The Fly-By A Quarterly Newsletter of the Southwest Region July, 2011 News Highlights From Around the Region Southwest Region Staff In the second quarter of 2011, a new commander for New Commander Mexico Wing was selected. Texas Wing’s Frisco Cadet Col. Frank Buethe, CAP Squadron Color Guard and Sheldon Cadet Squadron Drill Vice Commander (TX, AR, LA) Team won the SWR Cadet Competition. SWR offered an IG Col. André B. Davis, CAP Practicum and a Region Chaplain Staff College, and welcomed a new commander. Emergency Services missions Vice Commander (AZ, NM, OK) ran across the region. Col. John J. Varljen, CAP To avoid errors or omissions, I’ve asked each wing PAO to Chief of Staff send in a summary of notable events, which are posted below Lt. Col. Lawrence Mattiello, CAP in the order in which they were received. My thanks to all. CAP-USAF Liaison Region New Mexico Wing earned an "Excellent" rating in its April Commander OPSEVAL. On the Memorial Day weekend, the wing ran Lt. Col. Donald M. “Don” Hensley missions to assist local authorities and the Coast Guard Director of Public Affairs & Auxiliary in patrolling state recreational lakes. During a June Newsletter Editor SAREX sortie, a CAP aircrew spotted and reported a major Maj. Arthur E. Woodgate, CAP wildfire near Santa Fe, making statewide TV and media news. – oOo – Summer encampment took place at the Santa Fe National The Fly-By is published quarterly on Guard complex. In late June, an Aerospace Extravaganza, the first month of each quarter. with workshops, field trips, hot-air balloon rides, and a lineup Deadline for submissions are: of aerospace experts as speakers proved very popular. It 1Q – 20 December concluded with a banquet during which SWR Vice 2Q – 20 March Commander Col. John Varljen conducted a ceremony 3Q – 20 June transferring wing command from Col. Richard Himebrook to 4Q – 20 September Col. Mark Smith. Maj. Gen. Amy Courter attended the event. Text may be submitted in the body of Arkansas Wing conducted a Squadron Leadership School an e-mail (preferred) or as a document attached to an e-mail (a text file or, if hosted at wing headquarters in Little Rock, followed by a golf generated in a word processor, saved scramble fundraiser at Ben Geren Golf Course in Ft. Smith, in .RTF format). both in April. In May, aircrews flew in the four-day ARDENT Images must be in JPG format, un- SENTRY Exercise, and color guards from several squadrons retouched, un-cropped, and at least participated in Memorial Day services. In June, the 115th 1200 by 900 pixels. Composite Squadron in Rogers hosted a wing-wide flight Credits: In all cases, please give full clinic. The wing’s Cadet Encampment took place at Little Rock grade, name and unit of assignment of AFB in mid June. 1. The article’s author, 2. Photographer, and Louisiana Wing was very busy flying flood response 3. Any person mentioned in the missions during the second quarter of 2011. The semi-annual article. Training Academy was held in Lafayette and a flight clinic for – oOo – mission pilots was held in Alexandria. A cadet received an Send submissions to the Editor at: appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy. Cadets from five squadrons experienced a C-17 orientation ride in Mississippi. [email protected] Major air show events were held at Barksdale Air Force Base Message size limit: 20 MB and NAS JRB New Orleans. Arizona Wing’s encampment had nearly 100 cadets in The Fly-By, Southwest Region, July 2011 attendance. Ground teams received an outstanding rating during the Air Force evaluated operational exercise. Wing Conference was rich in awards and training. The Glendale composite squadron broke ground on a new hangar to be completed in late July, 2011. The Aerospace Education team represented the Wing at state military and teacher events. Texas Wing flew High Bird missions in support of the state forest agency as it fought wildfires in the northern part of the state, stricken by an extreme drought. The wing also had a successful "find" of a J-3 Cub near Beaumont, garnered first place honors in both Color Guard and Drill Team at the Southwest Region Cadet Competition, conducted a state-wide ACE, completed planning for the semi-annual SAREVAL (postponed because of weather), and held the annual LoneStar Emergency Services Academy. Oklahoma Wing’s got a new commander as, after having served for four years, wing command changed from Col. Robert Castle to Col. Joe Cavett during the annual Wing Conference in April. Cadets enjoyed a week-long summer encampment in June, while mission aircrews qualified and trained in time to support state and local law enforcement missions this summer. Tinker Air Force Base hosted the annual Color Guard competition, where CAP cadets gave a larger Air Force audience the chance to see their performance as Color Guard and Drill Team members. To everyone, our congratulations. – oOo – Safety is Priority One Please read the latest issue of The Safety Beacon for timely, seasonal advice at http://members.gocivilairpatrol.com/safety/safety_newsletters.cfm Have you taken the Operational Risk Management Basic, Intermediate and Advanced online courses? Please visit: http://www.capmembers.com/safety/orm.cfm • Safety must be on every CAP member’s mind, at all times. • Before engaging in any CAP activity, a safety briefing must be conducted. • Don’t miss the Safety Specialty Track training posted at http://www.capmembers.com/safety/safety_training/orm_training.cfm • Safety is our Number One Priority. How to Submit News Items for this Newsletter Which Articles Are Best? Ideally, articles should deal with a wing-wide event, preferably conducted in conjunction or coordinated with another wing (or better yet across regions). Individual articles dealing with a subject that is of interest to a broad audience qualify as well. Articles bylined by cadets, especially when the subject is of interest to a broad audience, are also welcome. Do I Submit Photos? Whenever possible, include images with your article. Do not embed images in a Word document. Instead, send in the original, un-retouched, full-size digital photos as attachments. If You Have Article Ideas or Suggestions If you have an article in mind but are not sure whether it would be acceptable, you need some guidance in writing it, or you would like to make a comment about the material published here, please feel free to contact the editor: [email protected] Page 2 of 58 The Fly-By, Southwest Region, July 2011 Maj. Gen. Amy S. Courter hands the SWR Flag to Col. Frank Buethe, the new SWR commander. At right, the exiting commander, Col. Joseph Jensen. In the background stands Cadet Maj. Addison Jaynes. (Photos: Maj. Arthur E. Woodgate) Southwest Region Welcomes a New Commander FORT WORTH, Texas – On June 30, 2011, during the end-of-course banquet of the Southwest Region Chaplain Corps Staff College, the Southwest Region (SWR) staff thanked its outgoing commander, Col. Joseph Jensen, and welcomed its new commander, Col. Frank Buethe, CAP. The change of command ceremony, conducted by CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Amy S. Courter, was attended by CAP-USAF SWR Liaison Commander Lt. Col. Don Hensley, NHQ Chief of Chaplains Ch. (Col.) Whit Woodard, representatives of the region’s wings, the SWR Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Ron Whitt, attendees to the SWR Chaplain Corps Staff College, and many SWR staff officers. The colors were presented by the SWR color guard, an honor recently won by Texas Wing’s Frisco Cadet Squadron’s Color Guard. Opening the proceedings, Col. Jensen – assisted by Col. Buethe – presented numerous awards as part of the Southwest Region Chaplain Corps Staff College’s end-of- course gathering. The last one (photo at right) was a Meritorious Service Award presented to Ch. (Lt. Col.) Ron Whitt, the College’s director, Page 3 of 58 The Fly-By, Southwest Region, July 2011 that was immediately (and humorously) celebrated by the CAP Chief of Chaplains, Ch. (Col) Whit Woodard. Then it was time for looking both at the past and the future, as the master of ceremonies, SWR Chief of Staff Lt. Col. Larry Mattiello, introduced the National Commander and called Col. Joseph Jensen to the front. First, Maj. Gen. Courter presented Col. Jensen with a commemorative plaque recording his tenure as region commander. Immediately thereafter, she bestowed upon him a CAP Distinguished Service Medal (photo above) in recognition of his four years’ service to the region and Civil Air Patrol. Celebrating this honor, past New Mexico Wing Commander Col. Ric Himebrook spoke about his friendship with Jensen and old times (photo at left), giving him a small gift that was rich in memories. Jensen then honored the members of his staff with awards, and in turn received a gift of recognition from his staff members: a desk-top model of a CAP Cessna 182. The SWR Vice Commander (East) Col. André Davis presented Col. Jensen with an easy-to-open plastic carrying tub that, when the packing papers had been removed, revealed the shiny gift inside. The Master of Ceremonies, SWR Chief of Staff Lt. Col. Larry Mattiello, (photo at right) made light of the present and thanked Jensen for his service to the region and his wise and effective command guidance. It was now Jensen’s turn to speak, as he Page 4 of 58 The Fly-By, Southwest Region, July 2011 thanked his staff for the strides the region had made, exhorted them to continue their good work, and urged them to give the incoming commander, Col. Frank Buethe, the same level of support and cooperation they had shown him.