European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 20, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                In us officus in inc to Tut . Omid cd Iii vol. 46, no. 306 saturday. February 20, 19bb Good morning it a 06693 a inside stripes d Simon affirms he s in race to stay Page 2 o Reagan Kohl agree on arms control stance Page 3 g it s never to tale or love More Valentine messages. Page 12 q Jansen Falls again in bid for olympic Good sports Page 21 timely speech Iii run minister president Franz jowl Strauss Zulim a quizzical frown As he checks his watch Filer hiring a s i hour speech in Russau vast Germany. About 7.000 Tolhus Lytic supporters heard the Leader of the christians la Union address an annual party gathering. Pay raise a must of Secretary says by William j. Bartman Washington Bureau Washington the Secretary of the air Force called on Congress Friday to prevent deterioration of the service by supporting its proposed 1989 budget particularly a 4.3 percent pay raise for  and programs thai improve the Quality of military life. Related Story on Page 18. With the air Force prepared to drop below the 600,000 level in personnel and pilots exiling at an Ever faster Rale Secretary Edward Aldridge or. Said the worst thing they could do in this budget is Cut the pay raise. For us to Cut Back in the pay raise or Quality of life right now would be devastating. Budget proposals from each of the services arc lower than planned because of political pressures brought about by the Federal deficit. But the air Force s scaled Back proposal includes a new Bonus pay program to help retain pilots. He said the number of scientists and engineers in the service is also beginning to decline but we Don t have a solution Cyl to that problem. The Pilot bonuses would involve paying an additional $9.000 to si2,000 to pilots who Promise to stay with the service for a certain period of time Aldridge said. Neither the time commitment required nor a schedule for How the Money would be paid have been established yet he said. The retention of experienced pilots dropped from 78 percent slaying on in 1978 to Only 43 percent i fiscal year 1987. And it looks like it will get Down lower in fiscal year 1988, probably Down to around 40 percent Aldridge said. Experience in the cockpit is going  Aldridge said Over $10 billion was taken from Ait Force programs last year equating More than go per cent of the total defense department reduction. The air Force and its sister services were forced to submit lowered budget requests this week because of an agreement reached by Congress and the while House last year. Thai agreement followed a major Slock Market collapse that left economists uneasy. The lowered air Force budget will result in the reduction of 31,39fi members of the service by the end of fiscal 1988. There were Over 600,000 air Force Mem Bers at the Start of fiscal 1988. By the end of fiscal 1989, there will be 575,600 members. Aldridge said the cuts so far have been absorbed by the removal of Ihrcke tactical fighter wings and the retirements of some members. He said the air Force has managed to weather the cutbacks which under the proposed budget will Lead to cancellation of 20 major defense programs because of the Quality of our people. We cannot afford to lose  in he 1970s, Aldridge said. Air Force personnel voted with their feet because of a perceived Lack of Public support and Uncertain future. We must not let that happen again we in the defense department made the Tough decisions required because of fiscal constraints but. The american people need and deserve a belter air Force than this budget will  2nd group claims Higgins kidnapping Tyre Lebanon api a second group said Fri Day it kidnapped a . Marine colonel serving with the . Peacekeeping Force in South Lebanon and released identity cards bearing his photograph. The pro iranian oppressed of the Earth accused it. Col. William k. Higgins 43. Of using his leadership of a group attached to the . Interim Force in Lebanon to mask his undercover work for the Cia. Vas. State department spokesman Charles Redman denied thursday that Kiggins had any links with the Cia. In 3 Rescue attempt. Shiite amal militiamen Friday seized six activists of the iranian hacked Hezbollah or party of god in the Southern port of Tyre. The amal scaled Ofta 300-Square-mile area. The amal the main shiite militia in Lebanon is headed by lebanese Justice minister Nabih Bern. It has been fighting Hezbollah for control of Southern Lebanon. Hie claim by oppressed of the Earth was made in a typed arabic language statement delivered to a West pm news Agency in Beirut. It was accompanied by two identity cards one in English and one in hebrew. Both bore photographs of Higgins a native of Dan Ville ky., and what appeared to be his signature. It was the second claim of responsibility for wednesday s abduction. The first was made by a previously unknown group calling itself the islamic revolutionary brigades. William Higgins. Agent of the Central intelligence Agency who uses his . Observer s work As a cover for his dangerous espionage role is in the hands of our heroic Mujaheddin holy warriors the statement said. The group said it would  following a Complete israeli withdrawal from its Security zone App Tario a photocopy of the two identification cards carrying the picture no signature of Higgins. In South Lebanon. It also demanded the release of an estimated 300 lebanese and palestinian prisoners held in Khiam detention Camp in South Lebanon and the immediate cessation of . Activity in Lebanon. Oppressed of the  is believed made up of shiite moslem zealots Loyal to Iran s revolutionary patriarch Aya Loloh Ruhollah Khomeini. It has claimed responsibility for hijackings bomb Ings and kidnappings including the abduction of 12 lebanese jews in moslem West Beirut since 1934, eight of whom it said it  Washington defense Secretary Frank Carlucci said Friday . Officials arc studying whether Ameri cans should be withdrawn from the . Observer group in Light of Higgins abduction. But later president Reagan said americans will not be withdrawn. No. We arc going to meet our obligations to the United nations he said during a while House photo , appearing on Abc to s today show said everything possible is being done to secure Hig gins , a decorated Vietnam Veteran Heads a 76 Man observer group that operates along the Lebanon Israel Border on j has its Headquarters in Jerusalem. He was kidnapped by gunmen As he was driving from Tyre to  flu Headquarters in the Border town of Nasou an amal spokesman said the Hezbollah fundamentalists were rounded up in predawn raids on houses in the port  suspect they were monitoring Higgins move ments in Tyre before his abduction. They will be interrogated said the spokesman who refused to be Iden  was the third . Official kidnapped in Lebanon this month