European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 11, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday october 11. 1985 the stars and stripes Page 3 s8.s Prioto by Dave Didio at left Telephone operators keep Busy in the  switchboard office. . I Arry kill orc right works at the Patch panel in the i noes technical control facility. Island base modernizes ifs communications by j. Kin Cruger . Bureau Lajes Field a ores for years few Auto on lines have linked this Island base in the North Atlantic with the out Side world. Lately things have started to look up. Traditionally we had shortfalls Here in communications but we arc correcting this situation said it. Col. Al Garcia commander of the air Force s 1936th in formation systems so. The Squadron is the base s largest with 325 Scricc members and 50 portuguese employees. Besides providing communications and data automation services the Squadron gives air traffic control to All aircraft military and civilian passing through the area. It also supports the . European come s airborne command Post and the Navy s anti submarine warfare and intelligence missions. A new automatic voice switching net work link makes it possible to communicate directly to and from Europe via satellite. Previously any Auto on Calls be tween Here and Europe had to be routed through the United slates or through operators at Raf Croughton in England. Now an Alovon Call May be made from Europe to the Lajes Field switch Board via satellite by dealing Auto on 246 1 110. Garcia said this link has resulted in faster service and has improved the Quality of the con Naclion. However while a Call May ring on the caller s phone no one will hear it on the Lajes switchboard. That s because the Call does t actually ring Here according to Garcia. The ring you hear when you Call Here is Only meant to make you feel Good Garcia said. The ring has nothing to do with How our old fashioned switchboard works. Our operators have no Way of knowing you Are calling without actually plugging in and finding out that you Are calling. It s All a Mailer of Luck. That s Why the phone sometimes rings for a White before an operator answers  the Lajes switchboard through which All Auto on and civilian Calls must come is staffed by five operators All of them portuguese. I m convinced thai they have the toughest Job on the  Garcia said. Base s animal shelter is now a class act by Tony Nauroth Nuernberg Bureau Torrejon a Spain the High ranking Security policeman Here says the base animal impoundment facility has gone from a Crapshoot to a class act since mid july when unhealthy conditions were described in a news report. Dogs and cats Are going stray on purpose just to get into our new hotel " said maj. John Foster. That s a Long Way from what was described in the july 10 report As a facility thai sits in a Barren lifeless Patch of desert next to an infrequently travelled Road. It s exposed to the wind rain heal and bitter cold. Five dogs froze to death last  most of that was True said the no in charge of the facility sgt. Daniel Mclvin but he Points to the improved facility that he said is correcting those prob lems. Where rotted wooden shelters once sat on a cracked Concrete pad partitioned houses Are now insulated against the cola ground. The partition in each House gives animals an extra Barrier against the Winter wind and the size of each shelter is reduced to retain heat better. Netting attached to the exterior Chain link Fence screens out the hot summer Sun and Breaks the cold wind. The facility is newly painted and the roofs Are hinged for easy Access for cleaning which Melvin said is done every morning. He said there in t much that can be done about the facility s location. He pointed out thai almost every Loca Tion is a Barren lifeless Patch of desert. Where else would we put it he asked. Next to the by base Exchange it s a four minute drive from the military police station o the facility. Mclvin is sensitive about How people Sec his facility and the Job that he and his staff must do. Thai staff consists of airman Terry Gilmore who is assigned to take care of the animals and the facility while he is serving Lime in the confinement facility. Mclvin said Gilmore did All the renovations himself using materials requested from air Force civil engineers Back in february. Melvin said the facility averages about 30 dogs per month and he said he had to destroy Only about one a in Only. He s proud of Hal record bul he admitted it still base stray Ani impoundment a for info Conta Security polic Tel duty hrs-6740 non duty hrs 6114cot Han Melvin a my pm my a mkt. Is photo by Tony sgt. Daniel Melvin holds a pair of siamese Kittens which were adopted a Short while afterwards. Hurls to have an a Nauroth Miles those strays did receive Good care. We never intentionally let an animal die he said