ARLINGTON, Va. — Two U.S. Air Force airmen were killed and a third was injured in a Wednesday car accident outside the city La Ceiba, Honduras.

The three airmen were deployed in support of “New Horizons 2006-Honduras,” a joint training exercise between the U.S. military and the Honduran government, according to an Air Force release. They were assigned to Joint Task Force “Asegurar el Futuro,” or “securing the future” in Spanish.

The injured airman was taken to a local hospital with “serious injuries,” the release said. The Air Force officials are waiting to release the names of the airmen who died until their next of kin can be reached.

The cause of the accident, which happened about 1 p.m. local time, is under investigation, according to the release.

DOD investing too much in new jets, report saysWASHINGTON — The Defense Department is investing too heavily in the next generation of jet fighters without knowing if the aircraft will work properly, Congress’ auditing branch says in a report released Wednesday.

The Government Accountability Office report criticizes the Pentagon’s plan for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, its most expensive program. GAO says the department is scheduled to spend $49 billion on 424 fighters before full testing on the stealth planes is completed in 2013.

“Starting production before ensuring the design is mature through flight testing significantly increases the risk of costly design changes that will push the program over budget and behind schedule,” the report says.

Maryland-based Lockheed Martin Corp. got a $200 billion contract in 2001 to build the F-35, with final production scheduled to begin in 2007.

Yongsan Garrison fire destroys 3 buildingsSEOUL, South Korea — A fire at the main U.S. military base in South Korea injured three South Korean workers early Thursday and destroyed four buildings, police said. A woman was being questioned on suspicion of starting the fire as a protest against the United States.

The workers were treated for second-degree burns, said an official at the Yongsan police station who declined to give his name, citing official policy.

The fire at the Yongsan Garrison in central Seoul raged for nearly four hours before it was extinguished at 5:30 a.m. A storage house was among the buildings destroyed.

Police were questioning a 57-year-old South Korean woman found on the base. It was unclear how the suspect — who has a record of treatment for mental disease — managed to enter the base when all the gates were locked, police said.

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