European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 8, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Saturday december 8,1990 a the stars and stripes page3crisis in the Gulf a. A care problems Hurt readiness by Chuck v1nch Washington Bureau Washington a unrealistic child care planning undermines military readiness according to a defense department inspector general a report. That could have serious implications for military families and personnel managers during a Large Short no Tice deployment the report said. However it is unclear whether european deployments to saudi Arabia Are being hampered. The . Army in Europe Headquarters refused to allow its officials to be interviewed on the subject. There was no explanation for the refusal. Playing to the Middle East. The army reports similar Success. Quot considering Large number of i Rig the Amily care plans we have carried out there Are As Many As 72,000 single parents in the military and thousands More families in which both parents Are on Active duty said the report compiled from the number of soldiers who could not deploy because of invalid plans has been almost infinitesimal a an army official said. 4 the army has listed fewer than 40 soldiers As non deployable because of child care problems out of an estimated total of More than 100,000 who have been sent to the persian Gulf theater. But most of the forces deployed to Date have come from the United states where military parents can More easily rely on their families for emergency child. Fco a Isle Chauy Tor the army As a Large additional . Troops to be deployed to the Middle care help. That will change Over the next few months especially for the army As a Large portion of the 170,000 visits to More than 70 military communities worldwide in 1989. All services require single parents and dual military couples to designate in writing How their children would be cared for in their absence both on an interim Day to Day basis and for an extended period. But the report said three quarters of the commanders interviewed described family care plans As a a basically unreliable and in Many cases in the states the military services have not had major problems with child care arrangements for deploying troops. A. A. A. The Navy whose personnel embark on frequent and lengthy deployments throughout their careers and the air Force which has deployed relatively smaller forces than the other services both report minimal disruptions in executing family care plans for service members de East come from Europe. The in report found a Clear instances of unrealistic and unreliable child care arrangements in Many units particularly overseas. One dual military couple in Italy named a guardian living in the United states to take custody of their child but had no interim plan until the child and guardian could be brought together the report said. A i done to think we have been truly realistic about our emergency family care plans especially in the foreign environments a said Sydney Hickey of the National military family association. A what will single parents overseas do a put 4-year-Olds on a plane by tie selves to go Home to grandma and grandpa a she asked. A the military certainly Isnit going to pay to have someone Fly to Europe to get the a a a a. A a a. A a. A the problem for Europe based units is compounded because family care plans generally have been linked to the non combatant evacuation order or Neo program under the scenario of a soviet invasion of nato territory the Ahny official said. A in the Neo plan you have most family members coming Back to the states a he said. A a that a not the Case some families of deploying troops will return to the states As part of the general Force reductions in Europe scheduled to take place this fiscal year but a a Large number of family members will be staying in place a the official said. Quot we re concerned about the availability of escorts for the children of military parents overseas Quot he said. A a we re concerned about the financial hardships that could be incurred to get these kids Back to the army officials in Washington Are working closely with their counterparts in Usa eur on those issues the official said. A a but overseas commands Are far from unprepared for. This kind of situation a there s More awareness overseas of the need to have plans in place for this kind of eventuality a the air Force official said. In fact one of the commands cited by the in report As having excellent emergency family care plans was Safe headquartered at Ramstein a Germany. Highly Mobile units such As the 82nd airborne div also were praised for frequently testing the family care plans of to Cir personnel and disciplining those who done to meet their responsibilities. As a result of the in report the defense department is drafting a directive on family care plans to put More emphasis on ensuring that they Are kept reliable and accurate. A i a a v. 1 left a a i y is. Uit of a a \ i 4 ,7a a Quot n k1 yet it j Vav a of a a a of Quot two soldiers from the 2nd so 2nd army Cav regt from Bamberg Germany stare out a bus window at their new desert environment.1st Europe based tank unit Rolls into desert by Rob Jacodzinski Pacific stars and stripes a Eastern saudi Arabia the first shipload of tanks from the army a oldest continuously serving regiment arrived this past week from Germany at a port in Eastern saudi Arabia. The arrival of the 2nd army Cav regt equipment marked the beginning of the deployment of Europe based tank units to reinforce the 230,000 . Troops already in the Gulf Region. The United states expects to have More than 400,000 service members in the Region sometime in january. The 2nd army Cav regt headquartered in Niernberg Germany brings with it the powerful Mai Abrams tank with its i20mm main gun. An earlier version was fitted with a smaller 105mm Cannon. The larger gun allows you to defeat heavier Armor at a longer distance Quot said it. Col. Michael Kobbe commander of the 2nd so. A a bigger Bullet Means better t a the m1a1 also has some features that increase the survivability of the Crew a he said. These include an internal pressurized air system that can keep out chemical contaminants he said the regiment also is equipped with m3 Bradley fighting vehicles ah-1 cobra helicopters and other Armor and aircraft. A we can provide reconnaissance and Security for a larger Force said Kobbe 40, from Easton Kan. The regiment could operate As a scout element on the flanks or in front of a corps sized unit the commander said. Formed in 1836 by president Andrew Jackson to fight the Seminole indians in Florida the regiment gained Fame in world War ii As the a ghost of Patton because of its role As the general a Forward scouts. A until about a year ago the regiment was assigned to patrol the Border Between East and West Germany and Between West Germany and Czechoslovakia. A on the Border we were away from everyone and had to have a lot of discipline a said pfc. Chris Trott 20, a cavalry scout from los Angeles. Border duty a required. You to know your Basic Soldier skills Well a he said. A if you did no to read your map Well you a be in trouble. Its easy to accidentally Cross the Border a said spec. Sterling Robinson another scout. Robinson 23, from Philadelphia said that desert navigation will be one of the cavalry a toughest tasks. While some sol Diers in the cavalry have worked in the desert the unit has never had any formal desert training he said. A in Germany you have mountains ridges and terrain Relief to navigate by a said chief warrant officer 3 David Valdez a helicopter Pilot with the regiment. A to navigate Here we will use time Dix Tance headings a Fly a certain amount of time for a certain distance to keep our a Valdez 31, from Pueblo colo., said he has trained in the California desert several times and has also Down in Central american a. Quot a we will Tram with other pilots who have been Here awhile a the Black Hawk Pilot s-�?T1. ,
