Senator CANNON. Mr. Chairman. Senator STENNIS. All right, Senator. Senator CANNON. I just question whether or not they have taken a real close look at this. This is one of the bases that is going to be reduced in personnel. Your end personnel will be about 900 less than what it is at the present time. Senator STENNIS. Yes. Senator CANNON. Are you going to still have this requirement for officers' quarters? General CURTIN. Yes, sir. This reduction of approximately 900 men has been considered. Actually the deficiency for officers' quarters is 166 spaces. This is only going to take care of about 25 percent of that deficiency, based upon the reduced strength, Senator Cannon. Senator CANNON. If you had such a deficiency at this strength, why have we not heard about it before? Castle has been in operation for about the last what, 16 or 17 years, continuously? General CURTIN. Yes, sir. Senator CANNON. And this is the first time that I recall any mention being made about this deficiency. General CURTIN. In a general way I can answer it; I think the record fairly clearly shows that over the years that we have put very little of our construction program into taking care of the bachelor officers. Only in the last 2 years have we been able to get into our construction program any significant amounts of facilities for the bachelor officers on the base. We have had to defer this to meet operational needs. Senator CANNON. In other words you are just saying it is a deficiency you have been able to live with for 15 years but now you cannot live with it anymore. General CURTIN. This is essentially right, yes, sir. Senator CANNON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, MISS. Colonel FENLON. Page 41, Mr. Chairman, Columbus Air Force Base, located 10 miles north-northeast of Columbus, Miss. The use of this base is for Strategic Air Command heavy bombardment squadron and a heavy air refueling squadron. The program requested amounts to $306,000 and is for two items. The first item provides for the construction of a 4,958-square-foot photographic laboratory. Present inadequate facilities were constructed in World War II for a dayroom and they are entirely inadequate for this function. The second item is a repetitive item for the construction of a library. Senator STENNIS. All right, no questions. Next item. DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, ARIZ. Colonel FENLON. The next base, page 44, is Davis-Monthan Air Force Base located 4 miles southeast of Tucson, Ariz. The use of Davis-Monthan is for a strategic missile wing, strategic weather reconnaissance squadron, a Tactical Air Command combat crew training wing, an air defense evaluation squadron, and Logistics Command aircraft storage and disposal activity. 47-232-65--14 An added mission to this base is the designation of the Air Force by the Secretary of Defense as the single manager for the consolidated aircraft storage, disposal, and reclamation operations of all military services. The program requested for Davis-Monthan Air Force Base totals $3,995,000. The first item is a repetitive item covered in our repetitive briefing providing 32,000 square feet of warehouse space. The second item is a repetitive item and provides for an addition and alteration to the composite medical facilities. The third item provides 12,000 square feet of administrative office space to support the additional personnel required to handle the input of Navy aircraft The Air Force Logistic Command single management functions would be seriously handicapped without this additional space as all other administrative space is saturated on the base. The fourth and fifth items are repetitive items for a 400-man dormitory and a 100-man officers quarters. The sixth item is a repetitive item providing for the construction of a recreational gymnasium. The seventh item provides adequate restaurant facilities in the Air Force Logistics Command area. This is the area in which we are storing the aircraft. Senator ELLENDER. What restaurants do you have there now? Are we providing for public visitors? That is on page 44. Colonel FENLON. The public restaurant refers to the restaurant used by the civilian employees in this area, Senator Ellender. Senator ELLENDER. Where are they eating now? Colonel FENLON. They have to come back to the main base, sir. They are in an area that is some 3 miles or further out in a remote area of the base. Colonel WITTERS. Here is the main base, the runway, and this is the restaurant facility. These people work out here. Senator ELLENDER. Is that on the grounds? Colonel WITTERS. Yes, sir. It is within the real estate, but this distance is about 2 miles. Senator ELLENDER. Where do they eat now? Colonel WITTERS. They have to come back to the base. Senator ELLENDER. Where will you put it? Colonel WITTERS. Right here, sir, this little red dot. Colonel FENLON. Are working in the area, yes, sir. Senator STENNIS. How many do you expect to eat there? You have some idea but, I know you cannot tell exactly. Colonel FENLON. I would estimate, sir, that two-thirds of them will be eating in the restaurant. Senator ELLENDER. Is there a charge for each person who eats there? Colonel FENLON. They pay for their own meals, yes, sir. Senator ELLENDER. And we furnish the building and provide the cooks. Does the cost of the meal cover those expenses? Colonel FENLON. Yes, sir. Senator ELLENDER. All the food and the cooking of it? Colonel FENLON. Yes, sir. Senator STENNIS. Senator Cannon. Senator CANNON. Is this let out to a private concessionaire, the building? Does he operate the restaurant? General CURTIN. I cannot answer that specifically. It could be done in-house or a concession. Colonel WOOD. It would be a concession, sir. Senator CANNON. How is the one being operated now back at the main base? Is that a concession or is that operated by the Air Force? Colonel FENLON. I would have to check that for the record, sir, but I think it is probably a PX concession. Senator CANNON. Will you supply for the record who operates it? Colonel FENLON. Yes, sir. Senator CANNON. And also how many restaurant seats you have proposed in this? General CURTIN. Yes, sir. Senator CANNON. How many it will provide for. General CURTIN. Right. (The information referred to follows:) DAVIS-MONTHAN PUBLIC RESTAURANT 1. The civilian restaurant facility is one of several low-priority projects which have been proposed for withdrawal by the Air Force and the Department of Defense in favor of higher priority projects whose need has developed since preparation of the original bill. This exchange of projects is contained in DOD letter, May 4, 1965. However, in order to complete the record, the following information is provided in response to committee's questions: (a) There are a total of 789 civilians now employed in the AFLC salvage area with a projected employment of 1,027 when functions from Litchfield Park are consolidated at Davis-Monthan. Most of the employees now bring their lunch since the 30-minute lunch period does not allow sufficient time to go to the nearest eating facility. The nearest on-base facility is the base cafeteria, which is a base exchange concession, located 2 miles from the work area and has a seating capacity of 200. There are two local restaurants located over 1 mile from the work area. Prices are approximately 20 percent higher than those on base and none of the civilian workers eat there as a daily practice. Approximately 50 employees from the salvage area utilize the base facility daily. Senator CANNON. I would like to ask one further question. How long do you expect this TITAN unit to stay in? When is it to be phased out? Colonel LUSCHEN. This is TITAN II unit, two squadrons, one missile wing at Davis-Monthan remains in the inventory throughout the program period. It remains indefinitely. Senator CANNON. You have no TITAN I's there. This is the TITAN II. Colonel LUSCHEN. No, sir, no TITAN I's, just TITAN II's. Senator ELLENDER. What kind of a restaurant have you on the base itself now wherein these people work? General CURTIN. They are using, according to the record here, Senator, an airmen's service club. It is the only public facility that is available on the base. Senator ELLENDER. Is that more convenient for the people than to go 3 miles to get their meals? General CURTIN. This is the one that we are trying to avoid having to use because it puts another load on this facility for which it was not designed. It was designed for use as an airmen's service club and not to feed the civilian employees. In addition, this is a facility that is 3 miles away from their work location. Senator ELLENDER. Are we supposed to feed the civilians there? I mean is that done at other bases? General CURTIN. Yes, it is, bases where we have a large industrial complex like this, provisions are made for the civilians to eat on the base. Senator ELLENDER. What would you consider the cost of a meal there in contrast to getting it at a nearby town? Is it much cheaper? General CURTIN. It would be cheaper as a rule. How much I could not estimate. Senator ELLENDER. Because I notice the cost of this facility will be $118,000, and I presume that when you lease it out as a concession, you furnish the gas, you furnish the water, you furnish the lights and furnish everything, do you not? General CURTIN. It would go on a concession, the utilities that would be provided would have to be reimbursed to the Government. Senator ELLENDER. By? General CURTIN. By the concessionaire. Senator ELLENDER. All right. Senator STENNIS. Let me put this question to you, gentlemen. Suppose you have what you call an in-house operation, and you lost money. Who picks up the check on the loss? General CURTIN. If we have an in-house operation and it was so poorly managed that we would lose money, of course the Government would have to pick it up out of appropriated funds. Senator STENNIS. Which fund would that be? Would it come in the general appropriations bill under operations? General CURTIN. Under operation and maintenance and personnel pay. Senator STENNIS. Of course I know the Air Force never has had anything like that happen. General CURTIN. I would not want to say never, sir; but I am sure that we try to identify them as soon as we can and preclude it. Senator STENNIS. What about the availability of a privately owned restaurant for this area you are talking about? Do you know about that? Colonel FENLON. Four miles. Senator STENNIS. Is that right, 4 miles? Colonel FENLON. From the main gate which is on the opposite side of the base from this area. I would estimate 8 to 10 miles, sir; going from the area we are talking about. Senator STENNIS. You can get most anything out of us for the military direct, but when you propose building buildings for the civilians, you hit a sensitive nerve with us. If there is any privately owned and operated restaurant nearby that is adequate, I think you ought to patronize it. General CURTIN. May we research that, Mr. Chairman? Senator STENNIS. All right. Senator ELLENDER. I am wondering why should we provide any restaurant at all there for civilians. Senator STENNIS. We will take this out of the bill until you put in more convincing proof that you need it. Mr. Clerk, take it out of the bill now by unanimous consent unless there is objection. I want to ask one more question here. At Davis-Monthan, you have so many items because of bringing in these additional people from closed bases. There is one item, an addition to the composite medical facility, $1,233,000, that was denied in 1965 by our committee on the grounds not so much that you did not need it but you were not going to fund it in 1965. You had good reasons last year for the need. We have a good many this year, and I do not know whether we will approve them all or not. Do you want to say something special about this one, Colonel? Colonel JARBOE. Yes, sir. Senator STENNIS. You are the successor to Colonel Carmichael, are you not? Colonel JARBOE. Yes. Senator STENNIS. Where is he now? Colonel JARBOE. He is at Brooks Air Force Base, Chief of Staff of the Aerospace Medical Division. Senator STENNIS. Will you proceed? Colonel JARBOE. Sir, the problem here has been with us since we occupied this current facility which was actually undersized when it was built, and this was due to a change in the program strength that we were not aware of when we programed the facility. What we are asking for here is the ability to expand the facility to 70 beds, and also again to do whatever alterations are necessary to bring the Air Force clinic and supporting area up to standards. Senator STENNIS. When did you last have construction there for the hospital? Colonel JARBOE. Sir, that was completed in 1961 at $2.3 million. Senator STENNIS. We had considerable discussion then about getting your unit cost down, and you did get it down quite a bit. But it is a little discouraging to have you come back in 4 or 5 years, you know, for additions when you have not had any substantial increase in personnel, although you have some new activities there. You are going to have 8,318 against 7,687. That is roughly just 700 or 800 more people? Colonel JARBOE. Yes, sir. The problem here, Mr. Chairman, is one of a deficiency that has existed for several years. Senator STENNIS. So when you finished your hospital in 1961, it was too small then? Colonel JARBOE. Yes, sir. Senator STENNIS. Was that your fault, or was that our fault? Colonel JARBOE. I think this was something that none of us could have predicted, sir. It was a change in the program after we started building the hospital. Senator ELLENDER. Are civilians taken care of at this hospital? Colonel JARBOE. Dependents, yes, sir; dependents are but civil service personnel are not. General CURTIN. Dependents of the military as opposed to civil service. |