European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 8, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 2 a a a the stars and stripes tuesday May 8,1990 Choice in new of assignments helps ease airmen a anxieties by Dave Diehl . Bureau Raf Mildenhall England a enlisted  at three air Force bases whose missions arc disappearing were recently Given their pick of new assignments. A there arc a lot of Happy faces around Here a said capt. Dave Fruck the Public affairs officer at Raf Fairford. A there is a lot of tension gone because of  the reasons for the smiling faces were air Force strike teams that toured the three bases and gave service members a multiple Choice of new assignments from which they could choose. During the tour the groups met a 664 people at Raf Fairford which is losing its Mission As a base for Kc-135 strato tankers. A 62 people at act 4 of the 9th strategic recon Wing at Raf Mildenhall. A 450 people at Raf Wethersfield the Home of 819th civil engr and the 2166 combat comm squadrons. Their visits were welcomed by the people of the 9th strategic recon Wing which flew the now retired sr-71 spy plane. They have been waiting since the wings two air planes left in january to find out where their new jobs would be. A it was great. It was like a big graduation a said staff sgt. Bill Bustin a photo interpreter with the sr-71 Squadron. The air Force sends the personnel teams to bases undergoing such major upheavals As closures and Mission changes said it. Col. Bob Long the strategic air Comdr a Deputy director for assignments. A these types of actions place a great Deal of concern and uncertainty on the commanders and the individuals a Long said. A we want to minimize  the group that visited Mildenhall and Fairford was composed of officials from the military personnel Center Safe and Sac. Officials from Sac did no to go along for the Wethersfield visit. As part of the officials visits service members Are usually offered at least two and As Many As 10 bases to choose from said master sgt. Dave Paris a personnel Center official. Bustin for example was Able to choose from Hurlburt Field in fort Walton Beach Fla. Offutt fab in Omaha neb. Raf Alconbury England and two bases in West Germany. He picked Hurlburt Field. Personnel teams from pc and major commands will make about 65 trips this year to add the personal touch at units in similar circumstances Paris said. Included in that number will be the ground launched cruise missile bases at Raf Greenham common England and Comiso air station Sicily. Both of those bases recently had their missions dealt away in the intermediate Range nuclear forces treaty. The cuts closures and transfers involving the three bases in England Are part of military budget cutting. Most of the people from the 7020th a group and the 11 the strategic group at Fairford about 75 Miles West of London Are scheduled to leave the base by october Fruck said. About 50 air Force people and a number of British and . Civilians will remain there to keep the base on a standby status. More than 400 of the Fairford people will stay within Safe including about 160 who will be transferred 110 Miles Northeast to Mildenhall. The Mission of Fairford a 11th strategic group will be taken in by the 306th strategic Wing at Mildenhall by july 1. Path from of leads to part time military by Deedee Arrington Doke Kaiserslautern Bureau Ramstein a West Germany a sgt. Shirley Coppo had been in the air Force nearly nine years when she began thinking about getting out. �?o1 Wasny to really satisfied with my Job a the systems computer operator said. A i wanted something different a to get into the medical Field. But id been so Long in my career Field it was hard to get  Coppo assigned to the 2134th comm so at Scab an a has made her decision. She is leaving the air Force this month because she a pregnant. But she a not leaving the military altogether. After 24 weeks of training at Sheppard fab Texas Coppo will serve As a medical technician in the air National guard. Her transition into the part time military is being assisted by master sgt. Paul Fedor Sak the air National guard representative to Europe. He helped her with applications other paperwork and Slot prospects. It is a service that until january Wasny to available in . Air forces in Europe. Fedorsak and air Force Reserve representative master sgt. Ben Walton work out of a new office at Ramstein a the first Liaison non commissioned officers assigned to Europe. They Are looking for qualified people who want to leave the full time air Force but retain some benefits by continuing their military connections. The two emphasized that they Are not recruiting people to leave the air Force but Are working Only with those who already have decided to leave. That description applies to some airmen who applied for the air forces Early release program designed to trim the service by 6,000 people. More than 12,000 applied for the Early releases. Among those who accepted were 620 people assigned in Europe. A we got caught up in that initial Rollback. I had a line waiting for me a said Fedorsak who arrived in West Germany soon after the program was announced. Walton who arrived last month and Fedorsak will travel regularly to other bases. A a lot of people Are just inquiring right now because they re Uncertain about where their career is going a Fedorsak said. The air National guard has 116,000 members. The air Force Reserve has 80,000. Fedorsak and Walton said they have no indication that either faces troop reductions. A a there a not even a Good Rumor on that a Fedorsak said. Additional Field offices May open in Europe depending on the Success of the Ramstein based operation. Fedorsak May be reached at ets 4802815. Walton a number is ets 480-2274. 32 v corps soldiers join sgt. Morales club Frankfurt West Germany a amps a thirty two v corps soldiers were inducted into the sgt. Morales club on Friday. The club is an honorary society for soldiers in the . Army Europe. It is named after a fictitious Ideal sergeant. Soldiers nominated by their commanders must face a Board of senior non commissioned officers. The inductees from the 8th inf div Are staff sgt. John e. Daffis staff sgt. Thomas Miller staff sgt. Robert Ramos sgt. Charles r. Atwell sgt. Carlos Dominguez sgt. Lamarquis Knowles sgt. Robert g. Lehtonen and sgt. Jeffrey w. Poulin. Inductees from the 11th army Cav regt Are sgt. 1st class Joseph e. Osterfeld sgt. 1st class Michael a. Watts staff sgt. Leander Woodruff sgt. Eric p. Deveraux sgt. Irwin Navarez and sgt. Jerry v. Olsen. The 3rd corps support Comdr a inductees Are staff sgt. Lenon s. Gaskin staff sgt. Basil c. Hunt staff sgt. Sylvester o. Kittling and sgt. Leonard m. Penley. Inductees from the 205th military intelligence brigade Are staff sgt. Jeffery l. Couch and sgt. Jerry p. Keeney. Joffre f. Chemes staff sgt. Gregory k. Jackson staff sgt. Allen r. Stokes staff sgt. Lorenzo f. Wallace sgt. Robert c. Arana and sgt. Patricia a. Carter. The 22nd signal brigades inductee was staff sgt. Steve l.  update Thatcher popularity poll London apr prime minister Margaret thatchers popularity among conservative party lawmakers increased after last weeks local elections but 64 percent of the Public still want her to resign according to opinion polls published sunday. The opposition labor party scored a resounding Victory Over thatchers conservative party in thursdays elections. But the 1 i percent swing in popular vote from the tories to labor since the 1987 general election Wasny tas bad As the near 20 percent predicted in opinion polls. Only 16 percent of rank and file conservative lawmakers interviewed on Friday and saturday for the Independent on sunday said they wanted Thatcher to retire before the next election which must be held by mid-1992. In a similar poll on March 10, the figure was 24  recovered Boston apr a portrait of Benjamin Franklin stolen from the Boston Public Library last month has been recovered by the Fri. The painting valued at $50,000, was returned through an intermediary who said the Man who took it did so As a prank the Fri said. The Man is negotiating through an attorney for immunity from changes in Exchange for returning the painting. His identity has not been disclosed to the Fri the Agency said. The 32nd air defense Comdr a inductees Are staff sgt. Letha Lawson staff sgt. Danny r. Sumner and sgt. Helen d. Gilson. The 3rd army dives inductees Are sgt. 1st class David m. Arnold and staff sgt. Thanh n. Stough. V corps artillery inductees Are staff sgt.1 Sailor killed 4 Hurt in crash near Sicily base Nas Simonella Sicily a amps a a 22-year-old Sailor assigned to maritime patrol so 16 at Nas Signorella was killed saturday in a one car Accident. Four other sailors were injured in the crash which occurred five Miles West of the base. It. David Koontz a spokesman for the Navy identified the dead service member As Petty officer 3rd class David c. Moody 22, of Pensacola Fla. A memorial service for Moody was held monday afternoon. Koontz said the Accident occurred just after Midnight and that Moody was a passenger in the car. It remains under investigation. The four injured sailors Are Seaman Diana Hall 22, of Murfreesboro Tenn. Petty officer 2nd class Mark Millner 35, of Columbus Ohio Petty officer 3rd class Brian Rankin 22, of Montgomery Ala. And Seaman Neal Beahm 20, of Fountain Hill a. Koontz said Hall was treated and released. The other three were flown to Lan Stuhl army regional medical Center in West Germany on saturday. They were reported to be in stable condition. Moody is survived by his parents David and Elsia of Pensacola. New child care Center delayed Ramseck West Germany a amps a a new child care Center near Stuttgart that was supposed to open a week ago remains closed because the army has t waived a Rule Banning Wood construction. A Stuttgart military Community spokeswoman said the Community expects the department of the army waiver in the next few weeks. The $500,000 one Story building is in the Pattonville housing area. The builder finished the Structure before the Community Learned that an army regulation prohibits the use of Wood to build child care centers. The multipurpose building is intended to provide temporary lodging for the Center until funding for a new $3.5 million facility is authorized. The Community had planned to open the temporary Center on May 1. Pilot struck by helicopter Blade is under observation in Hospital Frankfurt West Germany a amps a an army Pilot struck on the head by a Blade of an oh-58 helicopter last week is under observation in a Frankfurt Hospital a v corps spokeswoman said monday. The Pilot assigned to the 5th in 158th aviation regt in Wiesbaden made an emergency Landing in a Field near bad Homburg on Friday after a Power failure. He suffered a Cut on the forehead while checking fuel switches said Connie Summers the Public affairs spokeswoman. She said the pilots unit would not release his name. He was taken to the air Force Hospital in Wiesbaden on Friday and observed overnight. He was transferred to the Frankfurt army medical Center on saturday. The cause of the Power failure is being investigated and no estimate of helicopter damage was available she said