European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 19, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday March 19, 1992 the stars and stripes a Page 9f-22 crucial top of officials say by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington a top air Force officials told Congress on tuesday that those who claim the new f-22 advanced tactical fighter is not needed because of the dependability of such service stalwarts As the f-15 and f-16 Are not looking far enough into the future. At a Senate appropriations defense subcommittee hearing on the fiscal 1993 air Force budget request Secretary of the air Force Donald b. Rice said the f-22 is crucial to maintaining into the next Century the kind of air superiority that won the persian Gulf War. Subcommittee chairman sen. Daniel k. Inouye a Hawaii said the original premise for the f-22, which is not scheduled to be fielded for another decade was to counter the soviet threat to Europe. With that threat now fading into history some lawmakers feel the current generation of fighters is More than capable of handling any foe that might conceivably be on the horizon Inouye said. Rice acknowledged that the air forces front line fighters still have the Edge today with a slight advantage in avionics and a much bigger advantage in the skill of . Pilots. A the f-15 has an extraordinary record a Rice said of the fighter that specializes in air to air combat. A but the f-15 will be 30 years old in 2002. There Are other aircraft that Are almost the aerodynamic equivalent of the f-15  he mentioned the Mig-29 and Su-27, both built by the former soviet Union As Well As the French Mirage fighter As examples a these Are aircraft that if . Pilots were flying them would approach the capabilities of the f-15 Eagle and f-16 fighting Falcon a he said. A frankly a situation where you have aircraft capable of giving us an almost even match if the other Side invests in Pilot training is not a comfortable position to be  Gen. Merrill a. Mcpeak air Force chief of staff said the idea of air superiority Means having an aircraft so far ahead of anything else that the air War can be fought Over the enemy a territory. The United states has not lost any ground troops to an enemy air attack since the korean conflict precisely because the air Force has had the technological Edge to take the air War to Hanoi in the Vietnam War and to Baghdad in the persian Gulf War Mcpeak said. A you want to take the air Battle Over the other Guys territory and win it in a decisive Way a he said. Expected advances in surface to air defences and other aircraft Over the next 10 to 15 years could make the Eagle vulnerable in the future Mcpeak said. The f-22 is designed to maintain the current . Edge Well into the next Century a to confidently achieve air superiority in any Given situation a Mcpeak said. A it makes Good sense to make the mistake of having too much air  the air Force wants to spend about $2.2 billion in research and development on the f-22 in fiscal 1993. The first prototype test aircraft will probably be fielded in fiscal 1995. The air Force has already announced plans to end production of the f-15 and f-16 fighters in fiscal 1993. On other issues Rice and Mcpeak defended the services plan to keep 3vi fighter wings in Europe once the draw Down there is completed. Sen. Ted Stevens a Alaska estimated that the 3vi wings will Cost about $5 billion per year and questioned whether it would not be More Cost effective to station the aircraft in the United states and maintain Bare Bones bases overseas to be used for deployments during emergencies and training exercises. Mcpeak said the current plan is a an appropriate con Gen. Merrill Mcpeak. Testifying before senators tuesday. Tributino for the air Force to make in a european Force Structure that will be half of what it is  he said one Wing of f-15e strike eagles will be based in the United kingdom to provide Long Range interdiction and tactical nuclear capabilities while a Wing of f-16s will be based in Germany. In Germany f-16s currently Are based at Ramstein and Span Dahlem air bases. The new f-15es began arriving at Raf Lakenheath England last month where they Are replacing the aging Fleet off a 11f aardvark fighter bombers. He said the service is still convinced that the third Wing belongs in the Southern Region of nato even though plans to base it at Croton Italy have fallen through. Report shows . Knew of Pakistan atomic work Washington a the state department had detailed knowledge in mid-1983 that Pakistan was developing nuclear weapons and that China was assisting it according to a . Document released by a research organization. The six Page paper titled the pakistani nuclear program said there is a unambiguous evidence that Pakistan is pursuing a nuclear test capability. It described pakistanis nuclear fuel Cycle facilities reprocessing and uranium enrichment capacities along with its nuclear cooperation with China. In the mid-1980s, the Reagan administration played Down reports of pakistanis nuclear weapons program. Pakistan was instrumental to . Covert support of rebels fighting soviet troops in neighbouring Afghanistan. A we have concluded that China has provided assistance to pakistanis program a the document said. China a involvement started with operational support for a Power reactor at Karachi but it expanded possibly As far As cooperating in nuclear device design the paper added. State department spokeswoman Wendy Chamberlain declined to comment on the document which was unsigned and contained no indication of where it originated in the department. The department released the document to the National Security Archive a private Washington based group that filed a Freedom of information act request for documents on uranium enrichment plants in Pakistan. Three months after the document was written a state department official said publicly that . Assistance was reducing pakistanis motivation for acquiring nuclear explosives. The document shows that the state department knew at the time that such an argument had a no Validity a Leonard spec Tor a specialist on pakistanis nuclear program said in an interview. The argument a was just being put Forward to deflect criticism of . Support for Pakistan said Spector a senior associate at the Carnegie endowment for International  on Walton president Bush adjusts the presidential medal of Freedom around the neck of Sam Walton the founder of Wal Mart discount stores on tuesday. Bush and his wife Barbara travelled to Wal Mart Headquarters in Bentonville ark., to present the nations highest civilian Honor to the Man Bush called a an american  considers trying no in wife s murder by Ray Rowden Washington Bureau Washington a almost two months after being called to Active duty a former club manager has been charged with murdering his wife in saudi Arabia last uly. Army officials at fort Stewart ga., were to hold a Taring wednesday to decide if they will prosecute 57-ear-old sgt. Maj. Earnest . Sands who was for Nally charged March 4. Sands maintains that he is innocent. He reported fading his wife of 11 years Amparo m. Lands read july 18 in the quarters they shared on the . Compound of the . Military Liaison Mission in Riyadh. Two of three autopsies pointed toward strangulation As the cause of death. The third did not result in any findings. The hearing similar to the arraignment proceedings of a civilian court is to determine the Legal merits of the Case according to a spokesman for the 24th inf div Mech at fort Stewart. Results of the hearing and a recommended course of action will be turned Over to a fort Stewart commander for decision the spokesman said. Sands who retired from the army in 1984, had been chief of the Community operations div at the . Military training Mission in saudi Arabia. He was recalled to Active duty Jan. 8, and immediately transferred to the 24th inf div Mech at fort Stewart. The division commander maj. Gen. Barry r. Mccaffrey became the army court martial convening authority for an area that included Riyadh during the persian Gulf War. Sands is not in custody according to m2j. John Banning a spokesman for the 24th inf div. A a he a working As a member of the 24th inf div logistics staff a Banning said. Logistics staffs provide their organizations with supplies and services such As Field rations and dining facility operations. Sands specialized in logistics during his 27-year army career. The army Scase against Sands appears to hinge on testimony by a sri lankan Man who worked for the former club manager in saudi Arabia according to a letter from the . Military Mission there which was released to the stars and stripes by the court of military appeals. A your former Houseboy has provided a sworn statement that he saw you finish suffocating and strangling your wife and helped you move her from the floor to a bedroom at your insistence a the letter said