U.S. BOMBER FIRED ON

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 70, Issue 151, 12 April 1950, Page 5

U.S. BOMBER FIRED ON

PROTEST BY RUSSIA MACHINE MISSING (N.Z.P.A.— Copyright) (Rec. 10.20 a.m.) LONDON, April 11. The Russians announced to-day that a Red Air Force fighter had fired on- a United States bomber which had penetrated Soviet territory. The Russians said that the bomber had fired first United States Air Force headquarters at Wiesbaden said to-night that the plane might be missing. It is an American naval patrol bomber, with a crew of 10, for which American aircraft have been searching for three days. The missing aircraft was on a training flight from Wiesbaden to Copenhagen. It was not armed. News of the. incident was contained in a Tass Soviet News Agency message picked up in London to-day, which stated that Russia had sent a protest to the United States, alleging A that. American aircraft flew over Russian territory near Libav, ill Latvia, on the Baltic, on Saturday. Soviet fighters took off and demanded that the American plane land. It did not comply with the demand, but opened fir© on the Soviet'machines.

Tass said a Russian fighjter was forced to open fire in return, after which the American aircraft turned toward the sea and disappeared. The Tass message said the American plane was a Flying Fortress, and had penetrated Soviet territory to a distance of 13 miles. The News Agency added that the Soviet Foreign Minister, M. Andrei Vyshinsky, to-day received the United States Ambassador in Moscow, Mr Alan Kirk, and presented a Note ol protest. In Washington the State Department said the protest had been received, dhi had not been made public yet. Observers in Washington said- the t Tass version that the incident occurred in Latvia immediately raised a legal question concerning the status of Latvia. They added that the Soviet Union occupied Latvia in 1940 and incorporated the country : into Soviet territory, but Latvia had never been recognised by the United States as Sovipt fprritorv The United States State Department spokesman said the State Department, the Defence Department and the Air Force had ordered an immediate inquiry into the alleged incident. The Air Force announced to-day that the only American plane which had been in the Baltic area on April 8 was a missing navy aircraft, which carried a crew of 10. The plane was an unarmed four-engine Privateer single-tail version of the wartime 824, which might have been-mistaken for a Super-Fortress. Navy officials said that navy patrol planes had strict instructions to stay at least 20 miles from Russian tern-, torial boundaries, and to operate with-, out arms when flying near Soviet areas. . \ '