AIR FORCE SEEKS MIDAIR-COLLISION CLUES; SERVICE SET.

Byline: Jim Skeen Daily News Staff Writer

As investigators began looking for a cause of Wednesday's midair collision between two Air Force jets that killed two men, co-workers began planning a memorial service for their fallen comrades.

Air Force crash investigators began early Thursday examining the wreckage of a T-38 trainer jet where it crashed in an isolated part of the base after colliding with a F-16 fighter.

``There is an interim investigation board that has been appointed,'' said Edwards spokesman Gary Hatch. ``They started their investigation at daybreak.''

The investigation will be turned over to a formal accident and safety board, probably within the next week, Hatch said.

The F-16 crew was able to return safely, but the T-38's crew, a British pilot and an American flight test engineer, were killed in the incident.

Killed were Lt. Col. William R. Nusz, a flight test engineer assigned to the 419th Flight Test Squadron, and Flight Lt. Leigh Alexander Fox, a Royal Air Force pilot.

The members of the 419th Flight Test Squadron held a memorial service for Nusz on Thursday morning. A basewide service for both men is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday in giant Hangar 1414, normally used for inspecting C-141 cargo planes.

Before the midair collision, the F-16 and the T-38 had been photographing a B-1B bomber as it dropped dummy bombs at Edwards' precision bombing range. The collision occurred at the completion of the bombing mission, after the F-16 moved in close to the bomber so the crew could ensure there was no damage to the bomber's weapons bay.

Air Force officials offered no further details about how the F-16 and T-38 came into contact, dooming the T-38 and tearing off 3 feet of the F-16's left wing.

``All that will have to be sorted out by the investigation board,'' Hatch said.

One point investigators will examine is why the T-38's crewmen died even through they had ejected from the aircraft. The ejection seats will be one of the items the board will examine, Air Force officials said.

Investigators also will be looking at the film from the two airplanes. However, Col. Robbie Robinson, commander of the 412th Test Wing, told reporters Wednesday that he doubted the film would provide many clues.

Normal procedure is to shut the cameras off following the completion of a mission's last test point, in this case checking to see whether there was any damage to the B-1B from the dropping of the practice bombs.

Nusz lived in Rosamond with his wife, Gail, who is also a lieutenant colonel at Edwards.

A native of Lombard, Ill., Nusz spent nearly 20 years in the Air Force and was a graduate of Edwards' Test Pilot School, the Air Force's College, the Air Command and Staff College, and the Squadron Officer School.

Nusz's citations include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal, the Aerial Achievement Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Air Force Achievement Medal, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award and the National Defense Service Medal.

His career included stints as an analyst for Air Force space programs and as a B-1B operations flight test engineer, and manager of Test Pilot School policy and training.

Nusz was director of engineering for the 419th Flight Test Squadron at the time of his death.

A pilot with more than 25 years of experience, Nusz had logged more than 1,400 hours of flying time.

Fox, 35, was married and the father of two daughters, who at present are at Edwards, officials said. A Royal Air Force officer was sent to Edwards to help the family, said Robert Chatterton Dickson of the British Embassy in Washington, D.C.

``Obviously, we are very saddened by this tragic accident,'' Dickson said.

Fox, a graduate of France's test pilot school, had been at Edwards since July 1996. He was one of 55 Royal Air Force officers at present involved in exchange programs with the U.S. military.