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B-149028, OCT. 7, 1963

B-149028 Oct 07, 1963
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LTD.: FURTHER REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF FEBRUARY 6. WE HAVE AGAIN REVIEWED OUR FILE AND. HAVE OBTAINED AND REVIEWED THE RECORDS COVERING THE 9 OTHER SHIPMENTS WHICH PRECEDED THE SHIPMENT IN QUESTION. WY-9006661 IS TO HAVE ANY BEARING ON THE RATE QUESTION HERE INVOLVED. SOME PERTINENT DETAILS OF THE OTHER SHIPMENTS ARE AS FOLLOWS: CHART ROCKET AMMO IGNITER WEIGHT PAID ON CLASS B CLASS A IN YOUR BILL B/L NUMBER DATE PACKAGES PACKAGES POUNDS NO. 480 MTL CENTS 186 WBXS IT IS PRESUMED THAT YOUR RECORDS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR EXAMINATION OF THE DATA SUPPORTING YOUR PAID BILLS. 380 M50 IGNITERS WERE SHIPPED. THE DISPARITY BETWEEN THE NUMBER OF ROCKET MOTORS AND THE NUMBER OF IGNITERS ALONE WOULD SEEM TO INDICATE THAT THESE ARTICLES WERE INTERCHANGEABLE PARTS FOR USE IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ANOTHER DEVICE AND WERE NOT MATCHED SETS OF COMPONENTS CONSTITUTING COMPLETE ARTICLES WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE COMPLETE ARTICLE RULE OF THE TARIFF.

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B-149028, OCT. 7, 1963

TO WESTERN TRUCK LINES, LTD.:

FURTHER REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF FEBRUARY 6, 1963, WHEREIN YOU REQUESTED REVIEW OF OUR DECISION B-149028, DATED JANUARY 16, 1963, PERTAINING TO YOUR FILE G-02614. WE HAVE AGAIN REVIEWED OUR FILE AND, IN ADDITION, HAVE OBTAINED AND REVIEWED THE RECORDS COVERING THE 9 OTHER SHIPMENTS WHICH PRECEDED THE SHIPMENT IN QUESTION.

YOU ASK THAT IF THE REFERENCE TO "10TH AND FINAL PARTIAL" ON BILL OF LADING NO. WY-9006661 IS TO HAVE ANY BEARING ON THE RATE QUESTION HERE INVOLVED, YOU BE PERMITTED TO REVIEW THE BILLS OF LADING COVERING THE OTHER PARTIAL SHIPMENTS. SOME PERTINENT DETAILS OF THE OTHER SHIPMENTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

CHART

ROCKET AMMO IGNITER WEIGHT PAID ON

CLASS B CLASS A IN YOUR BILL B/L NUMBER DATE

PACKAGES PACKAGES POUNDS NO. WY-9006382 7/20/59

280 MTL CENTS 28,840 49-8-6 (1ST PARTIAL)

24 WBXS 1,008 WY-9006388

7/21/59 280 MTL CENTS 28,840 49-8-6 (2ND PARTIAL)

24 WBXS 1,008 WY-9006392 7/27/59 280 MTL CENTS 28,840 49-8-10A (3RD PARTIAL) 24 WBXS 1,008 WY-9006400 8/3/59

280 MTL CENTS 28,840 49-8-18 (4TH PARTIAL) 24 WBXS 1,008 WY-9006512 10/7/59 238 MTL CENTS 24,514 49-10-25 (5TH PARTIAL) 46 WBXS 1,932 WY- 9006514 10/8/59 287 MTL CENTS 29,561 49-10-25 (6TH PARTIAL) WY-9006565 11/11/59 238 MTL CENTS

24,514 49-12-3 (7TH PARTIAL) 44 WBXS 1,848 WY-9006566 11/11/59 287 MTL CENTS 29,561 49 12-3 WY-900656611/11/59

287 MTL CENTS 29,561 49-12-3 (8TH PARTIAL) WY 9006660 12/30/59 310 MTL CENTS 31,930 49-011302 (9TH PARTIAL) ------------- -------

TOTALS 2,480 MTL CENTS 186 WBXS

IT IS PRESUMED THAT YOUR RECORDS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR EXAMINATION OF THE DATA SUPPORTING YOUR PAID BILLS.

EACH OF THE SHIPMENTS CONSISTED OF A PARTIAL LOT OF M58A2 ROCKET MOTORS AND 7 OF THE 10 SHIPMENTS INCLUDED M50 JET THRUST IGNITERS. THE TEN SHIPMENTS COMPRISED AN ENTIRE CONSIGNMENT FORWARDED FROM LONGHORN ORDNANCE WORKS TO HUGHES AIRCRAFT COMPANY, TUCSON, ARIZONA. A TOTAL OF 2,760 M58A2 ROCKET MOTORS AND A TOTAL OF 2,380 M50 IGNITERS WERE SHIPPED. THE DISPARITY BETWEEN THE NUMBER OF ROCKET MOTORS AND THE NUMBER OF IGNITERS ALONE WOULD SEEM TO INDICATE THAT THESE ARTICLES WERE INTERCHANGEABLE PARTS FOR USE IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ANOTHER DEVICE AND WERE NOT MATCHED SETS OF COMPONENTS CONSTITUTING COMPLETE ARTICLES WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE COMPLETE ARTICLE RULE OF THE TARIFF.

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE STOCK LISTS SHOW THAT BOTH THE M58A2 ROCKET MOTOR AND THE M50 IGNITER ARE MANUFACTURED BY THIOKOL CHEMICAL CORPORATION. THE LISTS FURTHER SHOW THAT THESE DEVICES CAN BE USED AS COMPONENT PARTS FOR A GUIDED MISSILE SYSTEM MANUFACTURED BY HUGHES AIRCRAFT COMPANY. THE MOTOR CARRIER EXPLOSIVES AND DANGEROUS ARTICLES TARIFF DEFINES ROCKET AMMUNITION (INCLUDING GUIDED MISSILES) AS A COMPLETELY ASSEMBLED UNIT FOR LAUNCHING FROM A TUBE, LAUNCHER, RAILS, TROUGH OR OTHER LAUNCHING DEVICE, IN WHICH THE PROPELLANT MATERIAL IS A SOLID PROPELLANT EXPLOSIVE. SUCH UNIT IS SAID TO CONSIST OF AN IGNITER, A ROCKET MOTOR OR JET THRUST UNIT, AND A WARHEAD, EITHER FUSED OR UNFUSED, CONTAINING HIGH EXPLOSIVES OR CHEMICALS.

BASED ON THE FOREGOING INFORMATION, IT IS APPARENT THAT THE SHIPMENTS IN QUESTION DID NOT CONSIST OF PARTS OR PIECES CONSTITUTING COMPLETE ARTICLES BUT WERE MERELY SHIPMENTS OF COMPONENT PARTS WHICH, WITH OTHER PARTS NOT INCLUDED IN THE SHIPMENTS, WERE TO BE USED IN THE ASSEMBLY OF COMPLETE ARTICLES OF ROCKET (OR MISSILE) AMMUNITION. THIS VIEW IS CONSISTENT WITH THE INFORMATION FURNISHED BY THE CHIEF OF THE TRAFFIC SERVICES DIVISION OF THE SOUTHWESTERN TRAFFIC REGION, MILITARY TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT AGENCY. THAT OFFICIAL DID NOT ADVISE THAT THE IGNITERS IN QUESTION WERE INTEGRAL PARTS OF THE ROCKET MOTORS WITH WHICH THEY WERE SHIPPED. THE INFORMATION FURNISHED BY HIM WAS THAT THE IGNITERS WERE INTEGRAL PARTS OF ROCKET AMMUNITION AND WERE INTENDED TO BE INSTALLED IN AND TO FUNCTION WITH THAT AMMUNITION.

WE CONCLUDE THAT THE SHIPMENT IN QUESTION DID NOT CONSIST OF PARTS OR PIECES CONSTITUTING A COMPLETE ARTICLE WITHIN THE MEANING OF RULE 16 OF THE NATIONAL MOTOR FREIGHT CLASSIFICATION. THE SETTLEMENT HERE WAS CONSISTENT WITH THAT VIEW AND OUR DECISION OF JANUARY 16, 1963, SUSTAINING THE SETTLEMENT WHICH DISALLOWED YOUR CLAIM, IS AFFIRMED.

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