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The Fresno Bee

FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, Monday Morning, December 5, 1977
SOUTH
VALLEY

Monday Hijacked Plane Crashes; 107 Die

Fog Ultimatum
Pixley parents have drafted
sn ultimatum fo Tularc Joint
Union High School District offi-
cials threatening a student boy-
cott of classes beginning Mon-
day if a foggy-doy bus schedule
is not adopted. The ultimatum
was sparked by the Friday
school bus accident in which 46
students — most of them from
Pixley — were injured. Page Cl.
New Column
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia
(UPI) - A Malaysian Airline jetliner
which had been hijacked by an unde-
termined number of gunmen crashed
into the swampy tidclaads of south-
ern Malaysia Sunday, killing all 107
persons aboard, airline officials said.
It was believed to be the first crash
of a hijacked airliner.
Dato Sulaiman Sujak, deputy
chairman of the airline, said there
was no doubt the Boeing 737 had been
hijacked before the crash but said he
did not know how many hijacker!!
were involved or who they were. He
said all aboard died.
Sujak said the plane tried to land
at Kuala Lumpur against the orders
of the hijacker but swerved off after
shooting was heard aboard the plane
on radios in communication with the
aircraft.
It flew on as ordered toward Sin-
gapore, crashing minutes before
landing there, he said.
Sujak declined comment on re-
ports from other airline sources that
conversations from the plane had
identified the hijacking as a Japa-
nese Red Army operation.
At Kuala Lumpur, home base for
the downed Boeing 737, airport sourc-
es who indicated they had access to
radio conversations between the air-
craft and control tower said the
Japanese Red Army was responsible
for the hijacking. The twin engine jet
was carrying 93 passengers and a
crew of seven on a flight from Pe-
nang, a resort city 500 miles north of
Singapore, to Singapore via the Ma-
laysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.
Airline sources said most passen-
gers were residents of either Malay-
sia or Singapore but about 20 were
CMno-
/KAIAYS/A from other areas. The route is s
popular one for foreign tourists.
'Kuala Lumpur Airport sources said the plane,
flight 653, was hijacked about 8 p.m.
(4 a.m. PST), roughly 45 minutes
after takeoff.
A Malaysian Department of Avia-
tion source said the pilot managed to
alert control towers of the takeover
by getting in one word, "hijackers",
at the end of a radio message.
Other airport sources indicated
there were later, additional exchang-
es of conversation between the plane
and ground that gave more informa-
INDONESIA tion.
The airport sources said the pilot,
Capt. G.K. Ganjoor, an Indian citi-
zen, and the Kuala Lumpur control
tower unsuccessfully tried to per-
suade the hijacker or hijackers there
was insufficient fuel to reach Singa-
pore.
The plane was then cleared to land
at Singapore's Seletar Air Base, an
auxiliary airport near the city but
away from the international airport's
runways.
It was lost from Singapore Airport
radar screens six minutes after it
was rilip In havp landpd
The wreckage was spotted at
Kampung Tanjung Kupang, 44 miles
west of Johore Bahru, capital of the
state of Johore.
The airline sent two planeloads of
officials and rescue workers to the
SM M Crash, Bode Poo*

"Politics Today," a column by
two of the top political reporters
in Washington, Jack W. Ger-
mond and Jules Witcover, will
appear periodically on The Bee's
editorial page, starting today.
Page AM.
Biting Back
Supermarkets, which have
been losing ground to the fast
food chains in the bottle for the
consumer's food dollar, are
launching a counter-Big Mac
attack. Their campaign includes
stepped-up promotion of quick-
ly-prepared, store-bought meals
and the opening of supermarket
snack bars. Page C14.
How Sweet It Was
It was sweet while it lasted,
but Colonel the Elephant's free-
dom in a Florida swamp ended
Sunday. He was spotted by a
search plane and captured for
return to the circus. Page Cl 3.
New In Sports
The Sporting life, a new car-
toon spoofing the world of
sports, will run six days a week
in The Bee sports section, start-
ing today on Page B6. Watch
every day except Saturdays for
this rib-tickler by Ben Templeton
and Tom Forman.
Rift Ends
Carter Sees So//d Basis For Progress
Libyan
Summit
By EDWARD CODY
TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — An
Arab summit conference opposed to
Egyptian peace moves toward Israel
ended early Monday with Iraq walk-
ing out in anger.
Four countries and the Palestinian
guerrillas agreed to form a military
ind political front to isolate Egyptian
^'resident Anwar Sadat and vowed to
move the seat of the Arab League
rom Cairo, a conference spokesman
said.
But the Iraqi walkout weakened
lie united effort the anti-Sadat Arabs
had sought to achieve.
"The Iraqis came to make sabo-
age," said Zohair Mohsen, head of
the Syrian-sponsored Saiqa guerrilla
;roup. "They are pro-Sadat."
After five hours of tense negotia-
:ions that ended at 2.30 a.m., the
leaders of Syria, Algeria, South
Yemen and Libya agreed to form the
front along with the Palestine Libera-
tion Organization.
The head of the Iraqi delegation,
council member Tahar Gezrawi,
marched grim-faced from the Libyan
People's Palace and drove away af-
ter refusing to join the front.
Iraqi officials declined any com-
ment. There appeared to be little
chance that they would change their
mind after more than 23 hours of
formal negotiations and many infor-
mal discussions over the past four
days.
Without Iraq the front lost much of
its military significance. Only Syria
among the front members has a
large enough army to be a threat in
an Arab confrontation with Israel.
A Palestinian official said Iraqi
objections first centered on a demand
that the front reject U.N. resolutions
242 and 338. These form the basis for
U.S.-led efforts to revive the Geneva
peace conference that has been in
recess since December 1973.
This proposal, strongly opposed by
President Hafez Assad of Syria, was
dropped after a Sunday morning tele-
Miners Begin Walkout
phone conversation between Gezrawi
'Long Trial Period'
After US Ordeal
By JAMES RESTON
N.Y. Times News Service
WASHINGTON — President Carter is
coming down to the end of 1977 in a philo-
sophic mood — surprised by the endless
complexities of foreign and domestic affairs,
disappointed by the opposition to many of his
national programs, but confident that he has
established a solid foundation for substantial
progress at home and abroad in 1978.
In an interview with The New York Times
in the Oval Office, he talked about Congress,
the press, the influence of religion on history,
the element of luck in politics, his decline in
the popularity polls, and why even his most
loyal supporters seem vaguely puzzled and
troubled by his leadership at the end of the
year.
Looking back on 1977, he said, there was
obviously a problem. "This country has been
through such an ordeal in the last five or 10
years," he said, that it is still in a healing
stage — Vietnam, CIA, Watergate. It really
shook the American people and their confi-
dence in government. I don't think there will
be a complete restoration of their confidence
President and Mrs. Carter hold hands as they leave church on Sunday.
until proof is not only completed but extended
over a period of time. And I am trying to do have aged any more than he has.
in his predictions for 1978 about the homef-
the best I can to restore that confidence... ront. "We will have completed the work, I Carter was asked to explain the paradox
"I think we just have to go through a long that even the people who voted for him seem
believe, on an energy package. We will have
trial period in the minds of the American good progress made on welfare reform. We vaguely puzzled by his leadership at the end
people before they can accept the fact that of the year: no great hostility in the country,
will have the business community with a
they can trust the American government
much clearer concept of what our economic but no great enthusiasm either. This was
again. goals are. We will have continued good prog- clearly not his favorite subject, but he re-
The president, who looked a little weary ress in recovery from the 1974-75 recession." plied, as if the question really didn't have
but sounded confident, also made these "Our economic growth won't be at quite as much to do with him personally, and also as
points: high a rate as we have now, but it will be one if maybe no great hostility and no great en-
- Foreign Affairs: He said he expected of the best in the world. So I have a good feel- thusiasm might be precisely what the coun-
real progress in 1978. "I think we will have a try needed after all the presidential hoopla of
ing about 1978."
SALT II agreement. I think we will have a recent years.
- Personal Affairs: "I feel at ease. I feel
comprehensive test ban. I think we'll have an good. I pace myself very carefully. I don't There were a number of reasons for this
agreement on the Indian Ocean. lack of popular excitement and for his de-
work any harder as president, I don't worry
"We will have major progress toward cline in the popularity polls, which he made
any more as president than I did as governor
peace in the Middle East. I think we have a clear, did not surprise him. He was new on
or as a candidate for president. I enjoy the
good chance the Rhodesian and Nambian the national scene, never having served in
job. And (in a reference to his friend Charles
questions will be resolved. I think the Pana- Kirbo's observation that the president looked the federal government until he came into
ma Canal treaty will be ratified." the White House. He didn't have a congressio-
tired and older the other day) I think any-
- Domestic Affairs: He was more cautious body ages, including Mr. Kirbo. I doubt if I SM Carter, Back Page

TIL C H R I S T M A S
Weather
FOG
Hazy afternoons through
Tuesday. High today 61, low
tonight 39. Sunday's high was
60.
Details on Page A2.
and officials in Baghdad, Iraq, the
informant said. But he said Iraq then
insisted the summit be limited to
declaring the intention to create an
anti-Egyptian front, leaving the actu-
al formation to a second hard-line
summit meeting in Baghdad.
This reflected the rivalry between
Syria and Iraq, with Iraq determined
to avoid following Assad's lead or
committing itself to a front in which
Assad would be sure to become the
leader.
. Syria and Iraq have had sour rela-
tions for years. Their rival wings of
the Arab Baath Socialist Party have
split over ideology and tactics in the
conflict with Israel.
A PLO spokesman, Abdul Mohsen
SM Libya, Back Pogt
No Coal Accord; US Strike Looms
By DAVID ESPO
WASHINGTON (AP) - Industry
and union negotiators bargained for
several hours Sunday on a new coal
contract but apparently failed to
reach agreement on any major issue.
A nationwide strike by the 130,000-
member United Mine Workers union
at midnight Monday seemed a fore-
gone conclusion.
Some 2,200 miners in Ohio and
West Virginia were reportedly al-
ready off their jobs Sunday in antici-
pation of the walkout.
Union President Arnold Miller,
who earlier in the day reported prog-
ress was being made, said as he left
the negotiating room, "If we'd
reached any agreement today, I
would tell you."
Miller's union mines about half the
nation's coal. It's last strike, in 1974,
lasted 42 days.
Chief federal mediator Wayne L.
Horvitz said, "We've got some hard
problems. We're working on them.
That's the nature of this process."
He said there had been no talk
about a possible contract extension,
an option Miller has said he would
consider only if there is substantial
progress on major issues.
Joseph P. Brennan, chief negotia-
tor for the Bituminous Coal Opera-
tors Association, said as he left the
meeting, "We had some interesting
discussions."
Asked whether there had been any
agreement, he said, "You don't reach
any agreement on substantive issues
until you tie it all up."
Talks were recessed late Sunday
until Monday morning.
On Saturday, Horvitz claimed the
bar°siners be°3n tslkin 0 about "the
troublesome issues," including union
demands for a limited right to strike
at individual mines over local issues
and a demand for refinancing the
nearly bankrupt health and pension
funds.
The companies are seeking great-
er stability at the mines and an end
to w i l d c a t w a l k o u t s t h a t have
plagued the industry recently.
Health benefits to an estimated
820,000 miners, retired miners and
dependents will be cut off Tuesday in
the event of a strike. The funds are
financed by industry payments made
on the basis of coal mined and hours
worked.
A strike could be expected to last
a minimum of 10 days since rank-
and-file ratification takes at least
that long.

Index
Amusements, Theaters . B8
Centra/ Sierra Lucks Out—No Serious 1977 Fires
By GENE ROSE onto the state's landscape. sive p o t e n t i a l of two years of which extends from El Dorado to forests and parks also praised the
Bridge B8 drought. Tulare County. "From our standpoint public for keeping fires to a mini-
Bee Staff Writer But statewide the statistics are
Briefly Told C4 grim and the costs still are being tal- About the only record the local it was fantastic," Monsen explained. mum and for accepting fire restric-
While the summer of 1977 will go
Classified C5toC13 down as one of the worst fire seasons lied. On the federal forest lands mountain areas could claim was the "The five-year average is 21,000 tions, which were lifted about two
Comics A6 on record, the central section of the alone, 277,906 acres burned, causing longest-burning blaze — a let-burn, acres and this year we had only 1,600 weeks ago, with a minimum of com-
Contemporary Life A11 -A 13 Sierra escaped much of the devasta- damage estimated at $342 million. It or natural, fire in Sequoia National in the local region." plaints.
Editorials A14 tion which scorched many other sec- cost another $31 million to put out the Park. Five months after it was re- The number of fires dropped from Steve Beck of the Sierra National
Financial C14 tions o" the state. fires. ported, it still was smoldering last 53 in 1976 — when 32,000 acres burned Forest said the forest had 168 fires
Obituaries C2 Officials nf the U.S. Forest Ser- When added to the state's 141,000 month when the park service slopped — to 42 this past summer, he added. this season totaling 625 acres. He
Sports B Section vice, the National Park Service and blackened acres, the summer of 1977 worrying about it. "We'd like to give the public a pat on said 99 fires were attributed to light-
the state Department of Forestry adds up to what (me federal forester Dean Monsen, fire control officer the back for their assistance," Mon- ning strikes while the rest were man-
Television-Radio B7 caused. "Most of (he fires were
said yearend totals show the areas described as "one of the worst — if for the southern Sierra region of the sen said. "People just weren't as
Valley News C Section CDF, said the total acres and the careless with fire as they have been under 10 acres. We had only three *
near Fresno had relatively little of not the worst — on record."
Vital Statistics C5 The local area was spared the number of fires in the foothills were in the past." 'Class D' fires — those 100 to 300
the smoke and fire which branded
names like Marblecone and Scarface effects of wildfire, despite the explo- down dramatically in the region, Other fire officials of the national Seo Fire*, Back Pago
I