Washington Mea Culpa

WASHINGTON — The Air Force's top two officials resigned under fire Thursday following a report that criticized the service for "an overall decline in nuclear weapons stewardship." Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne, in his resignation letter, acknowledged a new report by Adm. Kirkland Donald that criticized the service for an incident in which nuclear warhead fuses were mistakenly shipped to Taiwan. In another incident in August, Air Force personnel unwittingly flew nuclear weapons across the country. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley said events "highlighted a loss of focus on certain critical matters" in his resignation letter and concluded that the "honorable thing to do is to step aside." Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters he accepted the resignations based solely on the report's findings and called guarding nuclear weapons the Air Force's "most sensitive mission." "We needed a change of leadership to bring a new perspective and especially to underscore the importance of accountability," Gates said.