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Article: Germany slims down.(Germany will close garrisons and disband a fighter wing)(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- Interavia Business & Technology
- Article date:
- February 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Aerospace Media Publishing. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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German defence minister Rudolf Scharping has announced plans to close 39 major garrisons. Another 20 smaller installations -- employing 50 personnel or less -- will also be closed. Currently the armed forces are spread out over a total of 605 locations, including the civilian administrative and procurement arms.
The closures -- and streamlining at other bases -- are expected to generate annual savings in operational costs of slightly more than DM200 million per year beginning in 2002 -- a small amount compared to the overall defence budget of about DM46.5 billion. The move is an essential part of the armed forces reform which has begun by streamlining command ...