Fuel prices in Germany and the Netherlands will rise as much as 16 cents a gallon Saturday, according to a price announcement Thursday from the Army and Air Force Exchange Service. The increases end months of price declines in Germany.

While the average price of regular gas in the U.S. fell 4 cents a gallon in the past week, regular gas in Germany jumps 9.3 cents to $2.028 a gallon. The average U.S. price, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, is $1.659.

Prices in the United Kingdom fell slightly, though they won’t keep pace with stateside declines. A gallon of mid-grade drops a penny in the country, while the same gallon in the U.S. fell 4.7 cents in the last week.

According to AAFES, the new prices are all set at "floor," meaning the exchange makes little to no money off fuel sales.

New deputy named for 6th FleetNAPLES, Italy — Rear Adm. John M. Richardson has been selected to take over as director of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-6th Fleet Plans and Operations and to be second-in-command of 6th Fleet. He will replace outgoing Rear Adm. Charles J. Leidig, according to a Pentagon press release.

Richardson currently serves as director of strategy and analysis at the U.S. Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Va.

Richardson’s additional duties entail being commander of Submarines, Allied Naval Forces South and commander of Submarine Group 8, all headquartered in Naples.

Italy: Fresh chicken coming soonNAPLES, Italy — Fresh chicken should be back in stock in Italian commissaries next month. The supplier, Arena Divisione, also known as Arena Chicken, was reinstated Tuesday, following a Dec. 11 audit of the production plant in southern Italy.

The company took "corrective actions necessary in the plant’s post-mortem inspection process," according to Europe Regional Medical Command officials.

The poultry producer was placed on the suspended suppliers list after failing an October audit for improper inspection procedures, according to ERMC. Earlier in the year, the company failed an inspection after traces of coliform bacteria were found in the water used to wash chicken parts after they were plucked and gutted.

Deliveries of Arena Chicken are slated to begin Jan. 12 at all Italian commissaries, according to Defense Commissary Agency officials. Shoppers in Vicenza and Aviano, however, will be able to buy fresh chicken next week, as French company Arrivé will temporarily supply those commissaries.

Air Force confirms nuke errorsWASHINGTON — Air Force officials acknowledged Wednesday that inspectors at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming turned up deficiencies in several areas of the 90th Missile Wing’s nuclear surety inspection.

In a statement, Air Force Space Command officials said despite the problems the wing remains certified to perform its strategic mission. The command’s inspector general has planned a return to the base within 90 days to make sure corrective actions have been taken.

Officials would not specify what problems were raised in the inspection, citing Air Force policy not to release that information.

"There is no margin for error in nuclear operations," the statement said. "The benefits of this careful examination are paramount to continued reliability and confidence in our nuclear enterprise."

On Tuesday, the Project on Government Oversight said they had obtained a memo from investigators to Congress detailing that the unit’s management of nuclear missiles and its "tools, test, tie down and handling equipment" were both rated unsatisfactory by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.