U.K. Navy Computers Unchecked For Y2K

This ones for you Richard, Groan! -- Diane

http://www.mercurycenter.com/breaking/docs/011791.htm

Posted at 8:32 p.m. PST Saturday, December 5, 1998

U.K. navy computers unchecked for millennium bug

LONDON (Reuters) -- Almost 90 percent of the British Navy's vital computer systems, including those that control its nuclear missiles, are still not protected against the so-called millennium bug, according to a leaked defense ministry review.

Britain's Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and Sunday newspapers said that more than 80 percent of crucial computer systems in the defense ministry headquarters still needed checking to ensure the computers would not malfunction at the turn of the century.

The CND said the admission in the defense ministry review came despite two years of work aimed at meeting an original deadline for fixing the faults of December 31 1998, which would have allowed for 12 months of tests.

``This information gives me no confidence that nuclear weapons systems will be ready to handle the millennium bug,'' said CND chairman Dave Knight.

``Unless every single system is fixed, anything could be affected, from the timer on ovens in submarines to early warning systems that raise the alert about incoming nuclear missiles,'' he said.

The CND called for an immediate statement by the government and said Britain and other nuclear states should remove their nuclear warheads from warships and store them ashore to ensure their safety.

The Sunday Telegraph said the review revealed that the ministry did not have enough skilled staff to check its computer systems.

No comment was available from the defense ministry.

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), December 06, 1998

Answers

"The CND called for an immediate statement by the government and said Britain and other nuclear states should remove their nuclear warheads from warships and store them ashore to ensure their safety."

We've now had two articles by anti-nuclear organizations that tell us about the nuke problems.

Don't suppose that they have an agenda, do you?

A different article identified the missiles as Tridents, (which are also used by the US).

Anyone who knows care to comment?

-- rocky (rknolls@hotmail.com), December 06, 1998.

rocky, the only "agenda" that interests me, is that most of us around the globe make it, whatever it takes. IF there will be problems with the nuclear arsenals of the world, then one solution is to shut the drated things off and that which launches them. Jury is still out on the IF of the nuclear situation.

What we DO know is that it is the one miscalculation that could kill most of us.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), December 06, 1998.