European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 1, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes sunday october 1, 1978 Man Euver Bill will Rise gis damaging less but costing . More by Rudi Williams soldiers Are damaging less these Days but nato s annual fall Maneu vers Are still costing us More claims officials report. There has been a lot of Man Euver damage but per Man it s less than either reformer 76 or 77," said capt. John j. Madden of the Usa eur claims office in Mannheim. Madden credited the better Driver training throughout the year German civilians by corps on How to prevent the damage. Still with More troops out there and eight exercises in Germany instead of last year s six plus the Dollar s troubles it s not going to be cheaper he said. Improvement to and tips Given to troops and his staff and v engineers from 547th inspect Man Euver damage in Apple Orchard. Is Clint Swift despite restraints gis got to do their thing no reformer traffic signs erected by umpires or engineers trying to limit a never damage mean soldiers train under restrictions unknown in real War. We can t go through cultivated Fields or plough through German property said 1st it. Joseph Hardesty of Frankfort ind. In a real War we would not have the administrative restraints we have Here to  the German people Don t want their Countryside torn up said sgt. . Wil Liam Griffith of Texarkana Texas. You can t blame them for  it  third reformer for the top ser Geant of he co 1st brigade 3rd army div who suggested the area used for the a Nevers might be a problem. If the balloon goes up a lot of the com Bat action is going to be in Germany so it s desirable to Man Euver Here and learn the terrain said 1st sgt. Robert uhte of the division s b co 2nd in 33rd Armor. I m not sure you d get the same results if you had this kind of training in an area Remote from Germany the Elpaso Tex As resident added. Within the restrictions which protect dams and resort and watershed areas As Well As potato or sugar beet Fields com Manders claim to make the pretend War As real As possible. We let them do their thing out there said capt. Bob Saxby of Pollock Pines calif., who described himself As the voice of Umpire control. There Are no false restraints. The Only time we Stop them is if the forces get All scrambled up and some body might get . Robert Greene commander of the 559th engr cleaning up after the troops said controlling Man Euver damage should t deter the tactical play because the exercises Are too important for that. But we asked for All the cooperation we could possibly get because we have to keep the people Happy if we want to come Back next year and the year after  Farmer Gunter Geis of Budinger Buches said he had Given up ploughing after Orange forces tanks killed by cobra helicopters re grouped in his sugar beet Field their track excavating caverns deep enough to Bury his tractor in. Federal route 457 runs a dozen Yards away along the East Side of the Field. I Don t understand Why they have to go through the Field Geis said shaking his head. I can show them on the map How to get to the next  around the Corner a Young wife snagged her shoulders As she hosed off the sidewalk in front of her Home. The Street and sidewalk on either Side of the property was covered with layers of mud deposited by tanks and military trucks. It has to be she said of the exercises but it s a lot of  her last thought was drowned out by the Clank and Roar of a drab Green armoured personnel Carrier that turned her sidewalk Brown again with a fresh Quarter Inch of dust and mud. Tank Trail spec. 5 Christina Smith of the Mann Heim Man Euver damage office exam Ines one of the Many tank tracks left in Farmers Fields during autumn forge exercises. For is by Rudi Williams cleaning up afr tracked vehicles ramble by is a Tough task. For is Williams More than $3 million was paid out for damage from the american exercise in 1976 and about $5.5 million for the series of nato exercises in Germany last year claims office records show. Madden said the total would be Between $5 million and $6 million for autumn forge again this  reporting made it possible simultaneously for germans to put in their claims faster and for engineers to respond faster to minimize damage claims officials said. Modelled on an 8th inf div Experiment reporting of damage and units moving into areas monitored by claims sub enters was made a responsibility of the umpires. But each sub enter also had up to a dozen damage reconnaissance teams of its own in the Field. Claims sub enters also boasted a Bun Des Wehr no to speak to German officials relaying damage reports and experts from German defense Cost offices to soothe an gered Farmers and provide estimates of the Cost of a damaged Road or a lost potato crop. A five foot by six foot map in the fire Sta Tion in the City of Nidd displayed mostly Green and Blue dots where reports of damage had filtered in from the Field. By following the dots capt. Scott Ford of co a 547th engr could see the thrust of Orange aggressor forces driving South through the Man Euver area. One of the most frequent reports was that of mud left on roads by tracked vehicles. Engineer teams totalling 650 men supervised by the 559th engr in from Hanau tried to Send out clean up Crews As fast As the reports came in. Claims for less than $1,000 normally Are settled quickly. One difference this year is that fewer serious claims have been submitted one claims official said. Larger claims May result in lawsuits and some cases from last year s american Field training exercise still Are tied up in court. The . Pays 75 percent of approved claims and Bonn the remainder. When units of both countries Are mane vering in the area costs Are split 50-50. Sgt. . Williams is a photo journalist with the he Usa eur Public affairs staff in Heidelberg stakes Are High in claims game Mannheim Germany gis in the Field resort to Many Means to Clear a bivouac area or just to kill time. They once poured gasoline Over a series of ant Hills and set a match to it. The Vic Tims were imported red Forest ants especially valuable German Forest experts testified in carefully cultivated forests. That Cost the . Taxpayer the better part of $20,000. Capt. John j. Madden of the Usa eur claims office flipped through records of Man Euver damage claims for the last eight years. At the Bottom of the file he found a Ger Man claim for $7,000, alleging that Low Hying aircraft scared seven australian Para keets into flying into the slats of their cages where they died. This year germans have filed claims for a cat run Over by a tank and a Goat that choked to death after allegedly being frightened by a helicopter. In another Inci Dent a German reported that a tank ran into the antique filled House of a Frankfurt millionaire. Low flying planes also have been accused of causing two horses to Bolt and run into a tree injuring themselves. The army paid that claim Madden said but declined to reimburse the Farmer a second time whim he complained that the overexcited steeds bit him on the Luriee when he got them into the barn