Fuselage of spy
plane will arrive at
Hickam today
on Russian craft

The cargo plane and crew
of 13 left China last night
and will be here about six hours

---

By Gregg K. Kakesako
gkakesako@starbulletin.com

The fuselage of the downed EP-3 surveillance plane was to arrive at Hickam Air Force base this afternoon on its final leg of a mission that began three months ago off southern China's Hainan Island.

The plane was packed into a Russian-made AN-124 cargo plane with a Russian crew of 13, according to Cmdr. John Fleming, spokesman for the Pacific Command.

He said the Russian cargo plane left China last night and made a brief stop to take on more fuel in the Philippines today. It was expected to arrive at Hickam at 5:30 this afternoon and remain here for several hours to give its crew a rest before a scheduled departure around midnight.

It's final destination is Dobbins Air Force in Marietta, Ga. The Navy has said it hopes to have the EP-3E put back together at Lockheed Martin's aircraft plant in Marietta and returned to service.

A Lockheed Martin team arrived on Hainan on June 15 to begin the dismantling project. It removed the plane's wings, all four engines, its landing gear, radar dome, tail section and other parts.

Other parts of the dismantled aircraft were flown aboard a Russian-designed cargo plane Sunday to Kadena Air Base on Okinawa.

The United States had wanted to fly the EP-3 after it was forced down on Hainan on April 1 after a collision with a Chinese fighter, but China refused.

The collision killed the Chinese pilot and forced the EP-3 to land on Hainan where its crew was detained for 11 days. Although President Bush said the United States was "very sorry" for the incident, the United States refused to accept blame.

Vice President Dick Cheney said "the jury's out" on whether the United States and China can forge stronger bonds.

"We're not enemies at this point, probably not friends either," Cheney said in a telephone interview with WHAM, an all-news radio station in Rochester, N.Y.

He said the two countries share common interests, including maintaining peace in Asia.