FLIGHT TEST CENTER WILL CUT 228 CIVILIAN JOBS.

Byline: Jim Skeen Daily News Staff Writer

The Air Force Flight Test Center will trim 228 civilian positions by late October, in a move to match the shrinking defense budget.

Air Force officials hope the positions can be cut through early retirements and by offering incentives for people to leave their jobs voluntarily.

"What we are hoping to do is reduce the number of people being involuntarily separated," said base spokesman John Haire.

Of the 228 positions, 102 already are vacant. Of the 126 positions currently occupied, 115 of those are at Edwards. The flight test center has personnel in other locations, notably Hill Air Force Base in Utah.

In July 1995, Edwards commander Brig. Gen. Richard Engel announced that the base would cut 1,800 of its civilian jobs over a six-year period. The cuts are part of a government effort to trim 250,000 workers from the federal payroll.

One issue yet to be decided is a Pentagon proposal to reduce its test and evaluation forces, of which Edwards is a part, by 35 percent. It's not known when a decision will be made or how it would affect the base.

The flight test center employs approximately 3,000 Defense Department civilian workers.

Edwards is the major center of employment in the Antelope Valley with some 14,000 military, government civilian, and contractor jobs.