European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 17, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday september 17, 1991 the stars and stripes a Page 3army changing addresses oct. 1 new zip codes these Are the near formats Tor people serviced by military Post offices overseas. Army Posl office patrons have months to Send notices staff sgt. John Doe military unit car or unit xxxix Box number apoae09xxx air Force Post offices is die number tech. Sgt. John Doe military unit pc xxx Box number Apo a 09xxx Navy Post offices 3 nut or Petty officer 1st class John Doe military unit pc xxx Box number Fpo a 09xxx 3digit numb a source military postal officials a amps by Crystal Laureano staff writer rheingau Germany a army Post offices in Europe will begin implementing the new overseas address and zip code changes oct. 1, but officials emphasize that customers need not Rush to make address changes. A they should change during the Normal course of events a when their Bills come the next time they write their parents when they renew subscriptions a said Barbara Lutz spokeswoman for the army postal group in Europe. The old addresses can be used until july 15,1992. Patrons scheduled to leave Europe by the end of the year do not need to change their addresses postal officials said. But those scheduled to leave in 1992 should make the address change to ensure that their mail will be forwarded or in Case their departure is delayed. Postage paid change of address cards Are already available at army Post offices. A nobody should have to pay postage to change their address a said col. Elizabeth Gibson commander of the army postal group Europe. A fall Apos army Post offices have or will have a sufficient amount of the cards and if someone needs More they should come Back to their mail  the change in military address formats and some zip codes began worldwide july 15. Army officials in Europe delayed the implementation until october because of Large numbers of people returning from the persian Gulf summer rotations and unit draw Downs. The format change will enable electronic sorting machines to read the addresses eventually speeding up mail delivery . Postal service officials say. These Are the first Steps toward fully automating overseas military mail a process that will take several years to Complete. There Are two key changes in the four line address format. One is the army Community mail room car number or the unit number. Army postal patrons will have either the car number or the unit number which must be on the third line of the address in front of the Box number. The air Force and the Navy Post offices that began the new system in july use postal service Center pc numbers before the Box number. The unit number is a mail room identifier Lutz said. Therefore soldiers assigned to different units will have the same unit number if they arc serviced by the same mail room Lutz said. The other change is in the last line of the address. All mail destined for Europe the Middle East Africa and Canada will use a in place of by. Mail bound for the Pacific should be addressed with an a and mail heading to the americas other than Canada will use a in place of by. Air Force and Navy postal officials in Europe have received complaints from customers who met resistance when trying to make address changes. A some Post offices in the states and some companies Are not recognizing the a designation a said tech. Sgt. James Lane of the 7025th air postal so at Ramstein a Germany. A there have also been some problems with companies not accepting a four line  postal customers encountering such problems should Tell their local postal officer or postmaster. Authorities will then Forward details of the problem through the service s postal Headquarters in Europe and on to the military postal service Agency the military mail Liaison to the . Postal service. The postal service will Contact the organizations to resolve the situation. A we ask people to come Forward with their problems a Gibson said. A we done to want our soldiers or their family members to sit festering Over a problem. There Are those standing by to fix situations and make them better. A there is no alternative to the Apo. And we need to make ourselves the Best for our customers a Gibson said. A but if no feedback comes to us a if we done to hear about it a we can to fix  coupons May be redeemed off base by Amy Geiszler Jones . Bureau free child care coupons that were Given to parents who rang up extra care costs because of the persian Gulf crisis May now also be redeemed off base according to the . Air forces in Europe Stop child care official. That a if those centers and care providers Are willing to accept them said Bev Houston the commands child development specialist who is based at Ramstein a Germany. When the coupons were first issued in August parents could redeem them Only at military child development centers youth activities centers and licensed family Day care providers. Recently the defense department made a policy change allowing the coupons to be redeemed with off base centers and off base providers As Well Houston said. Many military child development centers Are full with lengthy waiting lists forcing parents into using alternative child care said Houston. More than 3,000 children for example Are waiting to get into a Safe scenters she said. A there Wasny to any intent to penalize any military member who could not use a child development Center because it was full a Houston said of the initial limitation on the coupons use. But off base care givers and centers a would have to be willing to accept the coupons. In lieu of Cash from the Parent a said Houston. The off base recipients then would need to return the coupons to the issuing bases non appropriated financial management office Branch to Cash them in. Although the coupons have a Dollar value the care givers May receive them in their own currency she said. According to a Safe spokesman the command is allowing local base or non appropriated financial management office Branch authorities to determine their conversion rate. In England 3rd air Force is allowing its bases to Issue the coupons value in either dollars or the British Sterling value of the coupons at the daily Exchange rate said Leslie lips child development specialist for 3rd air Force. A spokesman at the Medit Teranen based 16th air Force said monday that local National care givers should provide Bills for the extra care to the serv ice members which then should be Given to a bases morale welfare and recreation office. Mar finance officials then will Cut a Check to the care giver not to exceed $100 and for not More than $2 per hour in local currency based on daily Exchange rates. The 17th air Force which incorporates Germany and the Netherlands Hasni to issued a guidance policy on whether the non appropriated financial management offices at its bases should use the daily conversion rate or a predetermined rate said a command spokeswoman. And there a one other Factor to consider Houston pointed out. A if the care givers done to have Access to the base the Parent would have to agree to take them on the base a said Houston. The coupons must be redeemed by sept. 30, the end of the 1991 fiscal year. Congress passed a Bill in april giving the department of defense $20 million to operate the Coupon plan. Safe which received $280,000 of that allocation directed All base commanders to establish How they would allocate the coupons to eligible parents but said each eligible family can receive no More than $100. An article in the stars and stripes last month on the Coupon program incorrectly said that a Safe a allocation was $208,000. Those eligible include people who deployed As part of the persian Gulf War operations As Well As those who stayed behind and worked extra hours to support the efforts. Verification of deployment or extra duty hours is required to apply. Iraq seeks condemnation of . Trench burial Nicosia Cyprus apr Iraq is demanding International condemnation of the . Army s use of tanks to Bury alive iraqi soldiers in trenches during the persian Gulf War. Foreign minister Ahmed Hussein told the state run Iraq news Agency on sunday that he considered the action a crime. He was quoted As saying the iraqi foreign ministry would Send urgent statements to the u n. Security Council the Arab league the non aligned movement and other International agencies seeking condemnation of the tactic. The Pentagon on thursday confirmed news reports that thousands of iraqis some Stilt alive and firing guns were buried As . Forces broke through iraqi defensive trenches. Pentagon spokesman Pete Williams said the operation avoided american casualties. A there is no Nice Way to kill somebody in War a he said. Williams said he had no estimate of the number of iraqi soldiers who were alive when they were buried but army officers put the number Between 80 and 250.,. A the operation occurred during the opening hours of the ground Campaign when the 1st inf div used tanks to destroy trenches to Aid troops break ing through iraqi defences North of the saudi iraqi border.. Officials said the alternative would have been to Send . Soldiers into the trenches to engage iraqi troops in hand to hand combat