The Nation - News from Oct. 13, 1986

The Army has recalled 91 tanks from seven bases because investigators found production defects in the portable bridges attached to the vehicles to help them cross gullies and streams. Army investigators found “welding deficiencies” in the bridges that could cause them to break, said Katherine Hoener, an Army spokeswoman. Capital Engineering & Mfg. Co. of Chicago, which was paid $14 million to produce 140 bridges, was suspended Sept. 11 from receiving government contracts pending the final outcome of the Army’s investigation, Hoener said. The bridges span 63 feet when released from kits attached to the front of M-60 and M-48 tanks.