European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 17, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes monday october 17,1994 of nears by Kevin Dougherty Kaiserslautern Bureau Ramstein a Germany a though fiscal 1995 is a Mere two weeks old the car Force is about to reach the fiscal years goal of voluntarily separating 17,000 enlisted airmen and 1,700 officers from its ranks the commander of the air Force military personnel Center said saturday. But while it continues to Cut its Force strength maj. Gen. William b. Davitte said the air Force still is looking for new blood to maintain a healthy balance Between youth and experience. Despite personnel cutbacks and base closures air Force recruiters have not gone the Way of some Maytag repairmen it forgotten it Active feet on top of the desk. A. A we. Continue to need Good Young people yet there is a misconception out there that the military does no to said Davitte who commands the Center at Randolph fab Texas. Davitte spoke while on a visit to Ramstein a his fourth Stop As part of a tour of . Air forces in Europe bases that began last wednesday. The two week visit described As a routine tour includes More than a Davitte dozen stops stretching from great Britain to Turkey for fiscal 1995, the air Force anticipates an infusion of about 34,000 new airmen including 4,000 officers Davitte said. The figure is approximately half of what it was in the mid-1980s, when there was a Berlin Wall a Warsaw pact and a soviet Union. The air forces separation program for 1995 is not As extensive As past initiatives be said. The application process for voluntary separation for the new fiscal year actually started in february Davitte said. The goal of 17.000 slots for enlisted personnel was  oct. 4, and Davitte said he expects to meet the requirement for officers a 1,700 a in about two weeks. There Are currently no plans for any involuntary separations such As a reduction in Force or selective Early retirement boards for officers. Davitte called the latter method a a a most distasteful option for All parties. The air Force will need fewer airmen to take the Early separation bonuses in fiscal 1996, figuring about 3.000 enlisted airmen and 1,500 officers would do. While past programs have targeted All groups future initiatives probably will place a greater emphasis on senior noncommissioned  we will try to stay away from eating our seed Corn a said Davitte referring to the air forces investment in Young airmen. / a a however the air Force is no longer keeping More pilots than it needs a practice known As a banking a Davitte said. Earlier in the decade the air Force had a surplus of about 600 Young fliers who had completed Pilot training but were placed in an indefinite holding pattern. The pilots were a banked Quot to cover an expected shortage of pilots because of the draw Down. Some spent up to three years a in valid jobs in the support world a Davitte said. A we have banked the last Pilot a Davitte said adding that the last of the group received a flying assignment in september 1993. A we will not Bank any  Davitte also commented on gome other issues including a. /. A a a. A a reminder that the air Force majors promotion list will be out oct. 25. A the air forces Active duty strength is roughly 425,000, of which 80,000 Are officers. A a general observation that most airmen seem satisfied with the current assignment system. The biggest difference now As compared to before is that airmen have greater a visibility into where vacancies exist a Davitte said. A a \ ,. A. A a a the listings that people see today Are actually vacancies a he said a unlike before where just possible Job openings were  v in addition assignment listings Are now posted on an electronic bulletin Board. Sometime next month the electronic system will expand to the Squadron level. A an acknowledgement that airmen and other service members Are under increasing stress As a result of the draw Down and More frequent deployments. The extent to which the military personnel Center gets involved in temporary duty travel amounts to levying staffing requirements onto the major air commands Davitte said. Nevertheless his command is concerned about the frequency of try travel. Sex Soldier engaged in officials Call claims for household goods fraudulent by Ron Jensen Nairn Borg Bureau a former Soldier says he is being treated unfairly by the army which has offered him Only $1,600 to replace what he claims is $19,000 Worth of belongings lost or damaged during a move to Augsburg Germany last year. But the army office that handled the claim is accusing the former Soldier of fraud saying he submitted false claims of repairs and has failed to prove ownership of missing items which is required by regulation. Mitchell Woods said he has spent most of this year trying to recover his losses which include $13,000 in items that were missing. A we had boxes and boxes of stuff that did t show up a he said. The claims office for the Augsburg base support battalion told Woods in a letter dated sept. 6 that he failed to prove ownership of the items he listed As lost. The letter signed by capt. Randolph Swansiger the claims judge advocate also said there is evidence that some documents submitted by Woods have been a altered or tainted by  in a statement released Friday by the 66th military intelligence brigade pub lie affairs office Woods is accused of submitting false claims of repair work and damage costs. According to the statement the German companies that Woods claimed to have visited for estimates told the Augsburg Law Center that no such estimates were made. Also the statement accuses Woods of other inconsistencies in his claim including claiming that a particular Carton that is missing held 110 videotapes. A Carton the size of the one that is missing will hold Only 40 videotapes the statement said. Woods denies any wrongdoing a i think the reason they re doing it is because in a out of the. Military a he said. A a a a a. A Woods left the army on May 17, 1993, after More than eight years taking advantage of the a arly retirement think the reason. They re doing it is because in a out of the  a former Soldier Mitchell Woods program created by the army to reduce the Force in Light of cutbacks. He was stationed at fort Stewart ga., at the time. Part of the Early out program included a move at government expense to anywhere in the United states or Woods Home of record which is California he chose to move to Germany to be closer to his German wife a family and now works for a German firm. The army he said agreed to move him because the Cost was less than a move to California. The furniture and other belongings were shipped in december 1993 and arrived in Germany in late february much of it damaged Woods said. Also several crates were missing. A they denied my claim before they even came out and looked at anything a said Woods 32, who was a specialist when he left the army. In a letter dated sept. 30, the claims office in Augsburg offered Woods $1,672 for his claim. Depreciation was cited for the reason reimbursement was lower than Woods had sought on several items. Plus the letter said Woods had not fulfilled his responsibility of providing proof of value or ownership on several items As required by army regulations. The toughest blow to Woods claim is the refusal to make any payment for a Large number of items Many of which Woods said he had purchased with the Cash Bonus he received for leaving the military. These include tools blankets clothes lamps a wooden horse collection videotapes Christmas decorations toys games and Wicker baskets. A you have failed to provide any credible evidence to substantiate the Purchase of and or replacement Cost of numerous items a the sept. 30 letter told Woods therefore the letter states no reimbursement will be made. V a what they want Are receipts a Woods said. He said it is ridiculous for him to keep receipts of All he owns. Fridays statement added that the claims office would reconsider if Woods can provide further documentation. F a t a. A a a. A a. A Home furnishings Sale in Illinois attracts mob River Forest 111. Apr it was a rummage Sale a mob style. More than 1,000 people showed up saturday to bid on velvet sofas Plush lounge chairs mahogany desks and other assorted furnishings of the late reputed mob Boss Tony a big tuna Accardo. A the whole front Yard was covered with people All Day Long a said Chris Coy of Coy Krupp conducted sales inc., which ran the auction far a couple who owns Accardo a former House and furnishings left behind when he moved out in 1974. Accardo died in 1992 at age 86. His custom made Boomerang shaped teak and mahogany desk sold for $10,000. A Marble topped table with carved Swan legs went for $4,000. A a a a Surprise guest Antoinette Giancana daughter of reputed mobster Sam Giancana and author of the Book mafia Princess dropped in on the auction put on a name tag and helped sell some  still lures Young americans by Sylvia Janovska Deutsche Presse Agenter Prague czech Republic you can t miss them Prague is swarming with Young americans in Prague or a yaps a As they re called Here. Thousands were attracted to the czech capital a dubbed the a Paris of the �?T90s�?� by some a by the atmosphere of change after the collapse of communism in 1989. But a new Ernest Hemingway is hardly Likely to emerge from their ranks. Unlike the Nobel prize winning novelist who was attracted to Paris in the �?T20s, the yaps Are More dedicated to the Good things of life than literary creation. Some Prague pubs Are almost totally taken Over by yaps in the evenings. Pivo Beer is one of the first czech words that even the dullest of them quickly picks up. Many have no More than a strictly limited knowledge of the czech language which Isnit easy to learn because of its difficult grammar and pronunciation. Many try to earn a living teaching English even if most Are unsuited for it. Others try their Luck As pizza Bakers Street painters or businessmen. According to the number of residence and work permits issued Only 1,000 yaps Are in Prague but the czech Media estimate that the real number of footloose youngsters from the United states May be As High As 30,000. The newspapers attribute this discrepancy to the tact that most Are illegal subtenant in houses for which the owners Issue no rent receipts in order to evade taxes on extra income. In 1990, the then czechoslovak Ern ment unilaterally exempted americans from visa requirements. But the euphoria created by changes in 1990 is beginning to fade with each new Mcdonald a restaurant. Prague is fast approaching Western standards of living a with the difference that the telephones done to work. But Many yaps Are packing their bags. Nicholas Lowry 28, who a lived in Prague for four years expressed the yaps new found weariness a i am just getting bored Here. Now i want to return  gov the the