The World - News from Feb. 26, 1986

The sixth test of a U.S. cruise missile over Canada ended in failure when the unarmed weapon crashed into the Beaufort Sea moments after it was launched from a B-52 bomber. “We’re not sure why it happened,” a U.S. Air Force spokesman said. The missile was to have flown to a target 1,550 miles away at the Primrose Lake Air Weapons Range near Cold Lake. A Canadian spokesman said the missile’s engine apparently failed to start after launch and “it fell with the trajectory of a brick . . . onto the ice.” A cruise missile launched over Canada Jan. 22 crashed Jan. 22 near Cold Lake after it ran out of fuel in strong headwinds.