European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 29, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday september 29, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a crisis in the Gulf comforts boost morale expert says by Dave Diehl . Bureau Camberley England a so Long As their commanders keep them fed watered and As comfortable As possible the troops waiting for a possible War in the saudi Sand Arentt Likely to succumb to the boredom and Monotony of the sweltering desert. That a what history shows according to Gary Sheffield a British scholar and an authority on military morale in combat. A if a Man in a foxhole or a Trench or in a tank has sufficient supplies of cigarettes hot food cold drinks mail from Home. These Are what make for Good morale a said Sheffield a University of Leeds graduate and editor of the Book a warfare in the 20th Century theory and  and that depends on the command he said. A a it a up to the commanders to make sure the troops Are As comfortable As they possibly can be a he said. A i think that they would need to ensure that they knew Why they were there. They need a Clear idea of the aim at hand. They also have to make sure that the men understand that everything conceivable is being done for their  As did their Brethren in arms in wars past the troops massed and ready for combat in the Gulf Are now battling boredom and frustration waiting for something to happen. Many of the american and Allied troops there Are into their second month without seeing any action and that has begun to take its toll. The historian believes however that the Well trained and motivated units of today a armies can ride it out. If they think they have it bad they should hark Back to world War ii when Many of the Allied troops based in England waited trained and waited some More for the a Day landings in Normandy a some for up to three years. A i think the first problem they have to Deal with is that of boredom a Sheffield said. A waiting for something to happen can be More unnerving than taking part in it happened to troops before the Normandy invasions. A they became stale a Sheffield said. A boredom and frustration would be a major Factor in morale. People simply do get fed up. More important people get  on the other hand being in place can have its advantages said Sheffield who also lectures on military history and is working on a doctorate in War studies at Kings College in London. A certainly it brings Home the reality of what is happening a he said. A it gives them some Iaea of the tension building up. That a a quite important  Sheffield said that if War broke out and chemical weapons were used one problem that could arise a possibly to commanders Surprise a is the effect of wearing Gas masks on morale. He said troops wearing the gear will have difficulty eating drinking and talking. A wearing chemical suits makes it difficult to carry out some Normal things that do play a major part in morale a he said. Masks muffle voices that could make a private a speech sound no different from a company commanders. A one of the key things in encouraging men a Sheffield said a is hearing their leaders  despite the conditions and potential obstacles facing the men and women in the operation desert shield Sheffield said he is sure Many of these problems will be overcome. A i think morale is High and is Likely to remain High. We Are not dealing with conscript armies we re dealing with professional  c-141 Fleet holding up Well despite operational demands by Rob Jagodzinski Pacific stars and stripes an air base in saudi Arabia although plagued by Hydraulic leaks and Wear on Landing gear the air forces Fleet of c-141 cargo planes is holding up Well under the Strain of supplying the Gulf pilots and mechanics say. The flying service placed flight restrictions on All 266 of the aircraft last fall after routine maintenance checks uncovered hairline cracks on the wings of some of the planes. Gen. Hansford t. Johnson the air Force officer who Heads the . Trans come said last month that the cracks represent a substantial structural problems and that the command was taking risks in using the planes to Supply operation desert shield. A a we be been flying the Fleet hard so you re going to have Wear and tear a said maj. Norm Cole an air Force maintenance officer with the 438th military Airlift Wing in saudi Arabia. A during this operation the flight time has tripled for these aircraft. But we Are pleasantly surprised that the c-141 Fleet is holding up so  Wing inspections and any crack repairs would take place in the United states since they involve technical work that cannot be done under Field conditions Cole said. His mechanics in saudi Arabia handle routine maintenance like Hydraulic system repairs and other servicing. Nearly All c-141s in the air Force inventory Are being used to support desert shield and although the Wing cracks remain a concern one maintenance chief noted that current flying conditions should not aggravate the problem. Unlike Short turbulent flights the saudi Supply Effort is a High Altitude Long haul flying that the planes were made for a said senior master sgt. Phil Cox also assigned with the 438th. Although the air Force has not released figures on the number of Supply sorties being flown for desert shield Cox said the flight line at his desert air base gets More traffic in two Days than a months Worth of traffic at Busy Mcguire fab n.j., where his unit is headquartered. A none of us has Ever experienced the sheer amount of plane traffic a Cole added. Hydraulic leaks and Landing gear Wear Are the most common problems facing the maintenance Crews Cole said but his Crews have managed to keep the Fleet flying. Repairs have grounded no More than one c-141 at a time in the Gulf in the last six weeks he said. First it. Mike Johnson a c-141 Pilot from 86th military Airlift so at Travis fab calif., said the air Crews Are flying about double the number of hours they flew before the Effort began in mid August. A a we re working the planes hard and they re difficult to maintain a he said a but we  be flying them if they weren to  warning issued on saudi Money Frankfurt West Germany a officials with merchants National Bank Are warning . Service members returning from duty in saudi Arabia not to bring any saudi Money Back with them. The problem is that Many european Banks foreign Exchange departments Are refusing to take saudi arabian riyals because they re worried about political instability in the Region. That makes Exchange of saudi Cash for . Dollars Deutsche Marks or other currencies nearly impossible outside saudi Arabia. Merchants Bank the department of defense a Bank ing contractor in West Germany Greece the Netherlands and the United kingdom will not accept saudi Money either Bank spokeswoman Yvonne Wise said Friday. Wise suggested that service members either sell All their saudi Money to military finance offices set up in saudi Arabia before leaving the country or after returning to Europe look for a Soldier heading to the desert who might want a Little Cash. The current Exchange rate for saudi Money is 3.75 riyals for $1. Supplying the saudi Effort the Pentagon s shopping list for operation desert shield totals More than $500 million in supplies to Date. $253 million in food includes �?�26.4 million combat rations �?�7.4 million tray pack rations �?�9.6 million pounds of beef and pork $196.2 million in clothing includes a contract for 1 million additional desert camouflaged 6bus and chemical Protection suits. Chemical suits alone account for $61.7 million in contract orders since aug. 24. �?�247,000 pairs of goggles $51.3 million in medical supplies includes �?�305,334 bottles of sunscreen �?�604,000 tubes of lip Balm a 125,000 cans of foot powder a 227,162 bottles of water purification tablets �?�40,000 cans of chigger repellent fuel a 16 million barrels or 672 million Gallons of fuel have been ordered by the defense fuel Supply Center source defense departments amps Wes  service to begin in saudi Arabia Washington a amps at amp to will introduce its us direct service to saudi Arabia on wednesday company officials said. As a special introductory offer military personnel in saudi Arabia will be Able to make free three minute phone Calls to the United states said at amp to spokesman Ric Wallerstein. A a we la run that free demonstration for at least two weeks and possibly longer a Wauer Steinsaig. By dealing 1-800-100, callers in saudi Arabia Are linked to operators in White Plains n.y., who can make connections to anywhere in the United states. The operators also can accommodate collect Calls and those billed to at amp to calling cards. By giving callers direct links to stateside operators through the special Access numbers which vary from country to country us direct bypasses foreign phone companies whose rates Are usually More expensive than at amp to a rates in the United states. At amp to has not yet determined the us direct rates for Calls from saudi Arabia after the initial introductory period ends Wallerstein said. The company eventually Hopes to run phone lines to most . Mili tary base Camps that have sprung up since operation desert shield began he said. A at amp to is acting out of concern for military personnel stationed in saudi Arabia who have had a difficult time communicating with friends and family a said Frank Ianna vice president of marketing. Saudi Arabia is the 82nd country to join the us direct network since the service was launched five years ago