European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 22, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes Friday september 22, 1978 Russ observer by Thomas Kent Gross Mehring Germany a soviet maj. Gen. Alexander Kirkov watched intently and dragged on a cigarette As nato warplanes roared overhead and West German tanks rumbled across the Danube River in the Atlantic Alliance s South German Maneu vers. Kirkov s aide a Young naval Captain listened closely to German explanations of the War games while troops bridged the River to the sound of mock fire from Light weapons and artillery. Nine months earlier observers from nato nations had watched soviet Maneu vers near Minsk in the Western soviet Union. Western military attaches viewed a soviet Parachute drop from supersonic air Craft and several came away highly impressed with soviet airborne units. Exchanges of observers Between nato and the soviet led Warsaw pact have been growing steadily since the 1975 Helsinki agreements which encourage observer visits As a Confidence building measure. Neither nato countries nor Warsaw pact nations have shown outside visitors any military secrets. But officers say they find the trips useful and that they have no reluctance about personally meeting their potential enemies. Kirkov s watched the germans Blue Danube Maneu vers near this Small neatly kept farming Village about 45 Miles North of Munich. It is 75 Miles from Czechoslovakia the nearest communist order. Such sensitive areas As the air Force control Center for the Maneu vers were off limits to Kirkov and his aide but he was permitted to sit in a makeshift grandstand with observers from non communist nations and watch the crossing. Bridge spanned West German troops used pontoons and amphibious vehicles to Span the 400-foot wide River in about 15 minutes and trundle tanks artillery and ambulances across. Kirkov the soviet military attache in Bonn also was probably the first soviet officer to see a new West German amphibious scout car in action. In a Brief encounter with reporters the Stocky Gray haired soviet observer immaculate in a dress uniform that contrasted with the casual fatigues of the nato officers refused to be drawn into a discussion of the tactics of nato armies. It s hard to say he said. I Don t know what nato s plans Are. Also i Don t know what role operation Blue Danube plays in nato plans. In our opinion it is better to talk about peace than  a West German military spokesman insisted that the scenario for Blue Danube consists of an arbitrarily chosen situation with no political  but Kirkov might Well have suspected that the script had a soviet invasion in mind in the scenario an army designated by the color red invades West Germany and German and Allied troops push it blackout. The style of Western and soviet Hospital Ity for visiting military delegations has differed. When observers from the United states Belgium Holland and other nato countries visited the soviet Maneu vers they were sumptuously fed on caviar and other delicacies and plied with Vodka Western officers reported. We kept saying that we wanted to go out and see some More action but they seemed to prefer to have us inside eating one of the officers recalled. Some officers said the soviets encouraged them to leave their own binoculars at Home and provided them extremely Low powered binoculars to follow the action. Kirkov and his aide were fed the same food German officers and enlisted men eat. Western officers said the russians also brought along their own binoculars. The russians probably offered the West Erners a better military show than the Ger mans offered Here however. Military officers said the Parachute drop gave nato observers a Good View of a Complex major general visits Blue danube1 exercise As part of Confidence building Exchange soviet operation while the River crossing was a fairly simple Man Euver. Soviet military observers have attended exercises in West Germany and the . Nato observers have been invited to soviet War games in the caucasus mountains in the Southern soviet Union As Well As to the Winter Maneu vers in Minsk. At a press conference after the Blue Danube Maneu vers the German army chief of staff it. Gen. Horst Hildebrandt was asked what message he hoped Knir-1 Kov would take Home to Moscow. I would like for him to report to his government that Here is an army exercising As a part of an Alliance for Only one thing maintaining peace and Liberty and democracy he said. Kirkov and his aide ignored the Chi Nese military attache in Bonn Lin Chien who also attended the Maneu vers. Other observers came from Spain Brazil and India. Participants in the exercise included the second German corps 4,000 troops from the 3rd . Inf div in Schweinfurt Ger Many and the same number from the 4th Canadian mechanized infantry brigade in Lahr Germany. There were about 45,000 troops in the exercises. 100 copters Crews count on her she keeps that flight fuel clean Story and photo by Rudi Williams Gie Belstadt Germany their lives Are in her hands every time pilots Crank up their helicopter engines. Spec. 4 Donna a. Hawthorne s Job is to make sure More than 100 helicopters brought to Europe by the 229th attack Heli copter in Fly with clean fuel during the biggest exercise of the annual fall Natoma Nevers. The first thing i have to determine is if it s the right fuel Hawthorne said. Then i test for dirt the icing enhancer vapor pressure to prevent vapor lock corrosive matter to prevent engine  before fuel reaches helicopters it s transferred from underground storage or rail cars to Tanker trucks or 500 or 10,000 gallon containers. There s a lot of chances for it to become contaminated the 24-year-old Hammond ind., resident said. She s very important to me said two James h. Johnson the 229th task Force safety officer. If something is wrong with the fuel the engine could quit and cause a crash he said. Hawthorne tested fuel for the helicopters in the . Before they were loaded aboard the merchant Marine cargo vessel Callaghan for the trip to Europe. Haw Thorne was at Ghent Belgium to test for water condensation after the 16-Day voyage. Now she leap frogs Between six testing that copter fuel spec. 4 Donna Hawthorne tests fuel before it is used by helicopters of the 229th attack helicopter in during the nato exercise certain  rapid refuelling Points throughout the cer Tain shield exercise area testing fuel for 117 helicopters brought by the 229th, part of the 101st airborne div air assault from fort Campbell by. Hawthorne and her co workers have de Vised a new method of testing fuel. She is experimenting with the method during certain shield. It takes an hour to run a test in the lab and Only about 10 minutes with our new method Hawthorne explained. It s All done by visual  her portable lab weighs 35 pounds the old air Mobile lab May weigh 100 times More and must be moved by truck or Heli copter. I can hand carry the new kit and Fly to refuelling Sites. This saves a lot of time and Money she said. Sometimes it s a family affair at the re fueling Sites. Her husband sgt. Robert l. Hawthorne is the gasoline Oil and lubricants no for the 426th Supply and service in. He sets up the refuelling Points and i Clear them said mrs. Hawthorne. The Only woman member of the refuel ing team Hawthorne said she travels wit two shelter halves. Husbands and wives can t sleep in the same tent in the Field she explained. I think that would be bad for the morale of the troops but it would be Nice  when a helicopter refuel on a line i be tested and flies away without falling out of the sky i get a Rush she said. A Rush is a Good feeling about doing a Good Job she added. The pilots of at least 117 helicopters probably also get a Rush out of Donna Haw Thorne s Job. Sgt. 1.c. Williams is a photojournalist assigned to the Usa eur Public affairs office in Heidelberg Japan has top Trade surplus in August Tokyo up Japan recorded a Trade surplus in August in terms of dollars but both exports and imports dropped in yen Price the finance ministry announced. The ministry said that Japan s exports in August amounted to $8,049,000,000, up 23.4 percent Over the same month last year while imports totalled $6,757,000,000, also up 11.0 percent Over August last year. However in terms of yen exports to tales 1.54 trillion yen which represented a decline of 11.3 percent and imports amounted to 1.29 trillion yen a drop of 20.1 percent from those of August last year respectively. The declines in yen Price resulted from the japanese currency s Steep Rise in value against the . Dollar. Cardinal Wyszynski arrives on Mission to w. Germany Frankfurt up Poland s Cardi Nal Stefan Wyszynski has arrived in Ger Many on a Mission of peace and reconciliation Given the Semi official approval of the polish government