European briefs: Thousands expected at Alpini assembly

More than 450,000 people are expected to converge this weekend in Bassano del Grappa, Italy — about 20 miles northeast of Vicenza — to take part in the country’s annual Alpini assembly.

Alpini, sporting distinctive hats with feathers in them, have a long history serving as troops in Italy’s mountain regions.

Col. Gordon “Skip” Davis, chief of staff for the Southern European Task Force (Airborne), will participate in events that include a Sunday parade. Davis, who is leaving his post soon for an assignment in Afghanistan, is a full member of the Alpini — a rarity for an American.

Bassano hosts regional gatherings for the Alpini annually, but hasn’t hosted the national gathering in decades.

The gathering officially kicks off Friday with a Mass and ceremony atop Monte Grappa, where thousands of Italian and Austrian troops killed in World War I are buried.

Some events are open to the public. More information is available (in Italian) at: www.adunatabassano.it.

Family Community  Expo set for Friday

WIESBADEN, Germany — U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden will host a Family Community Expo from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday.

Planned for the fitness center on Wiesbaden Army Airfield, the event promises a wealth of information on organizations and upcoming events. The expo will feature representatives from around the command and community.

There also will be information on classes ranging from combating sexual assault to coping with deployment stress.

For more information, call DSN 337-5575.

Navy’s new destroyer named for SEAL

The Navy has named its newest destroyer after Lt. Michael Murphy, a SEAL who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in 2005 in Afghanistan.

Murphy led a four-man SEAL team that was tracking a high value target when they got into a fierce battle with close to 200 Taliban.

Surrounded by Taliban fighters, Murphy exposed himself to enemy fire to call in for backup. Despite being shot twice in the back, he was able to complete the call.

Murphy and two of his teammates died, and the backup team was shot down, but his actions allowed the one surviving SEAL from the team to be rescued later.

The Michael Murphy will be the 62nd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.

AAFES gas prices keep creeping upward

AAFES gas prices will increase by about a penny Saturday in Germany and the United Kingdom, while diesel prices there fall 2.8 cents per gallon.

This is the sixth straight week prices have increased, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, and another record.

In Germany, the price of premium nudges a fraction of a cent over the $4 barrier.

There is some relief at pumps in the Netherlands, where midgrade and premium gasoline drop 7.1 cents and 7.4 cents a gallon, respectively. But prices remain AAFES’ highest — $4.269 for midgrade and $4.576 for premium. Diesel there rises 5.4 cents a gallon to $4.783.

The EIA, on which AAFES’ prices are largely based, again raised its projections for peak prices this year, saying in its monthly short-term energy outlook that regular-grade gasoline likely will average around $3.73 per gallon for June. In April, the EIA predicted the average price for all grades combined would peak at about $3.60 sometime this spring.

The EIA notes that U.S. gas prices have, on average, shot up 56 cents since Dec. 31.