Texas Wing - Mar 2007

8/6/2019 Texas Wing - Mar 2007

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SPRING2007

In th is issue . . .

5 Apol lo SQ w in a 1st Prize in Robo t ics . . .

5 Hon or ing Col Ki t t in ger , USAF, Ret . . .

5 Delta Cadet at tends Space Con ference . . .

. . . And Much More!

Wreaths Across America 2006


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Continued on page 39 . . .

Wings Over Texasis the autho-

rized publication of the Texas

Wing Civil Air Patrol. It is pub-

lished by a private firm in no

way connected with the United

States Air Force or Civil Air Pa-

trol Corporation. The opinions

expressed in the articles and ad-vertisements in this magazine

are the sole responsibility of the

contributors and in no way con-

stitute an endorsement by the

United States Air Force or the

Civil Air Patrol Corporation.

HEADQUARTERS

Texas Wing, Civil Air PatrolUSAF Auxiliary

P. O. Box 154997

Waco, TX 76715

Please send articles and digitalphotos for publication to:

[email protected] do not insert thephotos into the articles,

rather make the articles andphotos separate attachments.

Col Robert F. Frank EldridgeCommander, Texas Wing

Maj Patricia P. Darby

Editor, Wings Over Texas

For i nformation onAdvertising Rates and SpacePlease Call 1-800-635-6036

DEADLINES:

Feb. 28; June 28; Oct. 28

1

COMMANDERS

COMMENTSCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC

Colonel Robert F. Frank Eldridge, Texas Wing Commander

Texas Wing Commander,Col Frank Eldridge

M y t i m e a s y o u r W i n gCommander is coming to a close -during the Wing Conference, I

will be passing the reins to ColJoe Smith. Im very proud of youraccomplishments during the 3

years I have been your com-mander and I would like to passon my deepest appreciation for

the outstanding and professionalmanner in which you bring thehighest credit to Texas Wing and

the Civil Air Patrol. You are theAmerican Volunteer Hero whocontinues to perform the Missions

for America.Here are just a few of the

Highlights

Our cadet program is the bestIve seen. Our cadets are offeredseveral training opportunities

within our wing throughout eachyear to include two encampments,two cadet training education pro-

gram schools, air navigation com-petition, wing cadet competition,drill master school, marksman-

ship training, communicationschool, Texas State LegislaturePage Program, glider and pow-

ered flight academy, groundsearch and rescue specialty schooland the Wing Cadet Advisory

Council. This does not include thenational activities our cadets alsoattend including the opportunity

to participate in the InternationalAir Cadet Exchange. Our mem-bership strength has average over

1,300 cadets in the past threeyears, with impressive accom-plishments: 165 Billy Mitchell

Awards, 52 Amelia Earhart

Awards, 15 Ira Eaker Awards anda very impressive 7 Carl Spaatz

Awards. Each year our cadetsreceive ROTC scholarships andappointments to our military ser-

vice academies. Our cadets aretruly the leaders of tomorrow. Allthat I have mentioned does not

happen without the senior mem-bers and the cadet officers sup-porting the cadet program. I

would like to provide specialthanks to Lt Col Brooks Cima forher leadership in developing the

strong program we have todayand to Major Phyllis Sutton whow i l l n o d o u b t c a r r y o n t h e

outstanding job.Another area of great success

is our Emergency Services pro-

gram. Hurricane Katrina hit Loui-siana and Mississippi hard, butthat didnt stop our folks from

helping out. We deployed air-crews, ground teams and missionstaff into Mississippi to assist.


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On December 14, 2006,Civil Air Patrol members gathered at cem-

eteries and military memorialsacross the United States to honorour military, veterans and those

that have given their lives to makethis nation free. For the past 14years, Worcester Wreath Com-

pany of Maine, has been layingwreaths at Arlington NationalCemetery during the holiday

Compiled from reports by Maj Dana Gray, 2d Lt Kelly Castillo,

and 1st Lt Denise Thompson

season to honor those that havegiven their lives that we may livein a free nation.

In 2006 Worcester Wreathand CAP came together to expandthe mission and create Wreaths

Across America. Wreaths werel a i d i n o v e r 2 3 0 S t a t e a n dNational cemeteries and Veterans

Monuments across the country. InTexas, five squadrons partici-pated in the ceremonies which

began at 12:00 p.m. EST. All cer-emonies were to begin at the sametime to coincide with a ceremony

being conducted at ArlingtonNational Cemetery. The new mis-sion of Wreaths Across America

is to Remember the fallen Honor those who serve Teachour children the value of freedom.

Founders Morrill and KarenWorchester wish to bring together

Members of the Lone Star Chapter, Paralyzed Veterans of America, fire three ceremonial rifle volleys.

San Angelo(L to R) StaffSergeant Nicole Powell

represented the Army, Air CraftHandler 1st Class Shane Kruegerrepresented the Navy, CaptainHenry G. Billings, Jr., representedthe Marines, 1st LieutenantTimothy Lange represented the AirForce, Lieutenant Colonel TomStrickland Civil Air Patrol made thepresentation for the US CoastGuard and Mr. Virgil May (formerPOW) represented the POW/MIA.

Wreaths Across AmericaWreaths Across America


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El Paso1st row: Maj Frank Kennedy, Maj DebbieTorres; 2nd row: 2d Lt Robert Duran, Capt ScottDellinger (center), Maj Russell Smith; Last row: 1stLt Charles Simien, 1st Lt Patrick Mulvey, 2d Lt RorySmith, 1st Lt Ron Price (beard), Maj Larry Spradlin

For moreinformation

onWreathsAcross

Americavisit

www.wreathsacross

america.org

3


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Apollo CS Gets a Hot AirBalloon Demonstration

On 6 February the Apollo CS, Group III, got to

play with a balloon. But it wasnt your every-dayparty balloon. This one happened to be a 75,000cubic-foot balloon, the kind that can fly thousands of

feet up into the air, miles at a time, with people in it.Mr. Bruce Lavorgna brought out his hot air bal-

loon, that he had promised to set up for the squadron

members. He arrived in this small panel truck, and Ithought, ...but he promised to bring the real thing...Whats this? A toy? Never mind, we soon saw that

it was the real thing. Its amazing how little balloonand how much hot air you need to make ahumongous hot air balloon.

He had the cadets help with setting up the bal-loon, while he tested the burner, talked and gavesmall demonstrations. It turns out that hot air bal-

loons work best twice a day. First between dawn andan hour after dawn, then at the other end of the day,

By C/SMSgt Michael Moody and

Capt Arthur E. Woodgate

from an hour before sunset until sunset. The rest ofthe day warms up the air too much, and the balloondoesnt do as well.

Also, when you think hot air balloon, youimagine an empty balloon that gets filled with hot air.Not so. First you fill it with cold air as much as you

can, then you heat the cold air inside the balloon.Since using an open flame is the only easy way to gethot air in the field, the balloon needs to be filled with

air first, or else the flame can touch it and burn it up.There was some wind that day. Not real wind,

really, but even a breeze can add to the work when

youre trying to hold a balloon where you want it.The Apollo cadets felt confident that they could dothis, but the balloon kept getting bigger, and bigger,

and bigger. Finally it was as big as Gulliver inLilliput Land. The Apollo cadets (and senior mem-bers, too) were the Lilliputtians, of course.

The cold and sleeping Gulliver got some prettygood shots of open flame, and that heated it some,and it started puffing up. Then it started to rise a

little, and bounced a bit, and finally it started movingup right over the gondola. The gondola is the basketwhe re the b al loo ni st rid es , together with the gas


Apollo CS Gets a Hot AirBalloon Demonstration

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Gener al Car l A.Spaatz Aw ard

Caitlin R. Cima TX179Anna M. Finn TX403Paul J. Kapavik TX334

Michael T. Maloy TX390

General Ir a C. EakerAward

Jon T. Cuyler TX390Bradley E. Sutton TX390

Matthew W. Whisennand TX133Paul M. Rojas TX007

Daniel W.Palmquist TX413Eric A. Mabry TX176Paul J.Kapavik TX334

Amelia EarhartAward

Gus M. Rojas TX007Jonathon W. Theall TX098

Eric N. Smith TX098Joshua D. Vaughan TX148Cassie A. Stephens TX413

Faith A. Brymer TX187Rebecca M. McKinney TX214Christopher M. Papson TX214

Andrew J. Theismann TX020

Texas Wing Cadet Awards 2006/ 2007

Benjamin J. Amis TX388Jonathan Daniel TX334

Jesse Daniel TX334Yesenia Alvarez TX802Bradley J. Cilino TX351Richard D. Pope TX351

Andrew N. Domenech TX196Aaron T. Clay TX390Jon T. Cuyler TX390

Nicholas D. Combs TX802Jonathan D. Groves TX388Cesar Riojas TX091

Matthew M. Toussain TX142

General BillyMitchell Award

Parth S. Patel TX390Nathan J. Carey TX390Tiffany J. Hamm TX376

Paul M. Blahut TX354Kolby H. Elliott TX085Santiago A. Soto TX802

Joshua Flores TX179Collin B. Carstens TX334Andrew C. Martin TX409

Clinton J. Lillie TX376Steven M. ONeil TX435Christa L. Conroy TX390

Jonathon W. Theall TX098James H. Schulgen TX295Kathleen B. Deiters TX351

Adrianna Darling TX334Thomas H. Kraft TX091John B. Baron TX179

Keith R. Kasmarek TX179Nataly Oropeza TX802Shane M. Darville TX196

Caleb D. Stricklin TX085Steven P. Hamman TX351Sharya F. Qureshi TX179

Colton D. Anderson TX435

Raquel M. Gomez-Simmons TX403Christopher Kingsbury TX098

Marie C. Krouse TX409Robert A. Adkins TX148Annabel R. Andrews TX179Benjamin A. Josse TX376

Jacob A. Carr TX334Joel A. Buchman TX334Patrick J. Buchman TX334

Grayson E. Strakele TX051Nathan J. Hays TX154Daniel Glowicz TX051

Gus M. Rojas TX007Michael T. Williams TX376

Joshua D. Jenkins TX085Emmett K. Koen TX085Camden T. Lawless TX441Ada L. Hill TX802

Casey K. Vermillion TX441Matthew E. Yalcin TX360Edward J. Jabonski TX098

Christopher S. Miller TX098Brandon G. Maso TX390Ryan R. Wykes TX334

Stephen Kline TX334Natalie J. Jacobs TX142

Brandon A. Mathis TX802Stephen E. Camp TX089James W. Camp TX089Joey A. Hinchman TX403

Daniel P. Braden TX403Robert G. Maestas TX051Abigail E. Bellah TX388

Lisandro A. Rodriguez TX802Joshua D. Knight TX154Devin A. Reimers TX186

Herakles A. Boardman TX351Kevin L. Glenn TX351

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The Distributed Training Ex-ercise that had been carefully

planned for the weekend of 12-14January got an unexpectedlysevere blow from icing condi-

tions. If it is true that small planesare capable of a great many tasksthat larger and more expensive

aircraft cannot do, they are alsomore vulnerable to the effects ofbad weather.

High winds and icy condi-tions are two of the worst calami-ties when it comes to flying small

planes such as Cessna 172s and182s. These form the backbone ofthe Texas Wing flying assets.

Nevertheless, the Civil Air Patrolis in a state of constant alert,and by necessity must train for

adversity.Over twenty different stagingareas all over the State of Texas

had signed up to participate in theexercise, which was to be directedby the staff assembled in the Inci-

dent Command Post in Dallas. Ofthese staging areas, over halfwere put out of business by ice

when the morning of Saturday,January 13 rolled around. Know-ing that bad weather approached

quickly, 12 sorties were launchedand successfully completed theirassigned missions, most of them

flown over the southern countiesadjacent to coastal areas. Otherstaging areas - inland and to the

north -, quick on the draw,changed their training from airto ground searches so as to be

able to practice their ability to

Texas WingWeathers

the Weathercommunicate solely by radio.

Of the five training objectivesidentified for this weekend, threeof them were fully met. Refine-

ments to radio communicationsresulted in enhanced ability todisseminate information. Flight

crews succeeded in uploadinginformation to the master data-base in-flight, which was then

captured for relay to the real-world client government agency.The ability to organize, authorize,

report, and control missions bythe use of radio communicationsproved successful, both for air

missions and ground missions.At the beginning of the exer-

cise, when icing and freezing rain

had been forecast and seemed

inevitable, the possibility of can-celing the exercise was raised. On

this subject, the Incident Com-mander, Lt Col Owen Younger,said, Airplanes seldom crash and

emergencies are less likely tohappen on sunny days. This iswhy we must train in bad weather

too, provided we keep safety as atop priority.

As the tasking took place, and

the results began to flow in from

the field, the U.S. Air Forceobservers and liaison officers

commented that it was nice to seecivilians behave as their militarycounterparts do, when all that

CAP members had to do was callit quits and just go home. Youhave the right approach, was the

comment.

By Captain Arthur E. Woodgate

canisters that he uses to keep the

balloon flying. When the balloonstood up, the cadets put all theirweight on the edges of the gon-

dola, which is really a basket,while Mr. Lavorgna kept theburner going in short bursts, and

that made the balloon glow likea paper lantern. It was a giant gar-den party, and a lot of fun.

The cadets thought that theballoon was going to take off,with them still hanging on to the

basket, but that didnt happen.The demonstration lasted aboutan hour and a half. Everybody

there had a great time, the cadetsthoroughly enjoyed it, they wereeven arguing over jobs to do with

the packing up of the balloon;they all wanted to be in on it. Onecadet even said that his mind was

m a d e u p : n o w h e w a n t s t obecome a balloon pilot. (Photos:Capt Arthur E. Woodgate)

5

Hot Air Ball oonDemo . . .Continued from page 5

Col H al Parker10 Dec 1932 - 17 M ar 2007

Texas W ing CC10 Sep 1989 - 16 N ove 1991

1N ov 2002 - 12 Sep 2003

I n M emoriam

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DSAREX Communications atAustin Bergstrom

The Apollo CS teamed up with the Kittinger

Phantom SS and the Pegasus CS for the DSAREX of

16-18 February, 2007. For me, it all started whenCapt Benavides and I awoke at 0300, though it took a

while for me to actually wake up. To be honest, Ikept nodding off, but breakfast and a quick shower didthe trick. I jumped into my uniform, packed my gear,

and thought, Today is gonna be a real challenge.Finally ready to roll, we drove to the Krispy

Kreme at La Frontera, next to I-35, because Capt

Benavides said that any extra cadets who wanted tocome would meet us there that morning. There wereno cadets. Never mind, said Capt Benavides, so we

bought a dozen donuts and took off.About 25 minutes later we arrived at

Georgetown Municipal Airport to pick up the CAP

van and the radio equipment. Once there, CaptBenavides had me run through the necessary inspec-tion categories and everything checked out, so we

headed over to the hangar to retrieve the radio equip-ment. We loaded everything, from inter-squad radiosto HF long-haul antennas, and soon were on our way

to the Austin Bergstrom International Airport.When we arrived, we had trouble finding our

mission post, so we stopped at the TxDOT Flight

Services Building and met up with 2d Lt NicholasCapo. Yes. This was the right place, so we confirmedwith the squadron at Georgetown that we were on

site. We parked the van next to one of the hangars inthe rear and began surveying the area for potentialsetup sites. This was quite challenging, as almost all of the

ground was covered with concrete. We had two options:either the grass field between the tarmac and the taxiway,or the picnic area outside the flight services site.

The picnic area looked attractive: it had somescattered trees and a few tables, and we could use it. Thedownside was that if we needed a food or restroom

break, we would have to walk all the way back throughthe gate and into the building. That left the field area,completely clear of obstacles, right next to the building.

At first we were not sure we were allowed to set upthere, but the Kittinger Phantom Squadron commanderassured us that it was OK. So we drove the van into the

field and began setting up the HF antenna.About five minutes later, I noticed a truck head-

ing our way. I could tell by the logo on the door that

it was airport staff. The driver pulled up next to our

By C/SrA Justin Benavides

van and Capt Benavides went over to talk to him.

Then I start thinking, Oh, no! Are we in trouble with

airport security now? A few minutes passed. Icouldnt really tell what they were saying, because I

was monitoring the radio. Then, an APD police cardrove up next to the truck. Now I was getting reallyworried. As it turned out, we didnt have an AOA -

Aircraft Operations Area - badge or an escort. But inthe end they let us pack up our gear and exit the field.I cant tell you how badly that could have gone. We

could have been detained for hours while waiting forthe FBI and the Department of Homeland Security toarrive, so we got off really easy.

With that out of the way, we turned to the oneoption left - the picnic area. We drove out there andused what available space we had to set up the HF

antenna. By then, the aircraft had already launched.At first we had some trouble joining the network, butabout 10 minutes later we were fully operational.

Our first contact was Camp Mabry. Eventually wecontacted Kerrville Mission Base. After a while weset up a VHF antenna to improve communications

with the aircraft. Things were going smoothly. But then,a of couple hours later, when Kerrville mission base de-cided to switch channels, we couldnt raise them any

more. We managed to talk to Sphinx Net Control a fewtimes, but after that we couldnt reach them either.We spent another couple of hours without HF

radio communications. Early that afternoon, c/AmnAnna Haworth arrived and helped monitor the air-craft on the VHF radio. Eventually, we got the HF

line working for a while. then lost signal again. Atthis point, Capt Benavides decided to contactKerrville mission base by phone, by late afternoon.

At one point, one of the flights from our staging areaspotted a large smoke plume and requested that it bereported, but other than that, it was relatively quiet.

About 2 hours later, both our flights landed at theairport within 30 minutes of each other - we werefinally done. We checked in with Kerrville Mission

Base via phone and terminated operations. We thenpacked up all the communication gear and swept thearea for trash or unaccounted items. After that, we

left ABIA on our way back to Georgetown.Overall, it was a lot of work, but it was also a

really fun and eventful day. Despite some setbacks,

it was a great day.

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On 6 January 2007, barelyinto the New Year, the Apollo

Composite Squadron, Group III,Texas Wing Robotics Teamheaded to the UT campus for the

FIRST Lego Robotics Competi-tion. They took along their offi-cial entry, support equipment,

dreams and enthusiasm. They hadbeen preparing for this event forsix months. Open to children ages

14 and under, the FIRST LegoRobotics Competition is knownfor its tough standards and highly

competitive participants.FIRST is a great acronym(For Inspiration and Recognition

of Science and Technology) forthis nationwide program, but ithardly describes the spirit of

do-or-die that the young teamsbring with them to the arena. Noblood is spilled, but it is truly a

contest to the death, where theyoung teams meet their opponents

just before they have to produce

their best effort. For this, carefulpreparation and a well laid outplan seems to work best. The best

teams can work well and effi-ciently even under pressure.

When they got to the staging

area where the competing teamscould work on their robot beforeeach run, the Apollo cadets were

amazed at some of the robot

Apollo

Cadets Wina First Prizein RoboticsCompetition

By

C/MSgt Michael Moody

designs that other teams hadbrought along. They were all

young, but this wasnt going to bea kids game. And the list ofevents matched the seriousness of

the competition.The first thing on the agenda

was a teamwork challenge, an

event for which the cadets CivilAir Patrol training had preparedthem quite well, so they com-

pleted it with little trouble. Whenthey got done with that exercise,they immediately started to test

their robot, getting it (and them-selves) ready for thecompetitions first run.

Even though a couple of cadets had stayed up most of thenight before, working very hard

to finish the programs, there werestill a few glitches that needed tobe worked out. The robot is in fact

a mobile computer, and it mustoperate according to the programsthat drive it. It was up to the

cadets to write the programs, loadthem, and make sure that they gotthe hardware to do what was

required - as defined by thecompetitions task rules.

When it came time for their

first round, the cadets had notcompletely fixed all of the prob-lems they had encountered, but

they had run out of time. It was

their turn to have a go of it any-way. They crossed their fingers

and let Amanda, their com-puter-driven robot, take her bowsand do her dance. Fortunately, no

singing was required.Amandas first run didnt go

very well, and the cadets really

wanted to work on the robot somemore, but they couldnt becausethey had to give a presentation on

Nano Technology, which is whatthe competition was all about.The presentation went very well

with just a few minor flaws, butthe cadets werent worried aboutthat at all. What they really

wanted to do was go back andwork on the robot to prepare it forthe next run. They knew that now

they had fallen behind, and play-ing catch-up is a lot harder thandoing it right on the first run.

The second run went muchbetter, but they still needed to domore work. And once again they

cou ldn t work on the robo tbecause they had something elsethey needed to do. They had to

give there technical presentation,which involves their telling some

judges how they built their robot

and why they did it that way.They had not prepared very hardfor this presentation, because they

Continued . . .

11


10/40

thought that the robot wouldspeak for itself, and it seemed todo just that. The cadets were now

very excited because they knew

they had done well. But they hadno time for celebrations, because

Amanda needed to be worked on!At long last it was time for the

final run. The cadets had fixed all

the programming problems, butwhen they ran her, Amanda stillwasnt good enough to beat her

second run. Thats when thecadets knew they hadnt won, butthey were still glad that they had

been able to attend and participatein the event. No matter what, ithad been a wonderful learning

opportunity. When the tally wasi n , a n d t h e r a n k i n g s w e r eannounced, they hadnt fared too

badly: they got 18th place for theRobotics Competition, in a fieldof 30 entries.

But they still had a chance at atrophy for one of the other threecategories: Presentation, Team-

work, or Technical Design. Mostof the cadets didnt think that theyhad been good enough to get a

trophy at all, so after they hadgone down to the stage to get theirparticipation medal that is the first

thing they give out at the awardsceremony, they put on their jack-ets and sat down with the crowd.

From then on, they would be therefor the fun of it, so they justcheered on the other teams who

were winning the awards. Thecadets were not sad or angry, butthey all knew that they would try

harder the following year.About half-way through the

awards ceremony, the announcer

got to the winners in the Techni-cal Design category, and some ofthe cadets started getting excited

because they thought that they

might have a chance to win thirdor even second place. So theypa id a t t en t ion eage r ly . The

announcer called out the third

place winner, and it wasnt theApollo team. Some of the cadets

started losing hope of getting anytrophy a t a l l , and when theannouncer named the second

place winner and it still wasntApollo, the cadets lost hopealtogether.

Then the announcer starteddescribing the robot of the firstplace winning team, and to some

of the cadets it began to sounda w f u l l y f a m i l i a r . T h e n t h eannouncer called out the team

number, and most of the cadetsdidnt realize that it was theirnumber, and that they had won.

Then, as a cadet started to say,Hey, thats ours. the announcersaid clearly, in a voice that

sounded like sweet thunder fromHeaven, the Apollo CompositeSquadron.

The cadets were stunned, andit took some heartbeats beforethey realized that it was true, that

they had won a major trophy. Notjust any trophy, but first place inthe Technical Design competi-

tion. It was a coveted and presti-

gious prize. They were so proudof themselves that they could

hardly stop smiling and grinning,as now it was their turn for theother teams to cheer them all the

way to the stage. It was the closestto sheer joy they had ever come.And next year theyll try harder.

The cadets on the team were:Erica Condrey, CameronCondrey, Joshua Nolte, Michael

Nolte, Jon Kokel, JonathanMiller, Anna Haworth, andMichael Moody (team captain).

They all had a great time, andlater agreed that it had been awonderful experience.

A t t h e s q u a d r o n s n e x tmeeting, the cadets presented thetrophy they had earned to the

squadron commander, 1st LtCheri Fischler. The cadets want togive a special thanks to the team

coaches: Mr. Johnny Miler, Ms.Joann Nolte, and 2d Lt SueKristoffersen (who took the photos).

Robot ics Competit ion . . .Continued

5

13


11/40

2d Lt Russ Corley

spoke of the historical impact of the Civil Air Patroland of the 64 CAP members who lost their livesdefending American shores during World War II. The

audience gave their respects with a moment of silence.The master of ceremonies then introduced the

Commander of Pegasus Composite Squadron, Lt

Daren Jaeger. Lt Jaeger spoke of the successes of thesquadron in the three primary missions of CAP.Through the cadet programs we have developed

members who are now attending the USAF Academy(Cadet Lt French) and are participating in programssuch as the Corp at Texas A&M (Cadet Lt Glenn)

and the ROTC at the University of Texas (Cadet LtPope). In operations the squadron served on 5 USAFmissions and improved our operational readiness

through a 3 day field training exercise. Finally inAerospace Education our AEO Lt Mark Van Es(assisted by Lt Arnold) led us to our 3rd successful

completion of the AEX award.Lt Jaeger then introduced our distinguished guestCol Tony West, Chief of Staff for the Texas Air

National Guard. Col West directed his comments tocadet Deiters and Cadet Hamman and shared hisexperiences at becoming an officer. He shared the

realization of the added responsibility and commit-ment to duty that an officer must uphold at all times.Col West spoke of the new challenges that the cadets

will face where the danger is not as clearly defined asa front line or a beach head but will be disguisedwithin a population. The Col expressed his confi-

dence that as we move into a new era of challengesthat the CAP is providing the background and train-ing in leadership to meet that challenge.

Then came the awards.This year the Pegasus Composite Squadron partici-pated in the International Air Cadet Exchange pro-

gram (IACE) and hosted cadets from Sweden,Austrailia, New Zealand and the Canada. In recogni-tion of those families who hosted the cadets Lt Col

King presented the IACE Awards to Chris Arnold,

On December 2, 2006 the Pegasus CompositeSquadron held its annual awards ceremony. At 11:00the squadron mustered for the beginning of the cer-

emony. There was an outstanding turnout of familyand friends to celebrate the achievements of the unit.

Lunch was served at 11:30 and the ambiance was

provided by a volunteer string quartet and aslideshow of activities that the unit had participatedin over the course of the year. As the cadets and

senior members watched the show they reflected onthe many positive experiences and memories.

1st Lt Robin Pope, master of ceremonies, began

the event at precisely 1230 and after thanking themany parents and family members for their supportintroduced the recipients of the General Billy

Mitchell awards, Cadet Katie Deiters and CadetSteven Hamman.

The Mitchell has been in existence since 1964

and honors the late Brigadier General Billy Mitchell,aviation pioneer, advocate, and staunch supporter ofan independent Air Force for America. This award

which is earned after passing an arduous 100 ques-tion examination on testing leadership theory and

aerospace topics is required for promotion to cadet2d Lt. Since its inception over 42,000 cadets haveearned this honor. After Lt Popes introduction thecadets took their position of honor on the stage.

Cadet First Sergeant Stewart brought the room toattention and the Pegasus Squadron award winningcolor guard posted the colors. After an excellent ren-

dition of the national anthem by the string quartet, LtFord led the room in an opening prayer. Lt Ford then

Pegasus SquadronAwards Ceremony

Lt Jaeger receives Crossfield Award.

Col Tony West, Texas Air National Guard


12/40

Bradley Cilino, JD Draper, Debbie French, Mark

Petrosky, Dick Pope, Rickey Pope and SusieShockley.General Chuck Yeager Awar d: Senior Member

Donna Arnold, Lt John Meiners, Senior Member

Gordon Lofland, Lt Chris ArnoldA. Scott Cr ossfield Awar d: Lt Daren Jaeger

Red Service Awar d: Raphel Eire, Jessica Shockley,Liz West, Michael Joseph Devine (5yrs)Command Service Ribbon: Lt Daren Jaeger

Recruiter : Steven HammanEncampment Awar d: Raphael Eire (1st Award),Steven Hamman (3rd Award)

Wright Brothers Certificates: Rachel Ball, DavidHamman, Herakles Boardman, Steven Hamman,Andrew Bos, Ryan Pope, Bradley Cilino, Andrew

Raymond, Kathleen Deiters, Caleb Smith, RaphaelErie, Sean StewartFirst F light C ertificates: Rand Fowler, Deion

Odom, Sean StewartOr ientation Ride Completion: Rachel Ball, StevenHamman,

Boy Scouts of America AwardsBronze Award: Marcus Bialkowski, StevenHamman, Kyle Morris

Emergency Preparedness Award: MarcusBialkowski, Richard Pope Jr., Joseph Devine, Jes-sica Shockley, Raphael Erie, Caleb Smith, Steven

Hamman, Sean Stewart, Kyle Morris.Lt Jaeger then took the stage for a few specialawards. Cadet Bradley Cilino was recognized for

distinguishing himself as Honor Cadet at the TexasWing Officer Training School. Cadet StevenHamman was recognized for completion of the

National Blue Beret encampment. Lt Jaeger thenawarded the Senior and Cadet Officers of the year toMaj Pope and Cadet Hamman respectively.

The Mitchell Ceremony began with a slide showfor each cadet representing a short life history. In ashort five minutes it gave us a peek of how these

cadets got from birth to where they are today. Thepictures which were provided by the parents wereboth interesting and amusing. They were interesting

in that they gave insight to the character of the cadetsoutside of their CAP roles and amusing because someof the shots were very much out of their CAP roles.

Each cadet gave a short speech on CAP core val-ues. Cadet Deiters spoke of integrity and volunteerservice. Integrity is more than simple honesty. You

are who you are when you are alone. And with

regard to volunteer service Cadet Deiters said it

reflects the very essence of the organization serviceto humanity. Cadet Hamman spoke of excellenceand respect. Excellence is the core value that

reflects CAPs continuous effort to be the very best,and to consistently improve its humanitarian serviceto America. Hamman described respect in this way

it is extremely important that members treat eachother with fairness and dignity, and work together asa team. To do otherwise would seriously impair

CAPs capability to accomplish the mission.The cadets were then asked if they understood

and were willing to commit to the Cadet Officers

pledge and answered a resounding I am. DeputyCommander of Cadets Lt Col French certified thatCadet Deiters and Cadet Hamman have held leader-

ship positions in the squadron for the past 18 months.It is with pride that I certify that these cadets are deserv-ing of this award and rank Lt Col French concluded.

The Cadet Commander Cilino then addressedCadet Deiters and Cadet Hamman on the fourresponsibilities of a Cadet Officer; honor, loyalty,

courage and service. Master of ceremonies, if thesecandidates are willing and eager to accept the mantleof responsibility, as well as the honor of the rank

insignia, then I request that you proceed to adminis-ter the presentation of the Mitchell Award.

The candidates stood and recited the Officers

pledge and were welcomed into the Officer Corps ofthe Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program.

Pegasus Squadron Commander 1st Lt Daren

Jaeger said, It has been an honor to command andserve the squadron over the last year. For the lastthree years we have had three Gen. Billy Mitchell

cadets and this year they have done it again. We haveso many gifted and talented cadets who are lookingto secure a brighter future for us all. We have to

equip our cadets with not only plan A, but also withplan B, and C. This is the next generation that willlead us into the future and we want to ensure they

have the skills to get us to tomorrow. 5

Cadets Hamman & Deiters

15


13/40

Pegasus Squadron, part ofGroup III, Texas Wing, Civil AirPatrol, hosted a Boy Scouts of

America Merit Badge Workshoplast October 28, providing the set-ting for excellent cooperation and

understanding between CAPcadets and BSA scouts. Thirteenscouts from the Capitol Area

Council attended and earnedmerit badges in Aviation, SpaceExploration, First Aid, Disaster

Relief and Communications. TheBSA Council was extremelygrateful, since training for these

Eagle Scout-required courses isnormally hard to find. PegasusSquadron, a Civil Air Patrol unit,

is dual-chartered as BSA VentureCrew 351.

During the Aviation portion

of the workshop, scouts visitedt h e T e x a s M i l i t a r y F o r c e sMuseum on Camp Mabry as part

of their badge requirements. Atthe museum they saw an aircraftsrotary engine up close, as well as

a cutaway view of a jet engine.They truly enjoyed seeing thecockpits of an F-16 and the L10,

imagining themselves pilots ofthese aircraft. During the tour, afew museum visitors attached

themselves to the tour. Later

they told us, Thank you for theguided tour. You really made thehistory come alive!

The Space Exploration mod-ule gave scouts an opportunity tobuild model rockets and create a

ca rd abou t a f amous spaceexplorer. Since the tasks require-ments for scouting are similar to

those for CAP cadets, the latteralso took advantage of the oppor-tunity to finish Phase II of CAPs

model rocketry program. CAPcadet officers acted as mentors tothe group, completing their own

progression requirements asAerospace Education mentors.

The First Aid portion of the

merit badge workshop presentedmany practical situations thattested the scouts skills. Many

CAP cadets needed this trainingin order to complete their GroundTeam 3 qualification, and scouts

needed it to complete that meritbadge. Both got hands-on trainingin how to bandage head and eye

injuries, broken arms, and litter-carry (making a litter with logsand a blanket, and carrying the

injured person to safety).The Communications badge

training came with an aviation

twist, as students watched a videoon radio communications in anairplane. They saw first-hand how

critical it is to speak clearly andaccurately when communicatingwith the airport control tower.

This was an exciting andrewarding event for everyone.Not only did CAP cadets finish

progression requirement, ground 5

Pegasus CompositeSquadron Hosts BSAMerit Badge Workshop

team requirements and require-ments for their Venture CrewBronze awards, but BSA scouts

completed critical requirementsfor their Eagle Scout award. Theday was a total success and every-

one went home with a sense ofaccomplishment.

The Civil Air Patrol (CAP)

maintains the worlds largest fleet(550) of single-engine, piston air-craft, as well as the Nations most

extensive communications net-work. Through aerospace educa-tion, glider and powered orienta-

tion flights, flight training schol-arships, and cadet programs, CAPserves its nearly 57,000 members,

Americas youth, and the publicat large. CAP performs 95% of allinland search and rescue in the

U.S., as tasked by the U.S. AirForce. CAP also f l ies aer ialreconnaissance missions for

homeland security, as well asdisaster-relief and damage assess-ment operations. CAP transports

time-sensitive medical material,and flies counterdrug missions forhomeland security. For more

information about Pegasus Com-posite Squadron on Camp Mabryin Austin, TX please visit http://

www.pegasuscap.org.

1st Lt Daren Jaeger

17


14/40

Cadet Finn entered into the

exclusive world of Spaatz

awardees on 23 August 2006,becoming the first member of the

Bell County Composite Squadronto achieve the rank of Cadet/Colonel. This significant mile-

stone in a young and vigorous lifewas no accident. The recipient ofnumerous academic, leadership,

and emergency services awards,she was selected as an Interna-tional Air Cadet Exchange am-

bassador to Canada in 2003 andAustralia in 2004. She was alsothe Texas Wing 2004 Summer

Encampment Cadet Commander,a position of responsibility usu-ally entrusted to a male cadet.

After graduating salutatorianof the Belton H.S. Class of 2004,she received a Presidential Schol-

arship to attend American Univer-sity in Washington, where she is asenior majoring in Literature and

Philosophy. She also earnedscholarships from the Civil AirPatrol and several local organiza-

tions. Currently studying abroadat John Cabot University inRome, Italy, she will be attending

University College in Dublin dur-ing the Spring, 2007 semesterbefore returning to A.U. for her final

year of undergraduate studies.Annas father - Michael P.

Finn - is a former CAP cadet and

has been active as a senior mem-ber of the squadron until his mili-tary duties intervened. A lawyer,

he is a colonel in the US ArmyReserve and a member of a CivilAffairs unit. He was deployed to

Hungary as part of the BosniaPeacekeeping forces, Kuwait/Iraqin 2003, and Afghanistan in 2005.

He works in Fort Hood as a civilian

Group III Cadet Newest Spaatz AwardeeBy Captain Arthur E. Woodgate, PAO, Group III

attached to the III Corps.

Annas brother Jim, a formerCAP cadet and Eagle Scout, hasbeen serving in the Texas Army

National Guard for the past fouryears and is an ROTC cadet atTexas State.

It took almost five months toorganize the right ceremony andselect the attendees and persons

of high rank that would do justiceto Cdt Finns performance. Nowpart of the estimated 1% of CAP

cadets that reach this level ofachievement, she is still the sameeasy-going but intense young per-

son who drove herself relentlesslytowards her goals after joining theCivil Air Patrol in 1999.

Lt Col Richard Spurlock,squadron commander, a retiredU.S. Army aviator, once worked

for General Robert M. Shoemaker

who served in Korea and Vietnam

and retired as commander of

Forces Command, a 4-star post-ing. Gen Shoemaker graduated

from West Point in 1946, wentthrough aviator training in 1960,and spent an entire career in

Army Aviation.A persuasive and gentle

leader, Gen Shoemaker achieved

excellence through motivation,serving as a model and inspirationto all those around him. After re-

tirement, he continued to servethe community in elective office.The Killeen I.S.D. named its lat-

est school after him, and he hasbeen inducted in the U.S. ArmyOperational Testers Hall of Fame

and the Army Aviation Hall ofFame. In 1994 he received theFrank W. Mayborn Humanitarian

Award.Present for the occasion were

Col R. Frank Eldridge, Texas

Wing Commander, and MajPatrick L. Benoit, Group III Com-mander, both of whom arrived at

Temples Draughton-Miller Air-port in Maj Benoits BeechcraftBaron.

Lt Col Spurlock started theevent by introducing 2d Lt JohnPravel, who in turn introduced

Cadet Finn and asked whetherCol Eldridge would like to say af e w w o r d s , w h i c h h e d i d .

Addressing himself to Cdt Finnand her parents, he congratulatedher on a brilliant cadet career,

wished her the best of luck in herchosen field, and hoped that shewould always retain her spirit of

volunteerism and service to thecommunity.

These sentiments were then

Continued . . .

19


15/4020

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repeated, in various ways, by ColFinn - Cadet Finns father.

In introducing Gen Shoe-

maker, Lt Col Spurlock remarked

in an aside, So here we are, gen-eral - working together once

again. To which the generalreplied, without missing a beat,Yes, and youre telling me what

to do, as you used to do backthen. His warm and kind smilegave the audience a glimpse at a

well-remembered and fruitfulprevious relationship, built in afar sterner and less forgiving mili-

tary world.Af ter the congra tu la tory

remarks, Col and Mrs. Finn

placed the new ranks shoulderboards on their daughters shoulders.

Now wearing her new rank of

Cadet/Colonel, Cadet Finn facedGen Shoemaker, who presentedher Spaatz Award certificate with

glowing and gentle remarks, thenplayfully added, Now, give us ahug. Whereupon Cadet Finn

gave him a quick, tight, and briefembrace that took the general bycomplete surprise. Smiles were

everywhere, including Col Finnsparents. Cadet Finn attributed hersuccess to the good example and

encouragement she received fromher older brother, now anROTC cadet. She referred to her

award as a matter of personal sat-isfaction, rather than a competi-tion with her peers. She then

thanked all those who hadmentored her, and who had let hermentor them.

Lt Col Spurlock ended theceremony by telling thosepresent, Please help yourselves

to the cake and drinks served atthe back of the room. Mind you, Idont want to have to take any of

it back with me... 5

Spaatz Award . . .Continued

(Left to Right) Maj Chris Harcrow, Deputy Commander for Seniors; LtCol Lou Thomas, Squadron Commander; C/2d Lt Kolby Elliot; C/2d LtCaleb Stricklin; C/1st Lt Joshua Jenkins; C/2d Lt Emmett Koen; 1st LtRobert Smith, Deputy Commander for Cadets; Lt Col Wilber Dixon;Judge Sam Griffith, 12th Court of Appeals; and Lt Col Owen Younger,Commander of Group III, Texas Wing.

The Roberts Raiders Com-

posite Squadron, Group III, pre-sented a General Billy MitchellAward to each of the following

four cadets: Emmett Koen,Joshua Jenkins, Caleb Stricklinand Kolby Elliot. The General

Billy Mitchell Award, which hasexisted since 1964, honors thelate Brigadier General Billy

Mitchell, aviation pioneer, advo-cate, and staunch supported of anindependent Air Force for

America.The Mitchell Award is earned

after a cadet completes the first

eight achievements of the CivilAir Patrols cadet program. Inaddition, the cadet must pass a

comprehensive 100-question

examination covering leadership

theory and aerospace topics. Only15% of all Civil Air Patrol cadetsearn this honor.

Upon earning the Mitchellaward, the cadet is automaticallypromoted to the grade of Cadet

Second Lieutenant. This is animportant rite of passage forcadets, marking their entry into

cadet officer ranks. Therefore,presentation of the certificatesmerits a special ceremony in the

presence of the unit membershipand their families. Since prepar-ing this presentation ceremony

takes time, one of the cadetsreceiving the certificate hadalready achieved the next higher

cadet office grade.

By C/TSgt Josiah Niedrauer

RobertsRaiders CSHolds QuadrupleMitchell Ceremony


16/4021

Cadets Clinton Lillie andTiffany Hamm, members of theWaxahachie Talon Composite

Squadron, Group III, recentlyreceived the General BillyMitchell Award and their new

rank of Cadet Second Lieutenant.Cadet Lillie is the son of Mr. andMrs. Dale Lillie of Midlothian,

and Cadet Ham is the daughter ofMr. and Mrs. Scott Reed of Ennis.The cadets received their awards

during promotion ceremonies forthe Waxahachie Talon CompositeSquadron at Waxahachie-

Midlothian Midway Airport.Cadet Lillie joined the Civil

Air Patrol in October 2003 and

has participated in a variety ofactivities and training opportuni-ties such as summer encampment,

Ground Search and Rescue

Waxahachie TalonCadets EarnsMitchell Award

By Lt Col Gary Stevens

Photos Capt Jane Smalley

School, Non-CommissionedOfficer School, Flight LineMarshaller training, and Bivouac

training exercises. His qualifica-tions include Urban DirectionFinding and Search and Rescue

ground team member, as well asMission Radio Operator. He is aJunior at Midlothian High School

and is part of the drum line in theHigh School Band.

Cadet Hamm joined the Civil

Air Patrol in February 2005 andhas participated in a variety ofactivities and training opportuni-

ties, such as winter and summerencampments, Non-Commis-sioned Officer School, Flight

Line Marshaller training, andbivouac training exercises. Herqualifications include Urban

Direction Finding and Search and

Rescue ground team member, aswell as Flight Line Marshaller.She is home-schooled and a

sophomore in high school. Hermother, First Lieutenant JonnieReed, is also an active adult mem-

ber of the Waxahachie TalonComposite Squadron.

The Mitchell is an impor-

tant rite of passage for Civil AirPatrol cadets, marking their entryinto cadet officer ranks. For the

purposes of assessment for col-lege admission, this rates at thesame level as the Boy Scouts

Eagle Award, that organizationshighest level of promotion. CAPcadets, however, can earn even

higher promotion, up to the grade ofCadet Colonel, an achievement thatoften merits appointment to one or

more of the US Service Academies.

Cadet Lillie receives the General Billy Mitchell Awardfrom Chaplain (Lt Col) Nancy Smalley, a member ofthe squadron staff and Texas Wing Chaplain, as hisfather Dale watches on proudly.

Lieutenant Colonel Owen L. Younger, commander ofGroup III, Texas Wing, Civil Air Patrol, congratulatesCadet Tiffany Hamm after presentation of theGeneral Billy Mitchell Award and promotion toSecond Lieutenant. In the background, Chaplain (LtCol) Nancy Smalley, the Texas Wing Chaplain.


17/40

Civil Air Patrols AddisonEagles Squadron and Dallas

Squadron joined together to pro-vide displays for students atDallas Fort Worth International

Airports Annual Aviation &Transportation Career Expo. TheExpo gives students the opportu-

nity to learn about careers in avariety of aviation related fields,from pilots to air traffic control-

lers to police officers and firefighters.

The Expo is staged at one of

American Airlines maintenance

DFW Airport Hosts 2000 Studentsat the Third Annual Aviation &Transportation Career Expo

By Maj Sherry Coffey

Photos by Laura Lee Woodward, 1st Lt, CAP

hangars at DFW. CAP membersfrom both squadrons worked tire-

lessly, devoting time and energyto answering questions and talk-ing directly with a continuous line

of students and teachers filing bythe displays. The CAP displaysconsisted of two static aircraft

outside the hangar and a boothinside the hander that depictedcadets participating in various

activities. Cadets working at thedisplays recounted first-handexperiences for the students and

provided brochures about theCadet Program.

More than

30 agencies,companies andorganizations,

including theNinety-nines,Civil Air Patrol,

Air NationalGuard, andL o c k h e e d -

Martin werepresent. Duringtheir visit to

DFW, students

were given a look at many differ-ent type aircraft, such as the F-16

Fighting Falcon, OH-58 Kiowahelicopter, C-130H Herculesmilitary transport, a vintage

Corsair and North AmericanAT-6. Students were providedthe opportunity to talk to Civil

Air Patrol pilots and sit inside theGippsland GA8 Airvan andCessna 172 search and rescue

aircraft.Ken Capps, vice president of

public affairs at DFW, said, We

are very pleased that so manyteachers take the time out of theirschedules to bring their students

out and for so many great organi-zations and businesses to providehands-on experience. In some

cases, it may be the first time ayoung person has been around anairplane or at the Airport.

The annual DFW Expo pro-vides Civil Air Patrol with therewarding opportunity to intro-

duce students and teachers to ourthree missions: The Cadet Pro-gram, Aerospace Education and

Search and Rescue.

Cadet/Lt Col Lauren Ostrov, Cadet/2d Lt ChristaConroy, and Maj Scott McCleneghan showing one ofthe Cadet Program displays.

Cadet/2d Lt Brandon Maso explains to a studenthow CAP uses the Cessna 172 for search andrescue efforts.

Captain Stephen Hundley explains the instrumentpanel on the GA-8 Airvan to area students.

23


18/40

At the 13th Annual SpaceExploration Educators Confer-ence, 9 February 2007, Capt

James Hein, Jr. gave a presenta-tion on Incorporating AerospaceEducation in the Classroom. and

school teachers were presentedwith hands on activities from theAerospace Education books. This

session included lessons on ratiodistance between the Earth andthe Moon, including an exercise

in measuring the altitude of an

U.S. Congressman Joe Barton

was the guest of honor at theCrusader CS meet ing on 20February. The congressman

addressed himself to the cadets,explaining the requirements forobtaining congressional appoint-

ment to the United States AirForce Academy and other U.S.Service Academies.

Congressman Barton also

spoke to the squadron about thewar against terrorism and how

important it is to support ourtroops in Iraq. He also expressedhis thanks for the volunteer

efforts of Civil Air Patrol mem-bers. With the squadrons thanks,Lt Col Roy Hill, squadron com-

mander, presented the guest ofhonor with a squadron patch.

U.S. Congressman Joe Barton VisitsCrusader Composite Squadron

Crusader Composite Squadron MemberMakes Waves in Space Circles

Alka-Seltzer rocket. Teacherswere given AEM brochures andinformation regarding CAP mate-

rial to use in their classroom.Capt Hein, an Aerospace

Education Officer from Grand

Prairies Crusader Squadron anda teacher at Sam Houston HS inArlington, was selected out of

teachers from all over the worldto speak at the 13th Annual SpaceExploration Educators Confer-

ence at Space Center Houston.

Congressman Barton holds his Crusader patch, surrounded bysquadron members.

Attending the sessions wereMajor Bjorn Sundet Texas WingDE, Susan Mallett School Enrich-

ment Program Manager NationalHeadquarters and teacher repre-senting school districts from the

state, national, and world widelevel.

It is important that we stress

the importance of Aerospace Edu-cation to our teachers so they caninspire our youths to pursue this

amazing field, says Capt Hein.

25

By 2d Lt Robert Severance III


19/40

On 11 November 2006, threeBlack Sheep Composite Squad-ron cadets from the Mesquite

Civil Air Patrol proudly carriedthe colors for the 88th AnnualDallas Veterans Day Parade. The

Black Sheep CS honor guardsincluded C/TSgt Johanna Cohen,C/A1C Tim Kleinmeier, and C/

Capt Rebecca McKinney. Twomembers of the Waxahachie

Black Sheep Squadron Part ofDallas Veterans Day Parade

Talon Composite Squadron, C/A1C Forrest Brown and C/A1CRachel Scarborough, also partici-

pated in the honor guard.People started cheering as

we walked by with the flags, said

C/Capt McKinney. The eventpaid special honor to the heroeswounded in defense of our nation

and its freedom. Because cadetsfrom other squadrons were

present at the parade, C/SSgtAndrew Smith, also with theBlack Sheep CS, led their march

carrying the unit guidon.As is customary, the parade

marked Armistice Day which

began on 11 November 1918,when the guns of World War I fell

silent across Europe. In 1926,Pres iden t Woodrow Wi l sonissued a proclamation, inviting allAmericans to recognize the cou-

rageous men and women who hadplaced their lives in harms wayfor our country.

Marching in the parade wasawesome, said C/TSgt Cohen, Iwas a part of something bigger

than me. C/A1C Kleinmeieradded, Last year, I almost got tocarry the flags, but we didnt have

enough people. Im glad I finallygot to, this year.

C/Capt Rebecca McKinneyhelps C/A1C Scarboroughget ready for the parade.

By

2d Lt Kelly Castillo

C/TSgt Johanna Cohen, C/A1CForrest Brown, C/A1C TimKleinmeier, C/Capt RebeccaMcKinney, and C/A1C RachelScarborough carry the colorsfor the event.


20/40

On 17 February 2007, mem-bers of the Black Sheep Compos-

ite Squadron, part of Group III,Texas Wing, Civil Air Patrol,took part in a Search and Rescue

Exercise, SAREX. Participantsincluded 1st Lt Opal McKinney,SM Jerry Barron, C/Amn Kasee

Niskern, C/TSgt Andrew Smith,C/A1C Tim Kleinmeier, C/MSgtJohanna Cohen, and C/A1C Andy

Papson.The training included four

exercises essential to conducting

a successful rescue. The first wasa ramp check. The cadets weregiven information about a plane

that was considered overdue,said 1st Lt McKinney. Theywere to thoroughly check the

Mesquite Metro Airport for a spe-cific planes tail number.

Next, they conducted a miss-

ing person exercise. Cadets weretold that a four year old child hadlast been seen at the Mesquite

Black SheepCadets TurnTraining Into

SuccessfulMission

Metro Airport. The cadets werethen to locate any evidence of this

hypothetical child in the area. Adoll - representing the missingchild - had been placed in a

nearby lightly wooded area forthe cadets to locate.

Afterwards, an aircraft emer-

gency locator transmitter (ELT)simulator was hidden in a hangar.The cadets were to locate its bea-

con using various electronicmeans. Following this, a physi-cally demanding test was con-

ducted - the cadets were to carry a100-pound pack on a stretcher,over obstacles, without losing the

patient. As a final task, a few ofthe cadets took part in missionradio training, which was super-

vised by 1st Lt Toby Buckalew,the Group III CommunicationsOfficer.

Little did the squadron mem-bers suspect that an actual mis-sion would be assigned just three

days later, on 20 Febru-ary 2007. At 4:45 a.m.,1st Lt Opal McKinney

was notified that a satel-lite had picked up anELTs distress beacon.

By 5:12 a.m., within anhour of the alert, 1st LtMcKinney, SM Barron,

C/MSgt Cohen, C/A1CKleinmeier, and C/Capt Rebecca

McKinney proceeded to the coor-dinates they had been given, nearWhite Rock Lake.

Using the procedures theyhad practiced less than a weekearlier, they quickly realized that

the signal was coming from a dif-ferent location, so they expandedthe search area. They soon deter-

mined that the signal was comingfrom Dallas Love Field Airport.

Upon identifying themselves

at the airport, they were escortedonto the aircraft parking area toidentify the source of the signal,

which was coming from a heli-copter used for medical transport.The aircrew had been unaware

that the ELT had malfunctionedand was sending out the distresssignal, a condition that some times

is caused by a hard landing.SM Barron commented later,

The crew was very appreciative,

knowing that somebody out therewas looking after them.

For their successful efforts,

all team members earned the CivilAir Patrols Find Ribbon,which was a first award in the

case of SM Barron and C/A1CKleinmeier. It is unusual formembers to earn the ribbon so

soon after completing training.SM Barron had recently completedhis Urban Direction Finding train-

ing during the SAREX exercise.

SM Barron, C/MSgt Cohen, C/Capt McKinney, and C/A1C Kleinmeierproudly pose in front of the helicopter that had the malfunctioning ELT.

The cadets prepare tosafely carry a 100pound pack throughan obstacle course.

By 1st Lt Kelly Castillo

27


21/40

On January 29th the WacoComposite Squadron hosted aParents Night with representa-

t ives from the United StatesNaval Academy, West Point andthe United States Air Force Acad-

emy in attendance. The event washeld for Waco cadets and theirfamilies to highlight the educational

and officer commissioning oppor-tunities available to CAP cadets atthe three military academies.

Guest presenters includedBasil and Margaret Thomson rep-resenting the U. S. Naval Acad-

emy, Dr. Ray Bagby representingWest Point and Baylor MilitaryScience professor Colonel Danny

Leonard representing the U. S.Air Force Academy. Each repre-sentative outlined their particular

academy from the parents andeducators perspective.

The event was held at Waco

Regional Airport in a hangarhousing The Spirit of Waco, anA-26 WWII bomber owned and

maintained by the CommemorativeAir Force and assigned to theRanger Wing in Waco. The warbird

served as a backdrop and inspirationfor the 25 participants at the event.The evening included a dinner pro-

vided by families of the CAP mem-bers, and concluded with the IMAXfilm, Fighter Pilot, which inspired

the attendees to aim higher.

Waco CSHosts ParentNight

By Capt Robert Benton

Seven Civil Air Patrol mem-

bers from six Texas Wing unitsparticipated in the CorporateLeaning Course held in Waco,

Texas on Jan 20 21.CAP members Capt Steve

Manley, HQ Group III; 2d Lt

Choya Shanahan, Tyler Compos-ite Squadron; Capt John Boyd andCapt William Wilson, Waco

Compos i t e Squad ron ; Cap tWilliam Braden, Bell Co. Com-posite Squadron; 1st Lt Penny

Brady, Texas State Guard Flightand 1st Lt Scott Singleton, SulphurSprings Composite Squadron par-

ticipated in the two-day course.A course designed to intro-

duce the functions and reason-

abilitys of Wings and NationalHeadquarters as it relates to theunits, a requirement for promo-

tion to Major and the Loeningprofessional development award.Students where encouraged to

ask questions and even participatein discussions and hands-onactivities, contributing to the sec-

tions of CAP history, Command,Operations, Mission Support,Inspector General, Cadet Pro-

grams, Aerospace Education and theDrug Demand Reduction program.

The information covered in

the course was put to the test withthe students working on a groupproject selected by Maj Alan

OMartin, Waco CLC Director.The group project consisted of

writing a press release announcing a

fatal CAP aircraft incident with the lossof an aircrew during a search and rescuemission, where the students were chal-

lenged to apply CAP core values.

Waco CLCChallengesMembers

The Gregg County CompositeSquadron promoted four cadet

members during simple ceremo-nies at two recent squadronmeetings.

1st Lt Steve Schluter, Squad-ron Commander, and Maj GerryDavis, Deputy Commander for

Cadets, made official presenta-tions as follows. On November21, 2006 Zachary Whiteley of

Longview was promoted to C/CMSgt. On December 5, 2006Elizabeth Camp of Longview was

promoted to C/CMSgt, and KaylaCassel of Longview and RyanCobb of Diana were promoted to

C/A1C.

GreggCounty CS

CadetsPromoted

By

SM Tracy Hollinshead

(Back row) Maj Gerry DavisDeputy Commander for Cadets,and 1st Lt Steve Schluter,Squadron Commander. (Front

row) Cadets Elizabeth Camp,Kayla Cassel, Ryan Cobb andZachary Whiteley

29

By Capt Robert Benton


22/40

Last year, the Phantom SS obtained authorizationto change its name to Col Joe W. Kittinger Phantom

Senior Squadron, honoring a man who is a legend inhis own time, but hadnt had a chance to thank himfor lending his name to the squadron. Finally, the day

had arrived, and the recognition was about to take place.The day began with a tour of the Texas State His-

tory museum, arranged by SM Jim Darwin. Jerry

Drake, the Deputy Commissioner of the TexasArchives & Records for the Texas Land Office, led atwo-hour tour for Col Kittinger and his wife Sherry.

Official hosts for the event were Captains SteveBarclay and Joe Chasnoff. The Kittingers, quiteexcited about the tour, enjoyed a private viewing in

the archives where they had the rare opportunity ofseeing an original draft of the Texas State Constitu-tion, written in Sam Houstons own hand. Later in

the afternoon Joe met informally with squadronmembers and visiting cadets to talk about his careerand answer their questions, a session that lasted until

guests began to arrive for the formal ceremony at 7 pm.After the guests of honor had taken their place atthe podium, and the Pegasus Composite Squadron

Color Guard had presented the colors, Capt JohnCraparo, the squadron PAO, called on 1st Lt DebbieFord who pronounced the invocation. Capt Craparo

then started the event, with a short summary of Joesmany accomplishments.

Mr. F. J. Jay Joseph, Director, Flight Services

Aviation Division, Texas Dept. of Transportation,expressed his gratitude to Joe for his pioneeringefforts and contributions to aviation. He then thanked

the squadron for all the good work they do, in closecooperation with the TXDOT. Col Ed Brown, TexasState Director and a staunch supporter of the Civil

Air Patrol, marveled at Joes courage in jumping offthe truly deep end, when others had tried it beforeand perished in the attempt. Major Dan Williams,

squadron commander, expressed his personal gratitudefor the privilege of including Col Kittingers name inthe name of the squadron. Naming the squadron after

you, Joe, he said, is a great honor. It will be a constant

HonoringCol Joe W. Kittinger,USAF, Ret

By Capt Arthur E. Woodgate andCapt John Craparo

inspiration to us all, and those who follow us.

In addressing the warm and eager audience, ColKittinger told his story along broad lines. In the1950s, as planes flew faster and higher than ever

before, the Air Force started worrying about air crewsafety in case of catastrophic equipment failure andthe need to eject. Would the human body survive a

high-altitude, high-speed jump off a doomed airplane?The then-Captain Joe Kittinger, a fighter jet pilot, vol-unteered to test a new multi-stage parachute, the main

task for which Project Excelsior was created.Col Kittinger explained that a major problem inescaping from a high-altitude vehicle is that in free-

fall, it is very easy to enter into an uncontrollablespin, and opening the parachute while in a spin oftenresults in the subjects death, one way or another. Mr.

Francis Beaupre, a technician at Wright Field, OH,developed a multi-stage parachute system that, even-tually, became the standard. It used a very small para-

chute to stabilize the free-fall, until it was safe to openthe main chute for descent through the atmosphere.

A series of high-altitude jumps led to Joes

record-setting jump off a balloon gondola at 102,800feet, or nearly 20 miles up. The entire descent,including free-fall and parachute descent, took 13

minutes and 45 seconds, still the highest parachutejump in history. During his descent, Joe reached orexceeded the speed of sound (measurements were

uncertain on this point). This story is told in Joesbook The Long Lonely Leap. He also wrote ThePre-Astronauts as Project Excelsior pioneered much

L-R Col Joe W. Kittinger and Maj Dan Williams,squadron commander.

31

Continued . . .


23/40

of the technology later used by NASA in the explora-tion of space.

If they had used our research and the Challenger

astronauts had been given our chute, they wouldhave had a chance, said Col Joe Kittinger with a

sorrowful smile.Joe Kittinger set many wor ld records in his career:a.. Highest pa rachute jump - 102,800 ft, 16 Aug

1960.b.. Longest Pa rachute Free-fall - 4 min 36 sec, 16

Aug 1960.

c.. First man to exceed the speed of sound withoutan aircraft or space vehicle - 714 mph duringfree-fall, 16 Aug 1960.

d.. Most High Altitude Balloon Flights (5): Ma nHigh I, 96,000 ft; Excelsior I, 76,000 ft; Excel-sior II, 75,000 ft; Excelsior III , 102,800 ft; and

Star gazer, 86,000 ft.e.. Longest d istance flown in a 1,000 cubic meter

helium balloon - 2001 miles in 72 hrs (AA6 &

AA7), 15-18 Nov 1983, a solo flight .f.. Longest distance flown in a 3,000 cubic meter

helium balloon - 3543 miles in 86 hrs (AA10,

11, 12, 13), 14-18 Sep 1984.g.. Fir st per son t o fly solo across the Atlantic

Ocean in a helium balloon - Maine to Italy, 14-

18 Sep 1984.h.. NAA Speed Record - Piper Cheyenne 400 LS,Philadelphia, PA to Or lando, FL, 9 Feb 1986.

The honors followed. The squadron presentedhim with a commemorative plaque. The Texas Sen-ate drafted a special proclamation that was approved

on the senate floor and was now presented to Col JoeKittinger by Tim Vilasanna, representing Senator VanDe Putte. The Honorable Rick Perry, Governor of

Texas, also sent in a signed certificate of recognition -tinged with humor - presented by Capt John Craparo.

Col Joe Kittinger proved admirably that he can

keep his bearings not only high in the sky but also onearth. After the colors were retired, he was literallyassailed by congratulatory hands and surrounded by

gleaming smiles. The hands he shook, each and everyone of them. And the smiles he mirrored, his being thebrightest. As a final gift, he sat down at a prepared

table and accepted the burden of signing his name tocommemorative certificates and photographs. A verylong line that certainly took a great deal longer to

whittle down than The Long Lonely Leap had...

Honor ing Kitt inger . . .Continued

5

On February 2, Capt Charles

Mouton and 1st Lt Harold Parksfrom Gladewater Corsairs Com-posite Squadron flew an aerial

survey of Big Cypress Bayou atthe request of the Caddo LakeInstitute. The purpose of the flight

was to document photographi-cally the impact of the waterrelease on the areas downstream

of Lake O the Pines leading toCaddo Lake. U.S Geological Sur-vey scientists had placed instru-

ments at various locations ofinterest below the Lake O thePines dam, and the aircrew took

photographs along the Bayouwhere these instruments werelocated.

The data gathered by the sen-sors and the photographs will beused to evaluate the effects of the

water release.

GladewaterCorsairs CSSupports

ScientificResearch

By 1st Lt Harold Parks

32


24/40

children and veterans as the idealway of expressing appreciationfor the past, present and future

sacrifices our veterans and their

families make for this country.People from all walks of life came

together on December 14, to paytribute to those that have made thesacrifice to keep America free.

Ceremonies were held at thefollowing cemeteries acrossTexas by CAP Squadrons or Vet-

erans groups:Dallas-Fort Worth National Cem-

etery Group III Honor

GuardKerrville National Cemetery

Kerrville Composite Squad-

ronCentral Texas State Veterans

Cemetery DVA W. R. Hold

Chapter 147Houston National Cemetery

Thunderbird Composite

SquadronFort Bliss National Cemetery

El Paso Composite Squadron

Belvedere Cemetery/All VeteransPlot San Angelo CompositeSquadron

DALLAS Squadron members from

Group III participated in the

Wreaths Across America pro-gram at a formal ceremony con-ducted at the Dallas Fort Worth

National Cemetery in Dallas,Texas.

The Civil Air Patrol was this

events organizer, and the respon-sibility for the conduct of the cer-emonies rested with the Group III

Honor Guard all of them CAPcadets. Individual participantswere, from the Mesquite Black

Sheep Composite Squadron, C/Capt Rebecca McKinney, 1st LtOpal McKinney, 2d Lt Terri

Kleinmeier, C/A1C Tim

Kleinmeier, C/MSgt JohannaCohen, and 2d Lt Kelly Castillo;from the Red Oak Cadet Squad-

ron, 2d Lt Sara Black; from the

Waxahachie Talon CompositeSquadron, C/CMSgt Tiffany

Hamm, 1st Lt Johnnie Reed, andC/A1C Caleb Brown; and repre-senting Texas Wing, Lt Col

Nancy Smalley, Texas WingChaplain.

Ushers included Robert

Cahill and his sons Brandon andTrevor, of the Royal Rangers, aChristian-based organization for

young boys. C/Capt McKinneymoderated the event.

Lt Col Smalley gave the invo-

cation as a nearby church bellrang in the distance, coincidingwith the moment of silence. The

Group III Honor Guard includ-ing C/MSgt Cohen, C/A1CKleinmeier, C/CMSgt Hamm,

and C/A1C Brown posted thecolors against a background ofAmerican flags held by 25 Patriot

Guard Riders, who assist in mili-tary funerals to pay their respectto fallen soldiers as well as shield

such events from protesters.The formal recitation of the

Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag

followed, after which representa-tives of all five branches of themilitary presented the wreaths,

one by one, by order of prece-dence. The armed forces repre-sentatives were Spec James

Atk ins (Army) , AT3 LewisPaschal (Navy), Sgt Jerry Duncan(Marines), MSgt Michael

Peterson (Air Force), and MK1Cory Lockhart (Coast Guard).

Gary Poplin, a retired Navy

CPO who worked with the CivilAir Patrol to help organize andconduct the ceremony, was the

first one at the podium. His voice

faltered when he read a poem byan anonymous writer about anindividual who spent time to

reflect on what all soldiers did for

their country. Gerald Cowan, PastState Commander of Disabled

American Veterans, spoke of therigors of military life and thememory of those who fell. Jerry

Murphee Jr., Vice Commander,Texas VFW, and Bob Roberts,Commander of the 1st Division,

Texas American Legion, roundedoff the program. Love of country,self-sacrifice, camaraderie, free-

dom and volunteerism werethemes visited by all.

Following the speakers, five

members of the Lone Star Chap-ter, Paralyzed Veterans ofAmerica, fired three ceremonial

rifle volleys, and Capt JamesLucas, retired US Air Force,played taps. Afterwards, the Civil

Air Patrol Honor Guard retiredthe colors and Lt Col Smalleypronounced the closing prayer.

Before officially closing theceremony, C/Capt McKinneyencouraged those present to visit

any fallen service personsgravesite, honoring in that indi-vidual all those who have made

the supreme sacrifice forAmerica. McKinney also urgedthose who chose to do so to write

down and research that personsname, so as to better understandthe contribution that service

member made for the UnitedStates.

Rick Crabb, former Marine

and local leader of the PatriotGuard Riders, said, We haveabout 40,000 riders nationwide,

attending the funeral services offallen soldiers. Glen Carlisle,also of the Patriot Guard Riders,

Wr eaths Across America . . .Continued from page 3

Continued . . .

33


25/40

said, I was never in the service,but I lost an uncle Robert

Carlisle on the USS Arizona;hes still there. Bob Roberts of

the Texas American Legionthanked the Civil Air Patrol andWorcester Wreath Company fortheir involvement in organizing

the event.Gerald Cowan, referring to

the cemetery, stated, This is hal-

lowed ground. This is a field ofhonor for those who served thecountry well. Ed Bundrant,

former Army and one of the par-ticipants who fired the three riflevolleys, said, It is a privilege to

pay tribute here.SAN ANGELO

The morning air was cool and

the sun was bright as members ofthe community gathered at Belve-dere Memorial Cemetery

Veterans plot to honor ourveterans and our military person-nel for their dedication to our

country and helping to keep it free

on Thursday, December 14, 2006.Judge Mike Brown, Tom Green

County Commissioners Court,Jesse Lashbook, Field Represen-tative for Congressman Michael

Conaways office and FrancesWheat, Representative from Con-gressman Robert Duncans office

were among the group to partici-pate in the ceremony that tookplace across the nation.

Civil Air Patrol members

Major Maurice Clement, SanAngelo Composite Squadron

Commander, Lieutenant ColonelTom Strickland and Major DanaGray, Texas Wing Public Affairs

Officer greeted members of theGoodfellow Joint Honor Guardand began preparations for the

ceremony that would take place at11:00 a.m. The only flaw to the

plan was that the wreaths did notarrive as planned, but the cer-

emony proceeded as if they werethere. A wreath was to be laid for

each branch of the service as wellas the US Coast Guard and POW/MIA. Staff Sergeant NicolePowell represented the Army, Air

Craft Handler 1st Class ShaneKrueger represented the Navy,Captain Henry G Billings, Jr, rep-

resented the Marines, 1st Lieuten-ant Timothy Lange representedthe Air Force, Lieutenant Colonel

Tom Strickland Civil Air Patrolmade the presentation for the USCoast Guard and Mr. Virgil May

represented the POW/MIA. Ourthanks to Fort Concho for sendingout a group and to Greg Hector,

bugler, for playing taps at the endof the ceremony. We also want tothank Ron Bell, VFW Post # 572,

for providing PA system and toMark Clark, Director of the TwinMountain Tonesman for provid-

ing a CD with the Star Spangle

Banner and God Bless America.HOUSTON

With honor and reverence toour veterans, Capt Eric Thomp-son opened the Wreaths Across

A m e r i c a c e r e m o n y w i t h amoment of silence at the HoustonNational Cemetery Thursday

December 14, 2006. The daystarted with dense fog but aboutan hour before the ceremony

began the fog lifted and a beauti-

ful, mild, sunny day was at hand.Six wreaths were laid by active

duty and retired military person-nel from each branch of the mili-tary. The sixth wreath represented

the POW/MIA. This wreath waslaid by USMC Sgt. RonRidgeway, retired. He is a former

Viet Nam POW held for fiveyears. He endured torture, loss of

c o m r a d e s a n d l o n e l i n e s s .Remains that were mistaken for

him were laid in St. Louis, MO.and a headstone was placed at the

Houston National Cemetery.When it was discovered he wasalive the headstone was removed.

Texas Wing Commander

Robert Eldridge spoke of the sac-rifices men and women of themilitary have given in the pursuit

of the freedom we enjoy today.Houston City Council memberRonald C. Green and a represen-

tative from Congressman AlGreenes office were also inattendance along with many

cadets and senior members fromGroup IV. A color guard made upof Group IV cadets and Spring

Branch ISD Navy JROTC cadetsperformed with deep respect andhonor for our veterans. Echo

Taps, played by Bugles AcrossAmerica members DannyStephens and Mike Palmquist

ended the ceremony.

Our future is in good handssaid one veteran as he pointed to

the many CAP cadets on hand.These young people make meproud and happy to have come

here today. Many of the veteransshook hands and thanked thecadets for having this ceremony

in Houston as well as across thenation. They were touched thatthese young people would take

the time to honor them in such a

manner.Your group or squadron can

help expand this tribute for 2007.To find out more information onWreaths Across America and to

sign up visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org. All wreaths for theceremonies were donated by the

Worcester Wreath Company.5

Wr eaths Across America . . .Continued

35


26/40

The members of the Red OakCadet Squadron come in all sizes,

all of them young. They are alsoeager to learn, and want to start aColor Guard of their own. The

result was a weekend visit fromselected members of the Group IIIHonor Guard, who traveled some

30 minutes by car from Mesquiteand Waxahachie, TX in order toconduct the necessary training.

The cadet teaching s taf f included C/A1C Tim Kleinmeier,C/CMSgt Tiffany Hamm (who is

getting her Mitchell this month),and C/Capt Rebecca McKinney.The senior staff members present

were Capt Jane Smalley, Lt ColNancy Smalley, Maj TomSmalley, and 2d Lt Sara Black.

Attending the instructionwere Red Oak Cadets Caffee,

Red Oak ColorGuard Training

By C/Capt Rebecca McKinney

Tucker, Heitzmann, Evans, andHoffman. The weekend consisted

of indoor colors presentation,color guard knowledge and tradi-tions, lots of marching and cer-

emon ia l d r i l l , e t ique t t e , anin-depth uniform class coveringClass B Blues, and Physical

Training (PT).Carrying the colors requires

strength, especially outdoors

when the wind blows hard, so PTis essential for cadets to developphysically and acquire the ability

to march seemingly effortlesslydown a long windy street, oracross a wind-swept football

field. Especially when carryingthe colors, the uniform must beimpeccably worn. Also, an honor

guard or color guard cadet isexpected to know how to care for

the uniform,

press or iron it,sew on a miss-ing button, and

correctly attachall accessories.The uniform is

an essential partof the ceremo-nial presenta-

tion of the col-ors , as i s thevisual impact of

a tightly syn-chronized groupmoving in per-

fect unison,with precisionand ease.

The mealand snackbreaks during

the weekend

presented an opportunity for thecadets to get to know each other

on a social level, and improvedthe visiting cadets ability toengage the aspiring members of

the new color guard. Gentle cor-rection and an intense desire to dowell helped the Red Oak cadets

learn quickly and well.S i n c e t h e w e a t h e r w a s

inclement, the cadets couldnt

practice outdoor Colors Presenta-tion, nor do the one-mile run.However, all other training objec-

tives were met. All in all, it was avery educational weekend and theRed Oak cadets improved in

teamwork as well as the skillsmentioned above. In spite of theirtaking an instant dislike for the

metronome, and their good-natured plotting of mischiefagainst it, they finally decided to

tolerate i t in the interest of improved training. The cadetsstayed on track very well, and

made the weekend a success.

Trainee Cadet Caffee gets afeeling for the flag.

Cadets Hoffman and Heitzmann wearing beginners

harness.

37


27/40

By 2d Lt Johanna O. Augustine

San Angelo Composite Squadron hosted Squadron LeadershipSchool (SLS) February 3-4. Nine senior members from Abilene, El

San Angelo Composite Sqdn Hosts SLS

The San Angelo Composite

Squadron toured the U.S. Cus-toms and Border Protection

Agency on 10 February 2007.Cus toms pe r sonne l b r i e f edcadets, parents, and Senior CAP

members of the San Angelo-

San Angelo SquadronTours US Customs Facility

Cadet Airman Sean McCallumsits at the Sensor OperatorPosition of a King Air aircraft.

1st Lt Bob R. Chamblessdemonstrates the correct way toshine a boot. Photo by 2d LtJohanna O. Augusti0ne

Maj Gary A. Nussey shows theclass a project that can be used inthe Cadet Aerospace Program.

Paso, Lubbock, and San Angelo

attended the 2-day course held atthe Non-commissioned OfficerAcademy at Goodfellow AFB.

SLS director, Capt DavidWolfe, assistant director, MajDana Gray, and instructors Maj

Gary Nussey, Capt David S.Crymes, 1st Lt Bob Chambless,James Keohane, and Jonathan

Swirnarski covered such topics asorganization and progression ofCAP, military briefing, letter

writing, cadet programs, aero-space education, emergency ser-vices, safety, wear of the uniform,

and communications.

Cadet Technical Sergeant Knightexamines the cockpit of a CessnaCitation.

a tour of the hangar, explainingthe assortment of U.S. Customsfixed and rotary-wing aircraft.

Cadets sat in the cockpit ofCessna Citation and King Air air-craft and got first-hand experi-

ence on the complicated task ofmonitoring the various instru-ments of both aircraft.

based Homeland Security mission

of the U.S. Customs and BorderProtection Agency.

Mr. John Herron, a Customspilot, narrated a short video onemployment within the agency.

He stressed that a cadet wishingto work for a federal agency mustcomplete high school and attend

college, learn a second language,not use drugs, and have no policerecord.

Mr. Patrick OBrian, the U.S.Customs senior-rated pilot, toldcadets of how his interest in flying

and law enforcement led to a careerwith the agency. The border protec-tion mission requires skilled pilots

with knowledge of law enforce-ment procedures and weapons.

Mr. OBrian led the group on

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

38

By 2d Lt Johanna O. Augustine


28/40

Commanders Comments . . .Continued from page 1

Then Hurricane Rita hit the Texasand Louisiana coast. Between thetwo Hurricanes, we had over 280

individuals who supported Fed-

eral Emergency Management, 1stAir Force, the Texas Governors

office of Emergency Manage-ment and our local communitiesfor the Disaster Relief Efforts.

Along with receiving the DisasterRelief Ribbon with the VDevice, Texas Wing also received

one of the first NationalCommanders Unit Citations.Shortly after both hurricanes, the

state of Texas called for our ser-vices in the fire watch mission.Possibly one of the longest mis-

sions weve ever conducted, after92 days we flew over 1,800 hours,reported over 500 fires and pro-

vided damage assessments to thelocal and state officials. In thepast 6 months we have started

Homeland Security missions withthe state. We would not have beenthis involved without the out-

standing relat ionship wevedeveloped with the GovernorsOffice of Emergency Manage-

ment. The next time you see LtCol Jack Jackson and 1st LtDaren Jaeger, give them the spe-

cial thanks for their work on a dayto day basis in building the strongrelationship we currently have

with the state.In addition, we established

the Distributed Search and Res-

cue Exercise concept, allowing allmembers in the wing an opportu-nity to receive training in any

aspect of emergency services on amonthly basis. This concept pro-vides for more realistic training

for all mission staff positions inhandling wing-wide large scalemissions, improved communica-

tions from the mission base to

staging areas utilizing phone,e-fax, internet and radio commu-nications (both HF and airborne

repeater operations) in providing

critical sortie information, andincluded proficiency training for

over 490 aircrew members and380 ground team members.

One of our goals was to

improve the wings infrastructure.It was impressed onto the wingand group staff members that our

mission statement is to providemaximum support to all thesquadrons within the wing. Here are

some of these accomplishments:- Completed a wing reorgani-

zation reducing the number of

Group Headquarters from 11 to 5.The ma in ob jec t ive fo r therealignment was to better support

the squadrons within the respec-tive groups. This has been a greatsuccess with improvements in the

flow of communications, effec-tiveness and efficiency betweenall levels of command throughout

Texas Wing.- Installed new radios andradio panels in all 28 wing aircraft

in only 4 months.- Eliminated the need for 6

reports and reduced the frequency

of several other reports at the unitlevel.

- Installed and acquired an

approved STC for the new BeckerDirectional Finder in our aircraft.This had an impact across all of

Civil Air Patrol.- Initiated several tools to help

the overall work productivity;

installed e-fax services, web page,e-mail server and conference callcapability.

- Improved our annual awardsnomination process and movedthe wing conference up from Sep-

tember to the April time f

Documents

Texas Wing - Mar 2007