European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 12, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday february 12, 1991the stars and stripes a Page 7war in the Gulf j ._oqu�/0l4_tx Ltd Ltd v 1 left his a a every which Way a an american Soldier walks past signs showing the direction Home a As Well As the comparatively Short trip to Baghdad a for some of the . Troops based in Tel Aviv Israel. The soldiers Are operating the Patriot missile system to Knock out the scud missiles note sign pointing up being fired at Israel from Iraq. Bombing turns kuwaiti skies into traffic Jam Dhahran. Sii Iuli Arabia apr the relentless Allied bombing Campaign Lias skies Over Iraq and Kuwait so crowded that officials Are concerned collisions May occur according to the . Air Force. A the dangerous situation has been worsened by pilots eager to drop All their bombs who linger too Long Over targets the officers added. A a it a very congested up there a said col. Gary a. Voellger commander of the 552nd airborne warning and control so based at an air base in Central saudi Arabia. A there Are a lot of air planes getting congested into a Small area. One of my concerns is a midair collision a he said. Voellger said the a acs planes in the skies Over saudi Arabia Are so Busy directing bombing missions and other sorties that they cannot adequately serve As. A airborne traffic cops. Quot we have to work it real hard a he said. A a it a just another Challenge we have to  at times the skies Over Iraq and Kuwait get dangerously crowded because Allied pilots stay in their target area longer than their Mission Calls for according to another senior air l orce officer in saudi Arabia. A a it col. Charlesm a up j a it tip in who has been stationed in saudi Arabia for 18 months assisting the saudis with their Azacs planes said Pilot occasionally have to be ordered to leave their Quot kill one Quot because of fast approaching jets on missions in the same area. Quot Thoj skies Are so crowded its like a freeway a traffic Jam ii Fie did no to do that a Pettyjohn told Pool reporters Quot sometimes we have bad boys that want to play longer than their time. We have a schedule an air tasking order that says you be got 10 minutes Over this kill  and you re supposed to get out of there a he said. Pettijohn said eager pilots often request extra time. Quot these Guys say a wait in be got ordnance and there a targets Down the Ere you can to do this to  so they Don t want to  this report was based on a Pool dispatch submitted Tor military Security review a gis fume As prices skyrocket in desert shops by Chris Hedges the new York times Al Sadi saudi Arabia a saudi shopkeepers along the main Northern Highway have doubled and tripled prices As United states troops have poured into the Northern desert. The jump in prices has angered Many service members who have come to rely on local stores for the Small amenities such As snack food and kerosene Heaters that the army docs hot  Brief trips they make from their. Desert encampments to buy supplies Are a a us Fally the Only Contact they have with the saudi population. A they have no morals to do this to us a said one private Elizabeth a. Sandels As she stood next to a. Vendor Selling Small teapots and cookie pans in the tiny town of Al Sadi. Quot we put our. Selves on the line and they done to care. A they can think about is making money.�?�. Soldiers driving from their Northern. Desert positions descend to the paved Highway that runs from the persian Gulf in the East to Jordan in the West. The Highway which has been labelled Dodge Road is the Only paved surface that runs parallel to the Border with Kuwait and Iraq. At various spots along the Road usually congregated around Gas stations Are collections of Small tin rolled shacks that sell canned food and Basic household items. The merchandise is typically covered with a thin layer of dust and is stacked in haphazard piles both inside and outside the stores. Store owners Are suddenly besieged by hundreds of new buyers who pay the prices they Are asked an unusual phenomenon in the Middle East. The merchants have been Busy ship Ping in stacks of the supplies now must in demand such As foam mattresses kerosene stoves and Heaters cases of soda plastic Siphon pumps cigarettes and cooking supplies. Quot the Only thing they done to have now is Copenhagen a said sgt. Darryl j. Washington referring to a smokeless tobacco product popular w Ith troops. Service members complain that on each new trip they Are paying More and More for the same items. Quot we bought one of these four Days ago from this same place a said sgt. Bobby c. Sampson As he stood next to a stack of korean made kerosene Heaters. Quot it Cost $40. Today he wants $70.�?� thin foam mattresses that sold for $3 a month ago now Cost $ 10 to $ 12. A Carton of cigarettes has jumped from $6 to $15, and a Box of 24 snickers bars has a climbed from $6 to $ 15, a i had to quit smoking a said pvt. Dennis j. Barnett from Billings Mont. A i just can to afford to pay this much for cigarettes a. The store owners Are unapologetic about raising prices. They cited the Long haul to bring supplies from the saudi capital Riyadh and the Quot risk of working in a War one. A we stay Here in this dangerous area a said one store owner Hamel Anzy. A we do not have Gas masks or these chemical uniforms. Why else would we risk our lives unless it was for Money a.  but spec. Julian f. Edwards of the Bronx n.y., said a these places afe just ripping us off. I hate every one of these people. We come Here to help out and All they want is our money.�?�. Sgt. Ellis Jones from Montgomery ala., echoed that sentiment saying the shops a Are slicing open our  the dearth of stores Means that Large numbers of troops often with Long j. Gets for those left behind converge on the few Hole in the Wall shops along the Highway. As the numbers have grown the Wheeling and dealing has become More Iron civic. In a tiny dark restaurant a Young Man behind the counter was Selling Chicken and Rice wrapped in foil. In minutes the Price swung from $3 to $5 for a portion. In another shop a merchant was Busy Selling pirated tapes of american music most of which he had copied front Cas seites obtained from . Troops. A you got any gospel Quot sgt. Rockie g. Williams said slowly to the baffled met it Cliatt who preceded to hand him a a tape marked Quot disco hits.�?�. A i doubt they have any gospel Here Quot the sergeant mused Quot what with their religious  the counter clerks Are often Young men from Pakistan. Bangladesh and Iraq. Most of the iraqis fled during the War with Iran to escape the draft. The prices Are not marked and the americans have Little idea of. Local Val. Us. A in the beginning we could bargain a Jones said a but not now. They stick to the prices and the Only place they go is up. This is the Only spot on the Road for us gis to go and they know