arkansas wing - annual report (2007)

8/9/2019 Arkansas Wing - Annual Report (2007)

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Arkansas WingCivil Air Patrol

Year in Review 2007Compiled by Maj. Blake Sasse, Wing Public Affairs Officer

CADETS

115th Names New Cadet CommanderBy

2Lt. Anne Formanek (January 9th) Cadet 2Lt. Arthur Formanek wasnamed the new Cadet Commander for the 115thComposite Squadron. The fully assembled squadronobserved the ceremony, as Deputy Commander for

Cadets Capt. Dave Myers presided and spoke of theimportance of a formal change of commandceremony. Outgoing Cadet Commander 2Lt. JacobAllen presented the colors to Cadet 2Lt. Formanek, ashe formally relinquished his command of the cadets.Cake and refreshments followed the ceremony.

Lt Arthur Formanek has been a cadet in the Civil AirPatrol since August 1999, and has been a member of the 115th since October 2005. An aviation enthusiast,he completed his first solo flight in a Cessna 172 thissummer. He is currently a sophomore at theUniversity of Arkansas at Fayetteville.

42nd Wins Color Guard Competition (February 17) Despite cold weather and high windsthat made the outdoor events difficult, the 2007Arkansas Wing Cadet Competition went on at WingHeadquarters in Little Rock today. The 42nd, 95th,102nd, and 115th Composite Squadrons sent good,closely matched teams to the event. This was the firstcompetition for the 102nd and they performed wellagainst the veteran teams. At the Regional CadetCompetition to be held at Little Rock Air Force Base

next month the 42nd will compete in the color guardcompetition and the 115th will represent Arkansas inthe drill team event.

Arkansas Cadet Serves as LegislativePage

(February 21) Today C/SMSgt Kendall Worthingtonof the 95th Composite Squadron worked as a pagefor the Arkansas House of Representatives .Representative Robert Jeffrey offered CadetWorthington this opportunity to help the

representatives while they were insession. Besides assisting in theoperations of the House, he had theopportunity to answer questions aboutthe Civil Air Patrol and had hisphotograph taken with GovernorBeebee and also had a chance to enterthe Legislature's vault.

Awards Presented to Cadets of the 99th

By Lt. Col. Larry Webster (March 5) The 99 th Composite Sq held it's firstquarter Parents and Awards Night this evening inWest Memphis. C/SSgt Logan Thurman, C/2LtTabitha Nilsen and 1Lt KellyThurman were presented with RedService Ribbons. Unit awards wentto C/ A1C Mason Addison for theBest Aerospace Test Score for thequarter and C/A1C Ashley Foster forthe Best Leadership Test Score for the quarter.

C/A1C Thomas Morris was selected as the CadetAirman of the 1 st Quarter.

Arkansas Cadet Accepted to Air ForceAcademy

By Lt. Col. Larry Webster

(March 31) C/Lt Col Brandon Looney has receivedan appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy. Hesbeen a member of the 99th Composite Squadron sinceSeptember 2000 and has served in numerous staff positions from Cadet Flight Commander to CadetCommander. He has been the units Cadet AdvisoryCouncil Alternate and Primary Representative and theArkansas Wing Representative to the Region CadetAdvisory Council. C/Lt. Col. Looney was theArkansas Wing Cadet of the Year for 2006 and hewill be reporting to the Academy in July.


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Cadet from 120th Earns MitchellAward

By Capt. John Brandon

(April 16) Donnie Cox received the General Billy

Mitchell award and was promoted to Cadet 2ndLieutenant in a Civil Air Patrol ceremony atJonesboro on April 16, 2007.

2nd Lt. Cox is the new Cadet Commander for the120th Composite Squadron Cadets in Jonesboro, andhe is a junior at Paragould High School. He is the sonof the late Don & Patty Cox. His parents are Brenda

Sue Hill, also a CAP member, andJim & Donna Parks of Piggott. 2ndLt. Cox joined CAP in May, 2006,and progressed through his training

rapidly while also participating the JROTC programat Paragould High School.

Keith Blackman, District Judge in Jonesboro madethe presentation of the Billy Mitchell award to Cox,and his new rank was pinned on him by JudgeBlackman and his mother. The Billy Mitchell awardhas existed since 1964, and honors the late BrigadierGeneral Billy Mitchell who was an aviation pioneerand staunch supporter of an independent Air Forcefor America.

42nd Cadet Earns Mitchell Award

Cadet Carrie Batie, of the 42nd Composite Squadron,receives her Mitchell Award from Maj. BobbyAllison, Arkansas Wing Director of Cadet Programson May 24.

115th Holds Promotions/AwardsCeremony

By 1st Lt. Anne Formanek

(June 5) Tonight the 115th

Composite Squadron honoredseveral outstanding seniormembers with an awards andpromotion ceremony. Squadroncommander Lt.Col. Max Gore opened the ceremonyby addressing the fully assembled squadron.

James Allen and Anne Formanek were promoted tothe rank of 1st Lieutenant. Elmer Crumbliss waspromoted to Captain. Evelyn Allen was honored forher Excellence in Safety Award awarded to her by theTransportation Safety Administration in March. Jesse

Simpson was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant and praisedfor his service in the Iraq war. Tom Eastman receivedthe Benjamin O Davis award, a certificate of completion for Level II of the CAP ProfessionalDevelopment Program. William Drittler received theGrover Loerning award.

Also recognized Tuesday night was Capt. DaveMyers, for his selection to receive the prestigious2007 Jack Sorenson Award. The Sorenson Awardsingles out the most outstanding Cadet ProgramsOfficer in all of Civil Air Patrol. Capt Myers will be

presented with the award by the CAP NationalCommander at the CAP's upcoming nationalconference in Georgia in August.

Cadet Change of Command inTexarkana

By2nd Lt. Lisa Worthington

(June 4) Cadet Capt. DavydFitzhugh assumed command of the cadets of the 95th CompositeSquadron in Texarkana thisevening. Fitzhugh relieves Cadet2nd Lt. Josh Sims, who willbecome a senior member late this month who willbecome a CAP officer with the rank of 2ndLieutenant.


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Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 1 -Saturday, 16 June

Cadets arrived at Little Rock Air Force Base's CampWarlord to begin a week-long training experience atthe Arkansas Wing Leadership Encampment. Check-

in and squadron assignment were overseen byEncampment Commandant Capt. Dave Myers. Atotal of 71 cadets were accounted for, from squadronsscattered across the state, as well as from Florida,Hawaii, and Kansas. Eleven officer members werealso in attendance. Cadets were organized into twosquadrons, a total of four flights.

After check-in, cadets receivedflight assignments, and mandatorypre-test evaluations were conductedto test existing knowledge of the

week's memory work. Testing and staff meetingscontinued until early evening.

After a trip to the Razorback Cafe for dinner, cadetsfinished the evening with flight time and a half-mileshuttle run. Charge of Quarters was not posted inorder to allow the basic cadets time to adapt to thenew surroundings and rest up for the coming day.

Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 2 - Sunday, 17 June

Cadets began their second day at Camp Warlordwith a physical fitness test. They were graded ontheir execution of push-ups, sit-ups,sit-and-reach, and mile run. Afterbreakfast, cadets were allowed flighttime and drill practice. Their firstinspection was conducted by theStandardizations and Evaluations (SET) Team.

Following the inspection, Chaplain (Capt.) DonSeaman led a non-denominational sermon, lifting thespirits of the cadets withharmonica-led worship andencouraging them to keep apositive outlook for theupcoming challenges.

In the afternoon, the cadets were transported to theThomas Community ActivitiesCenter and participated in a bearingcontest, followed by a leadershipclass taught by Capt. Aaron Adams,

the Arkansas Wing Cadet Programs DevelopmentOfficer.

The cadets ate dinner at the Razorback Cafe and thenreturned to Camp Warlord for evening flight time andstaff meetings. A midnight fire drill proved the cadetsto be satisfactorily responsive.

Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 3 - Monday, 18 June

Cadets began the third day of encampment withphysical training at 05:30am sharp. After morningPT, Alpha Flight received distinguished recognitionas honor flight of the day. Breakfast was held,followed by flight time andpreparation for inspection. At 09:00the cadets participated in theirsecond inspection, this timeinvolving room inspections as wellas uniform.

Following inspections, the cadets toured a LRAFBmaintenance hangar where they were able to see twoC-130's up close. They examined a C-130 cockpit,and posed questions to tour guide Lt. Col. BobBetzold (USAF, Ret.), state director for CAP-USAFand former C-130 pilot.

Cadets returned to Camp Warlord for flight time andfacility cleaning. Due to inclementweather, the scheduled PT activitieswere replaced with an indoorobstacle course. The obstaclecourse, constructed with emptybarracks cots and Camp Warlordsupplies, was designed to teach leadership skills,emphasizing teamwork, trust, and ability to followorders. Cadet staff designed the course from scratch.

After the obstacle course, the cadetsleft for dinner at the Base'sRazorback Cafe. The day endedwith flight time, followed by free

time for basic cadets.

Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 4 - Tuesday, 19 June

The day's activities opened with morning PT at05:30, followed by breakfast at Razorback Cafe.After breakfast, cadets promptly left for the Air ForceBase's Fire Station. The cadets weregiven an extensive tour of thefacilities and equipment used by thebase firemen, culminating in a demonstration of the station truck's water jets.


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Cadets were then bused to 314thSecurity Forces Squadron wherethey had the opportunity to witnessa K-9 demonstration. Trainedworking dogs were

led through a series of obstaclecourses. Cadets were then shown thedogs' lethal pursuit capabilities bytrainers wearing a thick, padded bitesuit. After encouragement by the cadets,Encampment Commander Capt. Myers waspersuaded to wear the bite suit for a finaldemonstration.

After the K-9 presentation, boxed lunches wereserved in the Thomas Community Activities Center.Cadets remained in the Activities Center for an AirForce Reserve/CAP Coordination presentation byMaj. Roger Smith.

After classroom time, cadets were bused to theRazorback Cafe for dinner. The day concluded withdrill time and personal time for basic cadets.

Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 5 Wednesday, 20 June

Opening formation of Day 5 sawAlpha Flight, led by C/2Lt Correll,awarded Honor Flight for the day.

After breakfast, cadets returned toformation and began a road marchto the Base's Explosive OrdinanceDisposal (EOD). The EOD, the AirForce's 'bomb squad,' is responsiblefor the detonation and disposal of explosive materials. Cadets got thechance to suit up in a 70-lb bomb

suit, as well as see the command station for a bombdisposal unit.

Cadets also tried their hands at

manipulating robots, as they learnedthe increasing role that robots playin diffusing explosives. Finally,cadets enjoyed the experience of riding several segways - the bomb squad usessegways to transport equipment, which can easilyweigh 300 lbs.

After a fun-filled morning, the cadets marched back to Camp Warlord, where they departed in vans to theThomas Community Activity Center for lunch.

Lt. Col. Sokolsky opened classroom time with anAerospace Education talk, giving an engagingpresentation on the aerodynamics of flight. He alsoshared his experiences in the Air Force with cadets.

Next, Maj. Allison spoke about the Cadet Program,urging cadets to achieve their Mitchell Award. TheCadet Program offers numerous programs for cadetofficers, many of which open career options in thearmed forces.

After dinner at the Razorback Cafe, cadets faced off in a game of capture the flag, wherethey quickly realized that teamwork,communication skills, intelligenceand planning were crucial to

winning. Squadron 1, led by C/Capt. Chung, emergedvictorious in the first round, although they wereunable to hold their lead against the final challengersof officers and staff. An exhausted cadet corps retiredto the barracks after the final game.

SETing the StandardsStandard Evaluation Team (SET) is a separate panel

of cadets that is responsible for evaluating andobserving basic cadets through the duration of theencampment. The team conducts daily uniforminspections, as well as barracks and drill inspections.The team also grills cadets on memory work from theencampment handbook, the Standard OperatingInstructions.

SET has the authority to assign demerits, or criticalevaluations based on any inspections, actions, ormemory work the team tests. The team meticulouslywatches and corrects the basic cadets, playing acrucial role in cadets' recognition of requiredstandards. The SET is considered to be completelyset aside from squadron organization, in order tobetter aid the cadet commander.

The 2007 Encampment Standard Evaluation Team iscomprised of:C/Lt.Col. Clayton Arms, C/2Lt. Johanna Gomez,C/1Lt. Tabitha Nilsen, C/2Lt. Jason Finney, C/MSgt.Patrick Thorburn, C/CMSgt. Jessicca Baker

Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 6, 21 June

Day 6 of the encampment began with the scheduled0530 PT. Bravo Flight, commanded by C/1LtBackus, received honor flight of the day, based onperformances the previous day.


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After a change to BDU's and a quick breakfast at theRazorback Caf, the cadets were caravanned to ArmyPost Camp Robinson in northwest Little Rock. Uponarrival at the camp's brand new aviation complex,cadets had the unique opportunity to ride in UH-60Blackhawk helicopters. They were given aerial tours

of North Little Rock, with low-levelflights around the State Capitalbuilding. The exhilaratingexperience of treetop level flight

produced smiling faces and windblown hair on alldisembarking cadets.

Cadets also got to participate in hands-on activitiesincluding a rock wall climb, wherethey practiced climbing andrappelling techniques, and aweapons station, where cadets got tosee how real automatic grenadelaunchers and standard army issuerifles and pistols worked.

An Arkansas National Guardrepresentative was on hand todescribe careers in the NationalGuard as well as emphasize theachievements that the Arkansas Guard has made bothstatewide and nationally this past year.

After the Blackhawk orientation, cadets were busedto a picnic lunch at a nearby park on Camp Robinson,followed by a visit to the Arkansas National GuardMuseum, where they walked through a brief tour of the Guard's history. The Arkansas Guard's roots goback to 1804, before actual statehood. Its history atCamp Robinson goes back to the Camp'sestablishment in 1917.

Cadets returned to LR Air Force Base in time forclassroom instruction at the Community ActivityCenter, where they got to talk to Drug Enforcement

Agent Special Agent Keith Warzecha. Warzechadescribed drug smuggling tactics and DEAresponses, and talked about the dangerous new formsof marijuana as well as the tremendous consequencesof drug use.

After classroom instruction, cadets ate dinner atRazorback Caf, and then changed for volleyball andsoccer practice at the Base's track and field area.Cadets competed by flight, and Bravo Flight emergedvictorious on the soccer field. After Bravo's victory,

cadets packed up for Camp Warlord for staff meetingand then personal time.

Arkansas Wing Encampment Day 7, 22 June

Day 7 found the cadets adjusting more easily to theearly morning PT and morning formation routine.After breakfast at the Razorback Caf, cadetsmarched to the adjacent ALS drill pad for a two-hourpass-in-review practice.

Morning tour activity of the day involved a visit tothe Base's Life Support Training Facility. There,

cadets experienced a virtual realityparachute simulation, where theywere suspended with a fullparachute harness and had toattempt to steer the parachute to a

designated landing zone.

Cadets also got to try out Air Force issue night visiongoggles, costing roughly $7,000 apiece, testing themon a board that simulated various lighting conditionsand environments. They learned basic principles onhow night vision goggles worked; the sensitiveequipment picks up and amplifies ambient andinfrared light.

Finally the cadets were shown chemical suits,designed for life support in the event of chemicalwarfare.Lunch consisted of boxed lunches at the ThomasCommunity Activity Center, where cadets weregenerously given the privilege of drinking one Spritewith the meal.

Maj. Allison introduced classroom activity with hiscommunications class, where he gave a review of basic radio operating instructions and the logicbehind call signs. He emphasized radio's importance,stressing that CAP has one of the largest HF andVHF communications network in the US.

Chaplain (Capt.) Seaman then ledan interactive moral leadershipclass on the topic of 'when good isnot good enough.' The classstressed how to handledisappointment when one doesn't meet up tosomeone's expectations. He emphasized that cadetsmust always be realistic about expectations, andremember that they gain experience even with


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mistakes. Cadets shared different experiences andsolutions.

An encampment post-test followed the classroomexperience. Cadets were tested on their knowledge of CAP history, leadership, customs and courtesies, drilland ceremonies, and other subjects learned at theencampment.

Cadets then faced off in a Jodie war. Squadron 1, ledby C/SSgt Daniel Beasley, blew away thecompetition with their loud and heart-felt renderingof 'Airborne Ranger.'Dinner at the Razorback Caf was followed by avolleyball tournament, where flights challenged eachother. Bravo flight, led by C/2Lt. Backus, triumphed,and then challenged a team of officer members. Aftera victorious Officer Team win, cadets returned toCamp Warlord for one last staff meeting and personaltime for photos before the final day of encampment.

Encampment Day 8:Day 8, 23 June

The final day of encampment dawned with cadetsassembling for morning formationin civilian attire. After formation,cadets then changed into theirservice uniforms and were bused tothe ALS drill pad for pass-in-reviewpractice before the ceremony.

After a short pass-in-reviewpractice, cadets ate breakfast at theRazorback Caf for the final time,taking care to maintain the pristinecondition of their service uniforms.Cadets returned to the ALS Drill

Pad for the formal Pass-in-Review, whichcommenced promptly at 1015. C/Capt. Marcumreported to C/Lt.Col. Looney that all cadets werepresent and accounted for; C/Lt.Col. Looney thengave the orders for a pass-in-review of each flight.

Cadets then marched to the Thomas CommunityActivity Center for graduation ceremony. After aposting of the colors, Capt. Myers addressed theaudience and opened the graduation ceremony. Heannounced his pleasure at presiding over a verysuccessful encampment. This year's encampment sawa 100% retention rate, with 42 basic cadets, 26 cadetstaff, and 11 officer staff graduating. All trainingrequirements had been completed: moral leadership,communications, aerospace education, cadet

programs, leadership, and DDR.In addition, PT trainingrequirements were exceeded ascadets completed twice-dailyactivities, with calisthenics in themorning and running or team sports in the evening.

Wing Commander Col. Robert "Bucky" Brittonaddressed the audience on the success of this year'sencampment, and then presented certificates to allencampment graduates.

Several encampment attendeesreceived special recognition: AlphaFlight, commanded by C/2Lt ColtonCorrell, received Honor Flight;C/SSgt DanielBeasley receivedHonor Basic Cadet;C/CMSgt MatthewHeckmann

received Honor Cadet Staff Award; Sgt. SeanWalters received Honor Officer Member.

C/Lt.Col. Looney then presented a special CadetCommander's commendation, for the cadet bestexemplifying the "right stuff," to C/A1C RobertJoiner.Additionally, C/Lt.Col. ClaytonArms was presented with hisEaker Award by Maj. Sean

Gradney (USAF).

Honor cadets for each flight were: Alpha Flight -C/SSgt Alexander Brosius; Bravo Flight- C/MSgtJeffrey Montgomery; Charlie Flight- C/TSgt JeffreyVerHoeven; Delta Flight- C/A1C Nick Nobles.

A retiring of the colors concludedthe ceremony. Cadets were busedback to Camp Warlord for out-processing, where they wereallowed to reunite with family and

friends, and say goodbye to friendsmade during the week. This concluded a verysuccessful encampment for the Arkansas Wing.


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New Cadet Commander Appointed forthe 42nd

By Capt. Chuck Bolin

(June 28) In a ceremony tonight at Wing

Headquarters in Little Rock, CadetMajor Ross Macheak was named asthe new cadet commander for the42nd Composite Squadron. CadetMacheak has worked his waythrough every staff position since

joining the Civil Air Patrol in April,2003 and is now the first officialcadet commander the 42nd has had in two years.

New Aerospace Education OpportunityAvailable

(June 23) Captain Frank Warner, the Wing's newExternal Aerospace Education Officer, has madearrangements for Arkansas Wing cadets to be giventours at the Federal Express Flight Training Center inMemphis.

Recently, members of the 99thComposite Squadron were the firstto visit this facility where FederalExpress Flight Instructor Mark Noble led the tour, during whicheach cadet spent at least 25 minutes at the controls of the Boeing MD-11 simulator.

These simulators are so advanced that all FederalExpress pilots receive their check rides in them,rather than in an actual airplane.

Cadet Wesley Shannon, who istraining for his Private Pilot license,was presented with a more advancedchallenge and had to fly the jet in fora landing on only 2 engines after a

simulated bird strike disabled the third engine.

115th Holds Milestone Ceremony By

1st Lt. Anne Formanek (July 10) The 115th Composite Squadron held aPromotion Ceremony tonight at the Rogers MunicipalAirport to honor two of its members.

Squadron Commander Lt. Col. Max Gore opened theceremony and introduced the guest speaker, ColonelWilliam R. Pogue, USAF (Ret.). Col. Pogue

presented C/2Lt. Kyler Selleck withhis Mitchell Award. Col. Pogue thenspoke of his experiences in the AirForce. A former Thunderbird pilotand professor of mathematics at theAir Force Academy, Col. Pogue wasone of the 19 astronauts chosen byNASA in 1966.

Stuart Allen was then promoted to the rank of 1Lt.His two sons, Jacob and Joseph Allen, both cadets,placed his new epaulets on.

A short reception was held after the ceremony forguests and relatives.

Two Cadets Promoted in Texarkana (August 27) This evening two members of the 95thComposite Squadron in Texarkana received cadetprogram awards at a ceremony attended by WingCommander Col. Bucky Briton, Vice WingCommander Maj. Joel Buckner, and Wing Director of Cadet Programs Maj. Bobby Allison.

Davyd Fitzhugh received the AmeliaEarhart Award and was promoted tothe rank of Cadet Captain andKendall Worthington was presented

with the Billy Mitchell Award and promoted to Cadet2nd Lieutenant.

Cadet from 120th Receives MitchellAward

ByCapt. John Brandon

(October 1) Davis L. Spurlock received the GeneralBilly Mitchell Award and was promoted to Cadet 2ndLieutenant in a Civil Air Patrol ceremony atJonesboro this evening.

2nd Lt. Spurlock is the new Executive Officer for thecadets of the 120th Composite Squadron in

Jonesboro, and he is a sophomore atValley View High School. 2nd Lt.Spurlock joined CAP in May, 2004,and has exhibited exceptionalleadership qualities in hisinvolvement in CAP activities. He

is the son of Dennis and Marilyn Spurlock of Jonesboro, both of whom are also CAP members. 2ndLt. Spurlock also participates in the ROTC programat Valley View High School.


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Barbara Halsey, 2nd Judicial Circuit Court Judge inJonesboro made the presentation of the Billy Mitchellaward to Spurlock, and his new rank was pinned onhim by Judge Halsey and his mother. The BillyMitchell award has existed since 1964, and honors thelate Brigadier General Billy Mitchell who was anaviation pioneer and staunch supporter of anindependent Air Force for America.

115th Holds Milestone Ceremony By

1st Lt. Anne Formanek (October 8) This evening the 115th CompositeSquadron held a Milestone Ceremony at the RogersAirport, promoting two individuals.

Lt. Col. Stephen Gray (USAF) presented the BillyMitchell Award to C/2Lt. Matthew Heckmann. Col.Gray, President of the Northwest Arkansas Veterans'Association and Senior Military and VeteransAdvisor to Rep. John Boozman, spoke about aspectsof leadership. He emphasized the importance of fighting through difficult times, making toughdecisions, and taking care of those who work for you.The CAP cadet program introduces these aspectsearly on, providing a chance to identify and developskills needed for difficult situations.

Evelyn Allen was then promoted toCaptain. Capt. Allen has completedLevel II of the Senior MemberProfessional Development Program,and has earned her Benjamin O. Davis,Jr. award.

A short reception offering cake and refreshmentsfollowed the ceremony.

Cadets from 102nd AttendTexas Wing CTEP

By1st Lt. Jennifer Richardson

(November 25) Two cadets from the 102ndComposite Squadron recently completed leadershiptraining as part of the Texas Wing Cadet Training andEducation Program (CTEP). CTEP, held each springand fall at Camp Mabry in Austin, TX, is designed toprovide cadets with an intense, hands-on leadershipexperience.

C/2Lt Seth Masters attended Cadet Officer TrainingSchool which focused on topics such as decisionmaking, problem solving, communication, and thesupervisory role of cadet officers. C/SrA RebekahPowell attended Cadet Non-Commissioned OfficerAcademy where she received training in leadershipand effective communications skills as well asadvanced instruction in the execution and teaching of drill and ceremonies.

While the cadets sacrificed part of their Thanksgivingbreak to attend, both reported that they were glad theywent.

Cadet Promotions in the 107th By

Maj. Pete Orlebeke

(October 9) Three CAP cadetsreceived awards and were promotedat a ceremony this evening at theOzark Regional Airport nearMountain Home. Cadet Josiah Marcum, CadetCommander, received the prestigious AmeliaEarhardt award and was promoted to Cadet Captain.Cadets Jesse Ludvigsen and Justin Matthews receivedthe Billy Mitchell award and were promoted to Cadet2nd Lieutenant.

Training Leaders of Cadets Course By

Capt. Adam Boyd (December 9) This weekend 17 senior members fromacross the state completed the Training Leaders of Cadets Course at Arkansas Wing Headquarters inLittle Rock. This 2-day course is meant to prepareadults to lead cadets and administer the CAP CadetProgram at the squadron level.

TLC is organized around four blocks of instruction:Strategic Perspectives, Leading Cadets, Managing aCadet Program, and a Practicum, the "Virtual Cadet

Squadron." Instructors were Lt. Col. Larry Webster,Maj. Bobby Allison, and Capt. Jean-Andre Parmiter,the new Wing Director of Cadet Programs.

95th Goes to the Armed Forces Bowl By

1st Lt. Lisa Worthington (December 31st) This morning 6 cadets, 2 seniormembers, and 6 guests traveled to Fort Worth, TX tosee the Air Force Academys football team participatein the Armed Forces Bowl against California


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University. The day was cool andbeautiful, just perfect for a footballgame. Unfortunately, Air Force lost42 to 36, but everybody enjoyedseeing the game.

MISSIONS

Missing Airplane Located NearBatesville

(January 5) At about 1:00 PM ground search teamsfrom the Arkansas Wing and the IndependenceCounty Office of Emergency Management locatedthe wreckage of an airplane that went missingyesterday afternoon in northern Arkansas. The Cessna

182, owned by Barr Air Patrol, was on a routineflight, with two persons on board, over an oil pipelineowned by Exxon when it crashed approximately 1mile east of the Batesville, Arkansas airport.

The CAP ground team consisted of 1st Lt. JeremyHudson, Capt. Jimmy Wilson and SM MichaelYoung of the 97th Composite Squadron in Batesville.Aircrews from the 107th and 120th CompositeSquadrons in Mountain Home and Jonesboro were onstand-by to begin an aerial search but overcastweather prevented them from taking off this morning.

Arkansas Wing Searches for MissingAirplane in Northeast Arkansas

(February 5) The Arkansas Wing of the Civil AirPatrol was activated by the Air Force RescueCoordination Center late Sunday to participate in thesearch for a light aircraft that went missing on apersonal flight from Hornersville, Missouri toMarathon, Florida on Friday. The airplane wasreported missing by the family after it did not arriveto refuel in Troy, Alabama.

On Sunday, members of the 120th CompositeSquadron in Jonesboro checked airports in extremenortheastern Arkansas to determine if the airplanemay have stopped there, but no evidence of the planewas found.

On Monday morning a mission base was activated atWing Headquarters in Little Rock. Five aircraft fromJonesboro, Hot Springs, Rogers, and Little Rock weretasked with the search, primarily in Mississippi

County where the plane's estimated flight pathcrossed into Arkansas.

However, early that afternoon an aircrew fromAlabama Wing located wreckage in Jefferson County,Alabama that was soon confirmed by a local lawenforcement as the object of the search. Afterlearning of the find, Arkansas Wing aircraft weredirected to return to their home bases.

Approximately 25 Arkansas Wing membersparticipated in the search on Monday and flew 8sorties for 17.3 hours of flight time.

ELT Mission in Benton County By

Capt. Holly Jones

(February 7) Last night the Air Force RescueCoordination Center detected anEmergency Location Transmitter signal from BentonCounty and activated the Arkansas Wing torespond. Incident Commander Major Tom Reatasked a ground team led by 2LT James Allen fromthe 115th Composite Squadron in Rogers.Wednesday morning 2 teams, oneled by SSGT Sean Walters andone by Cadet 2LT Jacob Allenfrom 115th along with 2 otherground team members from the

83rd

, located the signal of theaircraft, but were unable to findthe owner at the time. They were

joined by an aircrew from the42nd Composite Squadron in the morning.

As the aircrew arrived in the search area theyquickly confirmed that the signal originated from aprivate airstrip just south of Garfield. However, asthey were circling the airport the signal ceased afterthe ground team had called the owner of the aircraftwho met the ground team on the property. The

owner had been working on the ELT the night beforeand had forgotten to turn off the signal.


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Home, a CAP plane from Texas equipped withadvanced sensing equipment, and CAP ground searchteams from Fort Smith and Rogers participated in themission on the Arkansas side of the border withOklahoma. The GA-8 plane with the ARCHERsystem returned to Texas Wing this afternoon afteridentifying several areas of interest that wereinvestigated by ground and air crews .

Missing Plane Located in Oklahoma (July 25) At 11:20 AM a ground search team madeup of Civil Air Patrol members from Oklahoma andArkansas arrived on the site of an accident near Page,Oklahoma involving an aircraft that had been missingsince Friday. A CAP aircraft from Oklahoma hadobserved aircraft wreckage and directed the groundteam to the site by radio.

Maj. Tom Rea and 1st Lt. Tommy Rea of Wingheadquarters were members of the ground team thatconfirmed that the wreckage was that of the missingaircraft.

The discovery of the plane concluded a search begunSaturday evening. Aircrews from Texarkana, HotSprings, Mountain Home, Little Rock, Monticello,Rogers, Russellville, and Jonesboro flew 57 sortiesfor 77.5 hours. Additionally, a GA8 Airvan aircraftequipped with the ARCHER system flew 5 sorties for

9.7 hours.Up to four ground teams were in the search area eachday, with teams coming from Russellville, FortSmith, Rogers, Hot Springs, and Little Rock.

The primary mission base for Arkansas efforts was atWing Headquarters in Little Rock, however Maj.Bobby Allison operated a secondary mission base atMena airport from Sunday through Tuesday.

Wing Assists in Search for Missing

Teenagers (August 2) An aircrew from the 107th CompositeSquadron in Mountain Home was activated by theAFRCC today at the request of the Searcy CountySheriff to participate in the search for two teenagerswho have been missing for four days. The 107thconducted a route search along the Buffalo Riverfrom the Hwy 65 to Highway 14 bridges, but did notfind any evidence of the couple.

ELT Mission in Eastern Arkansas (August 8) The Civil Air Patrol was activated by theAir Force Rescue Coordination Center Mondayevening to look for an aircraft distress beacon ineastern Arkansas that was detected by a satellitemonitored by the Air Force. While designed toactivate when an airplane crashes, these beacons areprone to being set off by mechanical failure or hardlandings, or mishandling by pilots or mechanics andthe receipt of a signal from these beacons does notnecessarily indicate that an airplane crash hasoccurred. Only 1 in 12 signals from the type of beacons carried by most aircraft are the result of adistress situation.

A CAP ground search team from West Memphis anda CAP airplane from Jonesboro worked with localauthorities throughout the night in an effort todetermine the source of the emergency signal.

On Tuesday the Tennessee and Mississippi Wingswere activated while Arkansas Wing stood down as itseemed as if the signal was no longer in Arkansas.This evening the search was suspended after a crewfrom Mississippi Wing was able to get close enoughto the signal to overhear voices on the frequency,which indicates that it was actually originating from aradio transmitter rather than an emergency beacon,but they were not able to determine its exact location.

Since the transmission was not related to emergencycommunications, the CAP search was called off andinformation about the transmission will be providedto the Federal Communications Commission which isresponsible for responding to improper use of emergency frequencies.

The search was made difficult because the satellitethat monitors this frequency was unable to provideconsistent information on where it originated from onthe ground, probably due to what we now know wasthe probable source of the signal. At various times thesignal was traced to sites between Forrest City,Memphis, and Tunica.

An unusual amount of media activity was associatedwith this search, most likely due tomisunderstandings about the generally routine natureof ELT searches.


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Arkansas Wing Searches for MissingPerson in Perry County

(August 30) The Arkansas Wing was activated thisweek to participate in the search for Mr. JohnThompson, 85, who went missing in Perry County

early Monday morning. An 11 person ground teamcomprised of members of the Rogers, Batesville, andFort Smith squadrons arrived at the IncidentCommand Post at the Glenhaven Youth Ranch onWednesday and joined with personnel from otherlocal and state agencies in searching the thick underbrush for any signs of the missing man. Theground team was led by Sgt. Sean Walters, of the115th and Maj. Chic Matthews, of WingHeadquarters, served as the CAP liaison with missionstaff.

An aircrew, equipped with a heat-sensing camera,from the Russellville squadron launched onWednesday evening but was forced to return to baseafter a thunderstorm began over the search area. Theground team stayed at the youth ranch that eveningand continued their efforts on Thursday despiteintermittent rain assisted by an aircrew from theTexarkana squadron, which flew search patterns overthe search area for about two hours. The ground teammembers returned to their home units Thursdayevening after finding no trace of the missing man.

On Saturday and Sunday the Russellville, Fort Smith,Hot Springs, and Texarkana units returned the searcharea until the search was suspended by localauthorities Sunday afternoon.

Wing Receives Two New Planes (November 19) Monday afternoon the ArkansasWing took delivery of two new airplanes that will beassigned to Little Rock and Rogers. The brand newCessna 182T single-engine airplanes have the mostadvanced avionics on the market, the Garmin G-1000glass-cockpit system, and have an approximate value

of $350,000 each.

These 4-seat aircraft have 230 horsepower enginesthat allow them to cruise at about 150 miles per hourwith a range of over 600 miles. Additionally, eachaircraft is equipped with advanced communicationequipment that allows the transmission of photostaken while in flight to the ground stations using asatellite-based cell-phone and also have radio-tracking devices used to locate aircraft emergencydistress beacons.

Major Joel Buckner, Wing Vice Commander, said,With these aircraft the Arkansas Wing of the CivilAir Patrol will have the capability to rapidly respondto any national or state emergency need from the Gulf Coast to the upper Midwest.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

& RELATIONS

(March 17) 1Lt. Richard Davis, of the ArkansasWing Staff and 2Lt. Sherrie Nation, of the 40thComposite Squadron, show an Arkansas Wingaircraft to attendees at a Boy Scout Camporee held atPetit Jean Mountain. Maj. Bobby Allison, WingStaff, and Capt. Jacob Hiles, 42nd CompositeSquadron provided a short tutorial in the use of

direction finding equipment and served as judges inthe Boy Scout's search and rescue competition.

95th Posts Colors at Relay for LifeBy

2Lt. Lisa Worthington (March 23) Today, a color guard from the 95thComposite Squadron consisting of C/1st Lt. Davyd Fitzhugh, C/SMSgtKendall Worthington, C/MSgtWesley Woods, C/SSgt RobertHatridge, C/A1C Devin Jones, and

C/Arm John Watson posted thecolors at the Relay for Life event in Atlanta, Texas.The Relay for Life raises money for research andprograms of the American Cancer Society andfollowing the posting of the colors, CAP memberswalked the first lap with cancer survivors.


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Arkansas Wing Gives the Lt. Governora Lift

(April 23) Today the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management requested that the ArkansasWing provide transportation to Lt. Governor Bill

Halter and his aide, Jeremy Holstead, to the funeral of Mrs. Sam Walton in Bentonville.

Lt. Col. Terry Thompson, Deputy Commander of the40th Composite Squadron was tasked with themission in and flew both legs of the flight from LittleRock to Bentonville in IFR conditions.

Lt. Col. Thompson reports that the Lt. Governor wasvery interested the Civil Air Patrol and our activitiesand that our new Cessna 182 with the Garmin G-1000glass cockpit was a great hit with the other pilots that

had also flown into northwestern Arkansas for thefuneral.

Arkansas Wing Drops In on OperationSkyhook

(May 24) Each Memorial Day Weekend the BlackPilots of America conduct their annual Fly-In atGrider Field in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Known asOperation Skyhook, the 5-day event draws pilotsfrom around the United States to this former ArmyAir Field where they participate in pilot seminars,flour-bomb drops, aircraft static displays, pylon racesand several events designed to introduce youths toaviation.

This evening Arkansas Wing Vice Commander Maj.Joel Buckner was asked to speak to the attendeesabout the Civil Air Patrol and its programs duringthe FAA Safety Meeting held in conjunction with theevent. After the conclusion of the meeting, BPAmembers had the opportunity to inspect the Cessna182T aircraft with Garmin G-1000 glass cockpitoperated by the Arkansas Wing that was usedextensively during the Hurricane Katrina and Ritamissions.

Maj. Joel Buckner demonstrates the capabilities of theGarmin

G-1000 to Black Pilots of America President Palmer Sullins, Jr.

Shortly after the conclusion of the meeting word wasreceived by the local FBO that an aircraft bound forPine Bluff was about an hour overdue and duringtheir return flight to Little Rock the CAP crewmaintained a close radio watch on 121.5 MHz andwith the Becker Direction Finder unit. Thankfully,Major Buckner and his Observer, Maj. Blake Sasse,overheard radio traffic from the overdue aircraft andeven visually confirmed that it was okay as theypassed it in the air as it flew towards Pine Bluff.

Congressman Snyder Joins CAP (May 27) During the last meeting of the CAPNational Board members of the Arkansas Wing metwith legislators from the state to discuss Civil AirPatrol. As a result of these meetings, RepresentativeVic Snyder, of Arkansas' 2nd Congressional District,

joined the CAP's Congressional Squadron.

Col. Bucky Britton, Rep. Snyder, Col. Charles Sharp, and Lt. Col. Jim Gilbert.

Congressman Snyder served with the First MarineDivision during the Vietnam War and sits on theHouse Armed Services Committee and the HouseCommittee on Veterans Affairs.

115th Assists in Memorial DayCelebration

(May 28) Cadets and officer members from the 115thComposite Squadron assisted in the FayettevilleNational Cemetery's Memorial Day service.

On a cloudy Monday morning, a color guard from the115th opened the memorial ceremony by posting thecolors. After the pledge of allegiance and invocation,Lt. Elmer Crumbliss presented WWII veteran MiloCumpston with a plaque from the Sons of theAmerican Revolution for his service and dedication in


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was presented at the Rogers Municipal Airport at7pm.

Arkansas Wing Honors Veterans Day (November 11) Two Arkansas Wing units, the 95thand 99th Composite Squadrons, participated in eventshonoring our nation's veterans this weekend.

On Saturday, the 95th Composite Squadron had 12cadets and 6 officers march in the

Veterans Dayparade inTexarkana. Thesquadron fielded a flight of cadets inaddition to the color guard,

comprised of C/AB Harley, C/SMSgt Woods, C/TSgtBrown, and C/SrA Jones.

On Monday, the Color Guard fromthe 99th Composite Squadron of West Memphis led the VietnamVeterans Association Group in theMemphis, Tennessee Veteran's DayParade.

(November 29) Cadets from the 102nd CompositeSquadron provided a color guard to open the RussellvilleChristmas Parade. Cadets pictured from left to rightinclude: C/Amn Ault, C/CMSgt Masters, C/SSgt Whitbey,and C/SrA Powell.

42nd Tours New ADEMEmergency Operations Center

(December 6) This evening over 20 cadets andofficers of the 42nd CompositeSquadron had the opportunity to

visit the new headquartersbuilding of the Arkansas

Department of Emergency Management that wascompleted this year at CampRobinson in North Little Rock.Capt. Aaron Adams, also anADEM employee, conducted thetour which included the pressbriefing room, the NASA control-center likeEOC, and the Governor's conference room.

Arkansas Wing Honors Those WhoHave Served in Poignant Ceremonies


(December 15) The 115th Composite Squadronopened the Wreaths Across America ceremony at theFayetteville National CemeterySaturday at 11:00AM. On a mistySaturday morning in freezingtemperatures, Capt. Dave Myersaddressed the small crowd gathered.

He stressed the importance of honoring and remembering those who have served inthe armed forces, and have endured sacrificeseveryday to ensure the freedom our nation enjoystoday.

An honor guard comprised of cadets from the 115thopened the ceremony. Cadets then placed wreaths ongravesites of a member from each branch of thearmed services. A wreath was also placed at thecemetery's flagpole to honor those labeled asPOW/MIA.

Representative from each service branch werepresent, as well as the local Patriot Guard and theVeterans of Foreign Wars/ American Legion Post.The wreaths were donated by the Daughters of theAmerican Revolution. Fayetteville National CemeteryDirectory Tommy Monk was impressed by the cadets'exemplary role in the solemn, poignant ceremony. Hewas struck by the professionalism and dignity theyexhibited.


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2nd Lt. Ron Wingfield, commander of the 42ndComposite Squadron, spoke at the wreaths ceremonyheld at the Little Rock NationalCemetery at the same time. Cadetsand and an Officer of the 42ndplaced the wreaths around the mainflagpole near the Pearl Harbormonument in front of a small crowd containingrepresentatives from the Coast Guard, Coast GuardAuxiliary, and the Daughters of the AmericanRevolution.

Wreaths Across America is a ceremony that takesplace nationwide each year to honor and rememberthose who have served this country. A tradition thatbegan when Worcester Wreath Company donatedextra wreaths to Arlington National Cemetery in1992, support for the tradition has spread throughoutthe country and is now performed at more than 230state and national cemeteries.

OUR PEOPLE

Wing Members Receive Region Honors (January 1) Maj. Bobby Allison and Lt. Col. BobBetzold (USAF, Ret.) were recently receivedrecognized for their contributionsto the Civil Air Patrol and to

aviation in Arkansas.

Maj. Allison, Wing Director of CadetPrograms, was selected as theSouthwest Region CadetPrograms Officer of theYear.

Lt. Col. Betzold, who serves as the CAP-USAFArkansas State Director, received the FederalAviation Administration's Southwest Region Aviation

Counselor of the Year Award for his dedication to theFAA's safety program.

120th Learns About Conditions in Iraq By

Capt. John Brandon (January 4th) Mr. Kevin Rhodes, father of CadetAirman Lauren Rhodes, gave a video presentationand answered questions about his experiences in as acivilian contractor working as a nurse/medic in Iraq.Mr. Rhodes, a former Marine, discussed his duties

and responsibilities and how the Iraqi populationviews the presence of Americans in their country.He expects to return to Iraq again in the near future.

Wing Veteran Retires (January 27) Lt. Col. Ed Foster, of Jonesboro,officially retired from Civil Air Patrol service at theend of 2006 after serving the organization since

1962. A member of the 113thComposite Squadron he was anactive mission pilot and served inthat capacity in disaster responseoperations in Louisiana followingHurricane Katrina. He was

presented with his certificate of retirement by WingVice Commander Maj. Joel Buckner at today'sCommander's Call.

95th Meets C-130 in Texarkana By 2nd Lt. Lisa Worthington

(February 16) A C-130 landed at the TexarkanaAirport this afternoon for a planned break stop. TheC-130, or the Herc, was commanded by Maj. BrianSmith with Maj. David Gomez as the co-pilot. Therewas a crowd of 50+ people to meet the Herc as itlanded including representatives from the Civil AirPatrol, Arkansas High JROTC, and Texas High.

The crew of the Herc was gracious enough to give a

tour of their huge airplane and crowd also had achance to see the 95th Composite Squadron's Cessna182. There was also time to answer questions aboutthe planes and the Air Force Reserves. The crew andplane stayed for nearly two hours, departing at about3:30pm.

Members of the 95th participating in the event wereLt. Col. Loren Ainsworth, Capt. John Gender, C/1stLt. Reed Fitzhugh, C/2nd Lt. Kassondra Brown,C/MSgt Wesley Woods, C/TSgt Kayla Brown, C/ABTravis Loehr, and C/AB Skylar Elliot.

115th Promotes Three By

2Lt. Anne Formanek (March 13) The 115th Composite Squadron held apromotion ceremony this evening honoring threeofficer members at the Rogers Municipal Airport.Maj. Marina Scott, Squadron ProfessionalDevelopment Officer, earned the rank of Lt. Col.,having completed her Level IV requirements. 1Lt.Holly Jones, Squadron Emergency Services Officer


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received a promotion to Captain, having received theBenjamin O. Davis and Grover Loening Awards.Capt. Craig Young, Squadron Deputy Commanderalso received his Benjamin O. Davis Award, havingcompleted Level II of the Professional DevelopmentProgram. The 115th is proud of these individuals,who have dedicated their time and leadership to theCivil Air Patrol programs.

99th Has Close-up with Apaches By

Lt. Col. Larry Webster (March 23) Cadets from the 99 th CompositeSquadron had a rare opportunity to see the Armys

Apache helicopter up close and talk with the pilots. Cadets had justgotten back from an activity with the

unit and saw that several Apachehelicopters had landed at the West Memphis Airporton their way to Ft Campbell, KY. The pilots took time to talk to the cadets and allowed cadets to sit inthem.

Arkansan Graduates from ChaplainCollege

(April 19) Chaplain Pete Connolly, of the 120thComposite Squadron, completed the Chaplain ServiceRegion Staff College held at Luke Air Force Base,Arizona from 16-19 April. Chaplain Connolly wasone of 22 students who received Critical IncidentStress Management (CISM) training while alsoserving as an instructor for the section on militaryprotocol.

Arkansas Wing Obtains FEMATrailers

(April 21) A team from the Arkansas Wing recentlyreturned from Selma, Alabama and Maxwell AirForce Base with two former FEMA trailers that weredonated to CAP for use in our operations. The crew

that made the three-day journey included Lt. Col.Chuck Bishop and Maj. Bobby Alison of the Wingstaff and and Capt. Chuck Henninger, and 2nd Lt.Ron Wingfield of the 42nd Composite Squadron.

The trailers are in excellent condition and arecurrently at Wing Headquarters. A 34' trailer will beused to support the new CAP regional commandcenter (C4) that is being based in Little Rock and the29' trailer will be set up as a mobile command center.

115 th Officer Recognized with TSASafety Award


(May 16) 1 st Lt. Evelyn Allen of the 115 th Composite

Squadron was awarded an Excellence in SafetyAward by the Transportation Security Administrationfor demonstrating exemplary response skills inattending to an employee in a medical emergency atNorthwest Arkansas Regional Airport.

On the morning of March 21 st, Lt. Allen responded toa fellow employee of the TSA at Northwest ArkansasRegional Airport after he collapsed. Lt. Allenprovided rescue breaths, checked his vital signs, andensured that his breathing passages remained open.She remained with the patient until paramedics

arrived on the scene. It is now known that theemployee suffered a heart attack and seizure. He hassince undergone triple bypass surgery, and is nowfine.

Lt. Allen is an active member of the 115 th. She isground team leader qualified and frequently conductsfirst aid and CPR training for the squadron. She wasrecognized on both the national and wing level for herground team efforts when she was dispatched to thegulf coast of Mississippi to assist victims fromHurricane Katrina. Not one to rest, Lt. Allen has just

finished EMT training this past week and plans totake her exam later this month.

115th Officer Receives NationalCAP Award

(May 27) Capt. David L. Myers, Deputy Commanderfor Cadets of the 115th Composite Squadron, wasrecently named as the Civil Air Patrol's 2007 JackSorenson Cadet Programs Officer of the Year.

Captain Myers, a 20-year veteran of the Air Force,has led the cadet program in Rogers for three years.During this time he developed a computer programthat tracks the activity and performance of eachcadet and has seen average cadet meeting attendancerise from 25% to 66%. In this period cadets of the115th Composite Squadron have earned one Spaatz,two Eakers, twelve Mitchells and fifteen WrightBrothers Awards. Through his efforts, cadets haveparticipated in eighty six local activities in the lastthree years and completed 2,383 hours of communityservice in the year 2006 alone.


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Capt. Myers will serve as Commander of the 2007Arkansas Wing Cadet Encampment at Little RockAir Force Base in June.

Change of Command in Hot Springs (August 21) At a ceremony held tonight at the CAPbuilding in Hot Springs, Capt. David Robbins turnedover command of the 40thComposite Squadron, which he hasheld for two years, to Capt. RichardDavis. Capt. Davis joined CAP inJanuary, 2004 and had been servingas the Assistant Counterdrug Officerat Wing Headquarters.

Change of Command in the 42ndComposite Squadron

(September 17) This evening 2nd Lieutenant RonWingfield assumed command of the 42nd Composite

Squadron in a ceremony presidedover by Wing Commander Col.Bucky Britton. Captain BruceBrown, who has led the 42nd since

April, 2006 will continue his duties as the Wing'sAssistant Disaster Relief Officer.

Lt. Wingfield joined the Civil Air Patrol in October,2005 and has been serving as the squadron's DeputyCommander for Seniors. After a long career as a

computer programmer he is currently co-owner of SSX Boats, a boat building company. He is a pilotand owns a Beechcraft BE77 Skipper.

News from the 95th By

1st Lt. Lisa Worthington (September 22) The 95th Composite Squadron hasbeen undergoing some leadership changes this month;Capt. Leonard Russell has assumed the position of Deputy Commander for Seniors and 1st Lt. LisaWorthington is now the Deputy Commander forCadets.

The 95th is conducting a recruitingdrive and is manning aninformational booth all week, next tothe Air Force and Air Force Reserverecruiters booth, at the Four StatesFair. The booth won 1st Place for"Inside Commercial Booth". The squadron will behosting an open house for prospective members on

September 24th, which was promoted in an article inthe Texarkana Gazette on the 21st.

Arkansas Wing Holds AnnualConference

(October 27) The Arkansas Wing held its annualconference at Wing headquarters inLittle Rock today. The day openedwith presentations on the status of the Wing and Region by Col. BuckyBritton and Col. Joe Jensen. Lt. Col.John Desmarais, of CAP National

Headquarters spoke on the CAP operations andupcoming missions

Several members of the Little Rock Air Force Base's314th Airlift Wing briefed the members on bird strike

hazards in the area and low-level routes flown by C-130s in the central Arkansas area.

After lunch a variety of sessions were held includingleadership seminars for cadets, aerospace education,public affairs, the Web Mission InformationReporting System, emergency services trainingqualification documentation, airport construction, andthe wing cadet program.

The Wing banquet held in the

evening at the Scimitar ShrineCenter. Arkansas Department of Emergency Management DirectorDavid Maxwell spoke aboutchallenges involving currenthomeland security and naturaldisaster preparation and response issues.

The following awards were presented during theconference by Colonels Britton and Jensen:Squadron of the Year 115th Composite Squadron (Rogers)Squadron Commander of the Year Lt. Col. Max Gore, 115th Composite SquadronSenior Member of the Year Capt. Reba Wingfield, Wing HeadquartersRobert L. Penton Aircrew Excellence Award Lt. Col. Loren Ainsworth, 95th Composite SquadronGround Team Member of the Year Maj. James "Chic" Matthews, Wing HeadquartersJames C. Stevens Support Award Lt. Col. Herb Williams, Wing Headquarters


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Commanders Award for Excellence in FlightTraining Maj. Bruce Bailey, 107th CompositeSquadronArkansas Wing Outstanding Family of the Year The Stuart Allen Family, 115th Composite SquadronOutstanding Unit Public Affairs Officer Award 1st Lt. Anne Formanek, 115th Comp. Squadron/WingStaff Frank G. Brewer Aerospace Education Award(Senior) Capt. Craig Young, 115th Composite SquadronFrank G. Brewer Aerospace Education Award(Cadet) Cadet 1st Lt. Johanna M. Gomez, 115th CompositeSquadronCadet of the Year: Cadet Davyd R. Fitzhugh, 95th Composite SquadronCadet Junior Officer of the Year Cadet 1st Lt. Jason P. Finney, 115th CompositeSquadronCadet NCO of the Year Cadet 2nd Lt. Kendal Worthington, 95th CompositeSquadronCadet Ground Team Member of the Year Cadet SMSgt Nathan Hassett, 115th CompositeSquadron

Additionally CAP-USAF State Director RobertBetzold was named as the FAA's Southwest RegionSafety Team Representative of the Year .

Guard member, son make a differenceMaster Sgt. Bob Oldham

189th Airlift Wing Public Affairs(October 26) In a coma, 19-year-old Katie Gleasonof Little Rock didn't know Air National Guard Tech.Sgt. Sam Macheak (also a member of the ArkansasCAP-USAF staff) or his son, Ross, a 42nd CompositeSquadron Civil Air Patrol cadet major, before sheslipped into an unresponsive state.

They all met Aug. 2, but she doesn't recall it. Theyhelped stabilize her until the ambulance and firecrews could arrive.

Young Katie was driving along Maumelle Boulevardon her way to meet a Mary Kay cosmetics client. Itwas about 6:20 p.m. as she attempted to make a leftturn across two lanes of traffic. Unfortunately, shecouldn't see past a row of cars that were opposite of her that were also trying to make a left turn. Shewaited patiently for an opening in the traffic. Shethought she had one and pressed the accelerator with

her foot. Today, she still doesn't remember the FordF-250 that slammed into her four-door Toyota Camryat about 55 mph.

"It's like playing Russian roulette" at that intersection,Katie's mother, Kelly Gleason, said. To date, therehave been more than a dozen vehicle accidents at thatintersection. The Macheaks -- Sam, Ross and family -- were on their way out to eat in Maumelle. Theywere in heavy traffic when Sam saw the accidenthappen.

As the truck hit, he saw a perfect bubble erupt fromthe car as the glass in Katie's car exploded in everydirection from the collision. Sam pulled off the roadand jumped out. Ross followed.

"(Katie) was semi-conscious for a moment," Samsaid.

She was in good hands. Sam works in the informationtechnology department at Baptist Health and hascurrent life-saving skills in first aid, plus annual AirForce self-aid and buddy care training. Ross hasreceived training from the Civil Air Patrol to searchfor downed aircraft. Aircraft often go down in remotelocations, so searchers have to know how to treat amyriad of injuries.

"I jumped in the (driver's side) back door," Sam said.

"Ross went in through what was left of the passenger-side door."

The car was a crumpled mess. "The [front]passenger's seat just basically disappeared," he said."I don't know where it went, either; under the car orinto the engine."

As traumatic as the crash was, Katie was fortunate.She was wearing her seatbelt, and she was wrapped inan airbag cocoon. In 2003, 5,240 teens were killed inpassenger-vehicle crashes, and 458,000 teens were

injured, according to National Highway TrafficSafety Administration statistics. Sixty-three percentof the fatally injured 16-to-20-year-old passengervehicle occupants were unrestrained, compared to 55percent for adults 21 or older. In 2003, an estimated2,488 lives were saved by air bags.

Katie was banged up, bruised and bloodied. She washaving trouble breathing, and her car was starting tosmoke.


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While Sam and Ross stabilized her in the driver'sseat, someone unhooked the battery cables, causingthe smoke to stop.

Sam kept her airway open while Ross ran a mentalchecklist of injuries: lacerations, possible brokenbones, possible head and neck injuries, light pulse.Within five minutes, emergency crews were on scene,working to remove her from her car.

Four excruciatingly long days later, Katie's eyesopened. She had suffered a tiny bleeding braininjury, lacerations and a fracture at L3 in herback. She spent a month in the hospital,followed by weeks of physical therapy andoccupational therapy. She's well on the road torecovery, thanks to a father and a son who chose

to make a difference on Aug. 2.

CAP Building in Hot Springs Gets NewLook

By Lt. Col. Charles Bishop

(November 10) Despite facing poor weathermembers and family of the 40thComposite Squadron dedicated partof their Veteran's Day weekend tosprucing up squadron headquarters

at the Hot Springs Airport. Theentire building was scraped,caulked, and then painted withCAP colors (gray with blue trim).

42nd Holds Annual Awards Banquet (December 17th) This evening over 80 members andguests of the 42nd Composite Squadron attended theannual awards banquet held at Wing Headquarters.After a potluck supper, Lt. Col. Robert Penton, athree-time commander of the 42nd, and Col. JosephJensen, Southwest Region Commander spoke about

the CAP and where it is heading.

Many cadets and officers recognized for their serviceduring 2007. Among them were Cadet Major RossMacheak and his father,Technical Sergeant SamMacheak (of the Air NationalGuard and the CAP-USAFdetachment in Arkansas), whowere awarded the CAP Certificate of Recognition forLifesaving, for their actions at the scene of a caraccident in Maumelle on August 2nd, and Cadet

Airman Daniel Hughes, who was the recipient of theScott K. Powell Cadet of the Year Award.

Former Wing Commander PassesAway

(December 29) Col. Donald F. Huenefeld, formerArkansas Wing Commander, passed away inSpringdale on December 18th at the age of 81.

Col. Huenefeld commanded the Arkansas Wing fromJanuary 1, 1975 to January 1, 1978. He focused hisefforts on increasing public awareness of CAP and onthe cadet program, which had suffered a significantmembership decline due to the Vietnam war. Duringhis service as Wing Commander the Wing wasrecognized for Best Sustained Efforts in DisasterRelief in the Southwest Region in 1977, the Civil

Defense Effectiveness Winner in 1975, and Runner-Up for the Logistics Excellence Award in 1975.

Perhaps one of the Wing's more unusual missionstook place on Col. Huenefeld's watch when inJanuary, 1976 a meteor passed over Arkansas. Theevent led to reports that a small plane had crashed andCAP launched an airplane from Little Rock to listenfor an ELT.

Col. Huenefeld was as a Navy fighter pilot and had a22-year career in the Naval Reserve. In civilian lifehe operated a large farm near Augusta in Woodruff County and served as Chairman of the Woodruff County Airport Commission.

TRAINING

Twenty-five Graduate from HighlandsGround Team Academy

By

2Lt. Anne Formanek(February 4) Today cadets and senior members fromthe 83rd, 102nd, and 115th Composite Squadronsgraduated from the 2007 Highlands Ground TeamAcademy. Conducted annually at the Rogers Airportin Northwest Arkansas, the Academy is a CAPground team certification program for basic groundsearch and rescue. Students were trained in survivalskills, basic woodland search tactics, and directionfinding over the three-weekend course held overJanuary and February. Trainees conducted classroom


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training coupled with simulated real-world situationsintended to prepare for downed aircraft scenarios.

The Highlands Ground Team Academy, heldannually and hosted by the 115th CompositeSquadron, is the only training program of its kind inthe Arkansas Wing, and one of only a few in theSouthwest Region. This year saw the largestattendance since the Academy's inception in 1999.Attendance by Ft. Smith and Russellville squadronsalso marked a new milestone in Academy history.

The Academy was headed by cadre, a group of cadetsand graduates of previous Highlands Academies. Thecadre supervised and conducted the trainingexercises. Project Officer 2Lt. James Allen plannedthe training exercises and coordinated with outsideagencies, while Commandant of the Academy C/Col.Jonathan VerHoeven and Deputy CommandantC/2Lt. Colton Correll implemented, structured andsupervised the schedule.

The T/Sgt. John A. Chapman Honor Graduate Award,presented to the trainee who demonstrated exemplaryteam leadership, went to C/TSgt. Jeff Montgomery of the 83rd Composite Squadron. The A/1C Jesse M.Samek Honor Cadre Award was presented to C/2Lt.Amanda Beasley of the 115th Composite Squadron,who demonstrated outstanding dedication andorganizational skills.

The importance of this training was emphasized whenrecent graduates of the academy responded to an ELTsearch early Wednesday morning, Feb 7, inNorthwest Arkansas.

120th Completes Skywarn TrainingBy

Capt. John Brandon (February 24) Cadets from the 120th CompositeSquadron in Jonesboro recently completed trainingfrom the National Weather Service that now qualifiesthem as Official Skywarn Observers. The participantslearned about meteorological conditions that result inbad weather, and were taught how to recognizeimpending dangerous weather related events.

Twenty-Two Graduate fromCorporate Learning Course

(February 25) This weekend 22 CAP members fromaround Arkansas Wing completed the CorporateLearning Course at Wing Headquarters in Little

Rock. This class, organized by Course Director Lt.Col. Herb Williams, focuses on teaching membersabout the administrative aspects involved in runningthe CAP program at the Wing level and is one of thepre-requisites for promotion to Major.

42nd Hosts Field Training Exercise By

Capt. Adam Boyd (March 25) Twenty-six members of the 42ndComposite Squadron, along with members of the40th, 67th, and 102nd Composite Squadrons

participated in a field trainingexercise on the Ouachita NationalForest near Forked Mountain. Thetwo day event focused on trainingmembers in ground search and

rescue tasks such as land navigation,communications, survivaltechniques, search clues, and and the use of directionfinding equipment. Instruction wasprovided by Lt. Col. Chuck Bishopand Maj Bobby Allison of WingStaff and Capt. Chuck Bolin, Capt.Jake Hiles, Capt. Adam Boyd, and1st Lt. Justin Geiger of the 42nd.With the completion of the exerciseArkansas Wing now has 15 newGround Team Members (Level 3), 10 Direction

Finding Team Members, 3 Ground Team Members(Level 2), and 1 Ground Team Leader.

Large Turn-Out for SAR Exercise inBatesville

(April 28) Over 70 members of the Arkansas Wingconverged on the Batesville airport today to conductthe Wing's first search and rescue training mission of

the year. Five CAP aircraft and 3ground search teams from units inBatesville, Hot Springs, Fort Smith,Mountain Home, Jonesboro, WestMemphis, Forest City, and Little

Rock participated in the exercise led by Col. BuckyBritton.

CAP is well known for its participation in searchesfor missing airplanes and training scenarios werefocused on this type of event. Emergency beacons, setto a non-distress practice frequency, were placed inBatesville and Heber Springs and both ground andaircrews used radio direction finding equipment tolocate the beacons. Aircrews also practiced flying


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various search patterns utilized when trying to find amissing airplane based on visual clues.

95th Attends Leadership TrainingClass in Louisiana

By 2nd Lt. Lisa Worthington (May 12) Four cadets and three officers from the 95thComposite Squadron in Texarkana attended a jointleadership training class with the BarksdaleComposite Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base.Cadet classes focused on drill,aerospace and moral leadership.Additionally all attendees visited thebase museum and watched ademonstration of the capabilities of Ranger, a search and rescue dog.

Operation Southwest Sentry A Success(May 19) This Thursday, Friday, and Saturday theArkansas Wing of the Civil Air Patrol participated inOperation Southwest Sentry, a training exercise thatspanned CAP's entire Southwest Region. Flightoperations in Arkansas were intense throughout theweek and focused on missing airplane searches,earthquake response and terrorist incident damageassessment and photographic missions as well as amissing airplane search. During Saturday's activities,3 Arkansas Wing aircraft were even assigned tasksthat took them well into Oklahoma.

Over 40 people checked in during the mission atArkansas Wing Headquarters on Friday andapproximately 70 participated on Saturday, withparticipation by almost all of our squadrons andaircraft.

This exercise also marked the "graduation exercise"for the new CAP Crisis Coordination Center (C4) thatwas recently established at Wing Headquarters. Thiswill be one of three C4s throughout the country thatwill control the flow of CAP resources during theresponse to a major national emergency.

During Southwest Sentry the C4 was operated bymembers of the Southwest Region staff includingCAP's National Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations,Col. Andrew Skiba and Southwest RegionCommander Col. Reggie Chitwood. In the future,members of the Arkansas Wing will be trained in C4operations and would likely be assigned there duringfollowing a C4 activation.

Squadron Leadership School Held inLittle Rock

(May 6) Today nineteen members of the ArkansasWing completed the two-day Squadron LeadershipSchool course that was held at Wing Headquarters in

Little Rock. SLS teaches new CAP officers about thebasics of CAP life with a focus on administrativetasks at the squadron level. The students hailed fromseven different Arkansas squadrons, including sixmembers from the Wing's newest squadron, the 67thComposite Squadron in Monticello

SAREX in Russellville (June 16) The Arkansas Wing gathered inRussellville today for the second of the regionalsearch and rescue exercises planned for the state thisyear. Despite having to send units home somewhatearlier in the day than planned 25 air sorties totaling40 hours were flown.

Wing Participates in Regional Exercise (June 20) Today the Arkansas Wing continued tosupport the Spills of National Significance Exercisewhich involves state and federal agencies from acrossthe midwest. The scenario to date includes apollution incident affecting the Mississippi River anda major earthquake along the New Madrid fault.

The four sorties flown on Tuesday and the 12 flowntoday were primarily our standard post-earthquakereconnaissance routes though we did receive a specialrequest from ADEM for a flight over I-55. Theexercise will continue on Thursday.

Arkansans Complete AdvancedTraining

(August 2) Five senior members of the ArkansasWing recently completed advanced training inleadership and emergency services.

Major Chic Matthews of Wing Staff and 2ndLieutenant Daymond Hill, of the 95th CompositeSquadron attended the National Emergency ServicesAcademy in Camp Atterbury, Indiana. Maj.Matthews completed the Incident Command SystemBasic and Advanced Courses. Lt. Hill completed theMission Aircrew School and was honored by hisclassmates as the Distinguished Graduate.

Capt. Jacob Hiles, Assistant Emergency ServicesOfficer for the 42nd Composite Squadron, attended


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the Hawk Mountain Ranger School in Pennsylvania.This was the fifth year he had attended the school andthis time he served as a Commander of the school'sDelta Squadron.

Capt. John Gender of the 95th Composite Squadronand 1st Lieutenant Bruce Brown of the 42ndComposite Squadron graduated from the 2007Southwest Region Staff College held at Kirtland AirForce Base, New Mexico. The curriculum isdesigned to increase students' ability to communicateeffectively, to build teams or workgroups, and tosolve problems encountered in daily CAP operations.They received specially adapted versions of thecurrent USAF courses on these subjects and exercisesin their application. Completion of this course is oneof the pre-requisites to being promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

Wing Receives ICS Training(July 29-30) This weekend members of the ArkansasWing received classroom training in the IncidentCommand System (ICS) utilized by first respondersnationwide to manage emergencies. Capt. AaronAdams, Wing ES Training Officer taught ICS-100 for17 CAP members and ICS-200 for 15 CAPmembers. Students from the 40th and 42ndComposite Squadrons, Arkansas Wing Staff, and theLouisiana Wing participated in the course.

Arkansas Wing Hosts SARManagement Course

(September 9) This weekend the Air Force RescueCoordination Center brought their Search and Rescue

Management Course to Wingheadquarters in Arkansas where over20 students from CAP, the AirForce, ADEM, and local emergencymanagement agencies learned howthe AFRCC oversees missing

airplane, ELT, and other missions and the resources

available in these circumstances. The 2-day courseconcluded with a tabletop exercise simulating amissing airplane search.

Multi-Squadron Exercise Focuses onGround Team Training

(September 15) As part of the Wing-wide distributedSAREX for September 1-15, elements of threesquadrons participated in a search and rescue exercisetoday in the Flatside Wilderness Area thatconcentrated on ground team training. Simulated

SARSAT information for an ELT were delivered toan aircrew from the 102ndComposite Squadron whichlaunched and after pinpointing thelocation of the practice beaconguided in ground teams from the40th and 102nd CompositeSquadrons to the "crash" site. Ateam from the 42nd Composite Squadron joined themat the site where they conducted a missing personsearch for the a survivor of the crash. The exerciseconcluded with a search for a second practiceemergency beacon.

Arkansas Wing ReceivesWMD/Terrorist Awareness Training

(September 22) Seventeen members of the Arkansas

Wing were the first to complete the AWR-160WMD/Terrorist Awareness course under the directionof Capt. Aaron Adams, a full-time employee of theArkansas Department of Emergency Management aswell as Arkansas Wing Emergency Services TrainingOfficer (Ground). This course is the NationalWeapons of Mass Destruction StandardizedAwareness Program training curriculum provided bythe US Department of Homeland Security and isdesigned for all emergency response and coordinationpersonnel nationwide, and provides these personnelwith the basic training needed to recognize, avoid,

and identify WMDs and suspicious / terroristactivities.

95th Holds Bivouac By

1st Lt. Lisa Worthington (November 3) Today fifteen members of the 95thComposite Squadron concluded a two-day bivouac inLittle River County. The event focused on trainingnew cadets in ground team search and rescue skillssuch as land navigation, use of signal mirrors andwhistles, line searches, and emergency shelters.

Field Exercise in Perry County By

Capt. Jacob Hiles (November 18) Today twenty CAP Officers andCadets from the 42nd, 40th, and 102nd CompositeSquadrons completed a three-dayfield training exercise held atGlenhaven Youth Ranch, nearPlainview in Perry County.


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The Youth Ranch was the focus for a massive lostperson search in August in which CAP played animportant role and that scenario was incorporated intoa practice grid search.

Among the skills taught were patient packaging,treatment and prevention of hot and cold weatherinjuries, search theory, ELT search, fire and shelterbuilding, and land navigation.

One of the practice searches wasconducted partially at night and theexercise was capped with a 1.2 milehike carrying a full 72-hour pack.

arkansas wing - annual report (2007)

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