Hoffman, who, until last year, worked at Willow Grove, a suburban Philadelphia base, had privately told a supervisor, whom he thought to be his friend, that he was gay. When his supervisor reported the conversation, Hoffman surmised that he might lose his military status, but he had no inkling the Air Force would also dismiss him from his on-base job as a civilian mechanic.

Hoffman's ACLU lawyers, while tacitly agreeing that the Air Force might presently be within its rights to remove him from military ranks, argue that it is Hoffman's military superiors who are off base. Under the Constitution, said Stefan Pressler, legal director at the ACLU of Pennsylvania, a civilian "has a right to define himself as a sexual human being."

The Air Force believes, according to its legal representative, Major Bill Wells, that it is fully within its rights to dismiss Hoffman not only from its Reserves ranks, but also from any civilian job which, its contends, remains conditional, requiring a continuing Reserves status. Since Hoffman is no longer in the Reserves, says Wells, he is no longer welcome on the Willow Groves base as a civilian employee.

Hoffman, though homosexually inclined, is married and has eight children. After telling his supervisor, whom he described as a "long time friend," his homosexuality also became known to co-workers, but with no indications that his working abilities had been affected. Hoffman had even been placed, during this period, in a temporary supervisory position. It was not until April, 1996, that military officials stripped Hoffman of his weekend military pay and his Reserves uniform pending his formal discharge.

Fearing also the loss of his pension and other retirement benefits the 51-year old veteran retired from the Reserves before being discharged. He did not, however, expect to lose his civilian job and not until July did this dismissal occur. Other civilian employees who no longer retain Reserve status, have continued at their on-base jobs.

"They wanted John off the base," said the ACLU legal watch. The Air Force's lawyer contends, however, that there are many civilian Air Force employees who are openly gay, including at least one other at Willow Grove.

The United States Navy, after settling a legal struggle in 1994, originated a policy that prohibits sex-preference discrimination against civilian Navy employees. The Air Force and other military branches have no such more-enlightened policies. Both the ACLU and John Hoffman hope their new lawsuit will update outmoded Air Force regulations