European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 21, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 b the stars and stripes Friday february 21, 1992 Spain ponders options for Torrejon several military schools May move to base colonel says _ t it. A i i _ it. By j. King Cruger Mediterranean Bureau Torrejon a Spain a what will the Spanish air Force do with Torrejon a a a that a a big question a said col. Jos6 Francisco Gomez Carretero commander of both the 12th Wing of the Spanish air Force and Torrejon the sprawling base it occupies along with the . Air forces 401st fighter Wing. A it is the biggest Spanish air Force base and will continue to be. Other units will probably come to Tor Rejon a the 50-year-old Fa-18 Pilot said in an interview. A we still done to know what we will have Here this year. It is an open process and the plans constantly change. All the units now Here will continue. Personally i think some of the air forces schools the no school and the staff and command College will be located Here. 1 see the air University eventually being located at Torrejon a car Retro said. Spain owns and has operational control Over Torrejon and has 31 Fa-18 Hornet fighters and eight Rf-4c phantom ii reconnaissance planes at the base 10 Miles Northeast of Madrid. The base hosts Spain a air defense command Center and military air traffic coordination Center. It is also the Home of 22 aircraft designed to fight Forest fires. The . Air Force currently drawing Down and withdrawing All of its f-16 fighting Falcon Jet fighters from Torrejon has for years operated the bulk of the base. This year according to Carretero the Spanish air Force will take Over 200 base facilities now run by the americans and by 1994 plans to take Over a total of 900 facilities and duties including runways fuel operations and ground control approach facilities. Quot they the initial 200 facilities will be the critical ones for maintaining the Ai drome a Carretero said. Like so Many of its nato air forces partners the Spanish air Force is feeling a financial Pinch. A i Hope we will have the Money to operate the base Weare sad to seethe americans go. We have worked Shou Ider to shoulder bask to Back col. Jose Francisco Gomez Carretero the budget to operate it is estimated at $70 million a Carretero said. Quot training our people to operate the base will be a big Challenge a Carretero said. Currently the Spanish air Force has nearly 3,000 members stationed at Torrejon. Two new facilities will be built on the base and a pair of Spanish government air operations will Transfer to Torrejon according to the base commander. A the Western european Union will build a Center to interpret photo reconnaissance images from satellites. The we will Start building the Center in the old gunnery Row Row upon Row of surplus t-55 tanks Are arrayed in the storage depot of the one time East German army officers Academy in Lobar in the state of Saxony. Some 1,700 of the soviet manufactured Battle tanks Are to be destroyed by a private company under a contract with the German government. Flight simulator building in about three months and it is expected to employ about 300 people a Carretero said. The we is a european common defense organization in which the United states has no role. Additionally the colonel said another facility to exploit satellite images will be built jointly on the base by Spain France Ana Italy. Carretero said planes and personnel from the official Spanish mapping Agency Ana a Spanish air Force outfit responsible for transporting government officials will relocate to the base. Quot they will bring at least another couple of Hundred people to Torrejon a Carretero said. Plans proceed for at least half of the 900 spaniards presently working for the americans at Torrejon to go to work for the Spanish air Force there Carretero said. The colonel said the Spanish air Force has mixed feelings about the american draw Down. A we Are sad to see the americans go but proud to have Spain take Over a he said. Quot we Are very Happy with the relationship with the . Air Force and i Hope it will continue in the future. A we have worked shoulder to shoulder Back to Back through nearly half the history of aviation. We suffered losses Here together. We appreciate what they did for the Spanish air Force for Spain and for Europe. We will make a big Celebration a Parade to say goodbye to the 401st.�?�Soldier gets 5 years for rape of tourist Vicenza Italy a amps a a Soldier from a Hanau Field artillery unit will spend five years in prison for sexually assaulting an american tourist last summer at Chania Crete according to a news release from Irak lion air station Crete. Sgt. 1st class Michael bins was also sentenced to a bad conduct discharge forfeiture of All pay and allowances and reduction to the lowest enlisted rank after being convicted of aggravated assault attempted rape sodomy attempted sodomy communicating a threat to kill and disobeying an order. Bins assigned to a Btry 1st in 32nd Field arty at Fliege Horst Cavern was tried in a general court martial in Vicenza where he was convicted Jan. 22. The attack occurred last july 15 while bins Lance missile unit was deployed to the nato missile firing Range near Chania. Greek police arrested bins after finding his identification card at the crime scene. The 17-year army Veteran was charged by greek authorities and not allowed to leave Crete until the government waived jurisdiction in  limit Access sunday Frankfurt a Access to merchants National Bank automated Teller machines will be limited to the Bank a Green machine cardholders sunday Between 9 . And 1 . The Bank will use that time period to work on its processing equipment. The work will prohibit Afan Cirrus or plus cardholders to Access the  lieutenant charged in 1991 murder of wife Hanau Germany a a Hanau Soldier has been charged with premeditated murder in the death last August of his wife a Hanau spokesman said tuesday. First it. Christopher l. Strain formerly of a Btry 3rd in 20th Field arty could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted. Cathlyn m. Brewer Strain 27, died from an apparent 12-gauge Shotgun wound. Strain 28, is currently assigned to the 1st in 32nd Field arty in Hanau. No trial Date has been set. Mia teams dispatched to 3 countries Washington up the United states is stepping up efforts to determine the Fate of american serv to remembers missing in Southeast Asia by Fielding simultaneous search teams in three countries the Pentagon announced wednesday. Three of the teams arrived in Vietnam on wednesday and another in Cambodia. A fifth team has been in Laos since last weekend. All Are being assisted by local officials. A this Marks the first time the United states has fielded. Teams in the three countries at the same time and is a Clear indication of . Efforts to accelerate results from prisoner of War missing in action operations a the announcement said. A the United states welcomes and appreciates the cooperation of Vietnam Laos and Cambodia in providing these  the Effort comes at a time when the Pentagon under increased pressure to demonstrate results in search. Polls show that about 70 percent of the and can people believe that americans missing since Vietnam War Are still being held captive. Earlier this week in Moscow the leaders of the s ate a select committee on pow Mia affairs said russian government had acknowledged that so american deserters from the War Ana possibly so prisoners had been brought to the soviet Union. The russians said they had tried to recruit some the americans As secret agents but had no Suco they said All of the americans had left Russia i promised to open soviet records for investigation. The committee leaders Are Sens. John Kerry mass., and Robert Smith