Minnesota. "Unfortunately," he says, "it downed one of our own planes."

Vento claims that on Sept. 30, over the Chesapeake Bay, an F/A-18 accidentally dropped its bomb rack onto a TA-4 Skyhawk that was filming it, shearing off the latter's wing and forcing its pilot and cameraman to bail out. They Navy, admitting the crash, insists that the F/A-18 intentionally jettisoned its bomb rack during an exercise.

"Nonsense," replies a spokesman for Vento. Adds the congressman: "With planes like the F/A-18 defending us, who needs enemies?"m