CIVIL AIR PATROL

U.S. AIR FORCE AUXILIARY

Carolina WingSpan
The Official Newsletter of the NC Wing, CAP

See article and more photos on Page 5

North Carolina Wing Disaster Services conducted FEMA Points of Distribution training in Wilmington,

Final Salute
2nd Lt. William (Bill) Bond, Assistant Safety Officer of Apex Cadet Squadron, passed away this morning, 19 January 2013,after a lengthy battle with cancer. The funeral will be held Wednesday morning, 23JAN13, at Colonial Baptist Church in Cary, NC. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations to Civil Air Patrol. Submitted by Capt. Ed Cook, Apex Cadet Squadron

David Gambel...Final Salute on Page 8

NC Wing PAO Plans On publication of this issue of Carolina Wingspan, the following units are in compliance with the requirement contained in CAPR 190-1 by submitting a Public Affairs Marketing Plan and a Public Affairs Crisis Plan:
NC-022 NC-023 NC-024 NC-111 NC-121 NC-137 NC-140 NC-160 NC-170

The suspense date for compliance was 31 January 2013. Folks... We have a long way to go. Sample plans are available at: http://www.ncwgcap.org/index.cfm?f useaction=page.display&pageID=

Carolina WingSpan is published under the direction of: NCWG Commander - Col. David E. Crawford NCWG Vice Commander - Lt. Col. Max Benbow NCWG Chief of Staff - Lt. Col.. Andy Wiggs Office of Public Affairs: NCWG Public Affairs Officer, Maj. Don Penven [email protected] NCWG Deputy PAO Lt.. Col. James Williams [email protected] NCWG Deputy PAO Lt. Col Conrad D'Cruz [email protected] NCWG Deputy PAO Capt. Carey Cox [email protected] NCWG Deputy PAO 1st Lt. Larry Mathis [email protected] NCWG newsletter "Carolina WingSpan" editor Maj. Donald Penven Send submissions to: [email protected] "Carolina WingSpan" is the official newsletter of the Civil Air Patrol, North Carolina Wing HQ, U.S. Air Force Auxiliary

Cover Photo: The POD is manned, with

personnel at the 'load points', and are awaiting customers. Photo by Lt. Col. Don Beckett.

Getting Bigger and Bigger - Asheville Composite Squadron

As the year 2013 begins, the Asheville Composite Squadron continues to grow. Today, with forty-three cadets and seventy-three senior members, it is nine percent larger than this time last year. There are many reasons for this, says Recruiting and Retention Officer, Capt. William Wallace. Mainly, all of our members are encouraged to be recruiting officers, and almost all of the new applicants have been referred by existing members. Recently, a new cadet was able to bring in three more of his fellow high school students. According to Capt. Wallace, there were thirteen people who joined in the last quarter of 2012, two more that started in January, and three or four more that are interested in applying for membership. Lt. Col. Joseph Weinflash, Squadron Commander, attributes the increase in interest to the units move back to the Asheville Regional Airport. We used to meet here, but there just wasnt enough room. Now that weve began working on Hangar 4, we will be able to accommodate both our aircraft and our people. Its very exciting for visitors to see a regional airport at work while learning how our squadron operates. And the squadron is a busy one. Operations Chief, Ray Davis, has eight fully qualified aircrews, plus three new pilots in training. The ground teams train at local, group, and wing exercises. Both air and ground crews have participated in disaster relief and ELT missions. Meanwhile, the cadets are practicing hard for the upcoming competitions. Plans are in the works to involve both cadets and senior members in spreading aerospace education into local schools. Members of the Asheville Composite Squadron have taken on the three aspects of the CAP mission with the idea that we canand should, do our best to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Submitted by: Capt. William Wallace Assistant PAO, Asheville Composite Squadron

Citizens Serving Communities ...

Historically Speaking
By: Lt. Col. Phil Saleet NCWG Historian Historically Speaking, this month is a reprint from Civil Air Patrol News, Middle East Region January 1989. Fayetteville Composite Squadron members recently aired a slide presentation to the Cumberland County Fire Chiefs Association members at Grays Creek Volunteer Fire Station. Following 1st Lt. Richard Martins presentation, he, Capt. Brian Berry and 1st Lt. Leroy Cook explained Civil Air Patrol programs and their squadrons role in the community. Civil Air Patrol cadets from Goldsboro, Kinston, Raleigh-Wake, and Tar River Composite Squadrons helped with traffic control and parking during an open house at Seymour Johnson AFB, in NC, in October. Goldsboro and Kinston Composite Squadrons members staffed an information and recruiting booth which included a display of Group 7s T-41, and featured Civil Air Patrol emergency services and communications displays. Cadets Marlene Atkinson and Meredith Lane, Goldsboro, demonstrated the equipment while 2nd Lt. Tony Benfield demonstrated communications. Participants also included Goldsboros Capt. Russell Atkinson and Cadets David Kelly and Srinath Vadlamani; and Kinstons Maj. Mike Whittington and 1st Lt. Bob Spears. In Monroe, N.C., South Piedmont Senior Squadron members recently attended a squadron leadership school conducted at North Carolina Wing Headquarters. Classes included interpersonal communications, problem solving and stress management. I hope you enjoyed this journey into the past. Until next month SEMPER VIGILANS.

Attention MER Van Operators

As the first month in 2013 has now ended, I would like to issue a challenge to all van operators in MER. I just filed my van report for January 2013. It only took five minutes. I challenge all van operators in MER to get their van reports for January 2013 into the system before 09:00 EST on Monday, 4 February 2013. Surely each can find five minutes on a Saturday or Sunday to get this done. You do not want to be the one van operator that holds your wing back on meeting this challenge. Lets show National HQ how MER can and will get the job done. Let 2013 get started off right with 100% van reports on time for every wing in MER. I know the best of the best will not let this challenge go by unanswered. This is such a simple task. Do it now and be part of the 100% elite making a positive statement about the year 2013 for MER. Dare ya!! Semper vigilans,

Larry J. Ragland, Col, CAP MER/CC 919-935-1029 Cell [email protected]

NC Wing Offers POD Training for New Hanover County

By: Lt. Col. Don Beckett, NCWG Disaster Relief Officer On Saturday, 26 January 2013, North Carolina Wing Disaster Services conducted FEMA Points of Distribution training in Wilmington, NC. The event was hosted by the Cape Fear Composite Squadron and was conducted at the Manley-Reece VFW Post #2573. The event was very well attended with some 58 personnel from multiple agencies including area CERT, New Hanover County Emergency Management, the Brunswick Composite Squadron, and of course, the Cape Fear Composite Squadron. This was the largest course thus far since NC Wing began it's partnership with NC Emergency Management Logistics in fall of 2010. Since that partnership began, NC Wing Disaster Services staff have traveled many miles teaching POD courses in many areas of the state including: Concord, Hickory, Statesville, Rocky Mount, Kinston, Clinton, and Burlington. This particular event also provided the opportunity to utilize a brand new asset acquired through the efforts of the NCEM CAP Section: Two brand new, dual-axle cargo trailers, purchased with grant monies obtained through the Department of Homeland Security. Major Pete Bohler, Assistant NC Wing DR Officer towed one of the new trailers down to Wilmington, which is capable of transporting up to two POD kits, pallet jacks, and some commodities. This new capability and the timing of the trailer's arrival proved beneficial since New Hanover County Emergency Management (NHCEM) expressed interest in exercising their current POD Plan as part of the POD course. The NHCEM POD plan calls for multiple Type I PODs (Type I PODs are the largest in the FEMA POD standard, serving up to 20,000 people per day) in different areas of the county. The site for the course was approximately 8 miles south of the VFW Post. The equipment provided allowed the class to exercise a Type II POD, which can service up to 10,000 people per day. This provided NHCEM staff the opportunity to evaluate a number of areas in their existing plan for improvement and updates. The morning session began promptly at 0900 consisting of lecture and discussion followed by lunch which was generously provided by NHCEM. During the lecture portion, Lt Col John Kay was able to relate a number of real-life experiences during the POD operations in support of Hurricane Irene in 2011. A number of important points were discussed relating to day-to-day operations and safety in an actual disaster environment. Stressed during the day was the reality that Disaster Relief operations are completely different from the 'norm' many CAP personnel are accustomed when compared to short-term ELT searches. DR operations can last multiple days or even weeks, as seen during Hurricane Irene, and as many of our northern colleagues experienced during Hurricane Sandy. As lunch concluded, the class transitioned to the practical site at Veteran's Park, about 4 miles North of Carolina Beach and right beside a well-known private airstrip in the area, Pilot's Ridge. Lt Col Dennis Faver was selected as the initial POD Manager, and thus had the challenge of setting up the POD site from scratch, assigning staff, and utilizing all available resources. Once the POD was established, a number of unassigned class members were utilized as drivers to test the effectiveness of the POD operation. After several rotations of the drivers through the site, a quick AfterAction was performed, and the site re-set for another rotation. For the second rotation, 1Lt Zachary Piech was selected as the second POD Manager. The site was set up in a different configuration, allowing NHCEM staff to observe operations with two completely different traffic-flow configurations. This provided valuable insight on how the NHCEM POD Plan might be modified to be more efficient, and effective in a real situation. Throughout the course of the day, safety was emphasized, with a number of specific areas pointed out and training provided to help avoid injuries and other dangers including weather. The temperature for the day never reached 50 degrees with a mild windchill, but everyone did very well during the course of the afternoon. At the conclusion of the second round of rotations through the POD site, the equipment was packed away, and the class transitioned back to the VFW Post for final discussion, After-Action, and parting comments. NHCEM staff appeared genuinely impressed with CAP personnel and capabilities, and expressed interest in Continued on next page ...

engaging CAP in future training and exercises. With the completion of this class, NC Wing has approximately 350 personnel who have completed some form of Points of Distribution training. Many thanks for the success of this class goes to Maj. Pete Bohler, Kristen Skinner and Steve Still with NHCEM, 1Lt Zachary Piech, 2Lt Rick Paxton, 1Lt Thomas Rooks, and all those who took their valuable time, talent, and treasure to attend this important training.

POD students inspect NC Wing POD Kit contents

POD students practice opening one of the NC Wing PODs

Photos by Lt. Col. Don Beckett

Lt Col John Kay, in white pickup at right, awaits the signal to proceed into the POD to pick up commodities..

POD site being re-configured for the second round of operations. In center, left, in dark coat, Kristen Skinner with NHCEM converses with 1Lt Thomas Rooks with the Brunswick Composite Squadron.

Are you ready?

You've worked hard to obtain those ratings on your 101 card but are you mission ready? Unless we know in advance of a pending hurricane with several days notice, most missions we task for come with no warning. We may be called out in the middle of the night or from work in the middle of the day and need to be prepared for what we have been trained for and others depend on us to respond to in a timely manner. Many times, alerts go out or calls get made and it is difficult to put together the needed members. Aircrew members don't have their equipment with them and end up taking 2-3 hours to launch because they need to go home to get their uniform and flight bag. Ground teams as well don't have their uniforms and 24 hour packs. Direction finding equipment isn't readily available to those that can respond. Take a few minutes and evaluate your readiness. Do you keep your CAP membership ID and 101 card in your wallet, is your uniform and gear appropriate to your ratings in your vehicle with you at all times? With weeks or months sometimes between missions, batteries will run down in radios, GPS devices and flashlights. Pull your bag every week or two and get those batteries charged. Depending on the time of year, you'll need to make sure there is an adequate supply of water. With recent changes in our weather, we can have a 70 degree day followed two days later with snow or freezing weather. It's easier to leave the jacket in the back of the CAP van or aircraft on a mission than not have it and need it this time of year. The person in charge of your team shouldn't and most likely won't allow you participate if not properly dressed for the event. While this is fresh on your mind, go check your gear. Make sure your battery operated devices are charged and that you are properly registered in the paging system. Don't forget any home based equipment for those that work missions from home. That would include IC's and wing staff with Vipers. Be prepared, be ready and be safe. John May, Maj, CAP Operations Officer, Charlotte Senior Squadron NC-121 Incident Commander, Mission Pilot

Final Salute ... David Gamble

I regret to inform the wing of the passing of a former NC Wing member. David Gamble, former wing instructor pilot and check pilot, was killed early this morning in the crash of the Pilatus PC-12 he was flying. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. David E. Crawford, Col, CAP, Commander, North Carolina Wing There are few pilots in the Wing that did not fly with Dave Gamble. He was conscientious, dedicated and no one loved aviation better than he. He called me very excited to say he had was moving up to the Pilatus. It is an old cliche, but Maj. Gamble was truly passionate about Aviation and died doing what he loved. A fitting epitaph. He was my instructor, my employee and most of all ...my friend. And I will miss him. I hear the bell...another angel got his wings. David Rodwell, Maj, CAP, NC-082 To echo your thoughts David....what a kind and gentle soul was David Gamble, to all that knew him either in flying or just as a fine and outstanding human........he will be missed, remembered and thought of often. Our wishes of peace and closuer for his family and friends as we know that he has taken his place beside the Right Hand Seat in Heaven. Ron Cheek, MAJ CAP, NC 082 He will indeed be greatly missed. I flew with Dave a lot back in the days we were first getting WinstonSalem back in to flying in a serious way. Numerous Form 5's, Form 91's and a number of missions and SAREX's. Besides that Dave was the primary flight instructor for my son AJ who got his Private Pilot's license through the CAP cadet program. Dave donated all of that instructor time to the cause. He has a special place in our family. In my opinion, there was not a better pilot in the Wing. He's top drawer. Capt. Don Babcock I have received word that the Memorial Service for David Gamble will be held on Sunday 1/20/13 at 15:00 hrs at the Centenary United Methodist Church in Greensboro (near Wesley Long Hospital). I am posting a link to the church so everyone can gather directions from the website. I was not notified of a wake and will advise as the information is received. The obituary should be in the Greensboro News and Record tomorrow and should have all the completed information. If there will be a wake I will post that information as soon as I know. http://centenaryumcgreensboro.org/ Christopher B. Stone, MAJ, CAP

Emergency Services
Lake Norman ELT
The North Carolina Wing was alerted by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center shortly before midnight last night (9 January 2013) of an ELT estimated to be approximately 40 miles northeast of Charlotte. Capt Brett Benson (MP) and 2nd Lt. Mark Goodman (MO)from the Charlotte Senior Squadron in N99162 departed the Concord Regional Airport at 12:55 am local time. Prior to reaching pattern altitude on departure, they acquired the beacon on 121.5 and quickly tracked the beacon to the Lake Norman Airport in Mooresville, NC. After landing and in UDF mode, they confirmed that the beacon was coming from a hanger behind a home at the residential airpark. The IC was unable to locate a telephone number for the owner of the home and the AFRCC recognizing that it was not a distress situation, agreed for the IC to resume calls to contact the owner during daylight hours. The aircrew returned to Concord and the FBO was contact this morning. The owner was then contacted and confirmed that a PLB sitting on a workbench was the culprit. He believed that a construction worker doing improvements to the hanger had accidentally knocked the PLB on the floor and didnt realize when he put it back on the workbench that it had activated. Airliners as far as NC/VA border had heard the signal coming from a 6 ounce device with no external antenna inside a building. Once the owner had turned off the beacon at 8 am this morning, the mission was closed with the AFRCC and the NC wing was credited with a non distress find. John May, Maj, CAP, Charlotte Senior Squadron NC-121, IC3

Sugar Valley ELT

Yesterday afternoon (27 January 2013) while conducting cadet orientation flights for NC-800 in N99162, an ELT was detected in the Mooresville area. After completing the orientation rides, Maj John May (MP) with 1st Lt. Mark Goodman (MO) from NC-121 departed Concord and located the ELT at Sugar Valley Airport in Mocksville. The airport and IC gave permission for them to land and continue the search for the ELT. It was a calm, clear day with a 2000 hr ATP in a C172 and a qualified UDF crew. The ELT was quickly found in a C172 and silenced. The switch was defective and will be repaired. After several months with few ELT calls, the Wing has gotten find credit for four ELTs this month. This demonstrates the need for all ES qualified members, particularly aircrew, to obtain and keep up their UDF currency. It also shows the importance of monitoring 121.5 while doing other types of flights. Thanks also goes to the Iredell Squadron for being on standby with a Ground Team. Bill Hawke, Lt Col, CAP, IC, North Carolina Wing

Lake Norman Resident Learns of ELT at Airpark

A resident at the Lake Norman Airpark (14A) notified CAP member and airpark resident Capt. Breece Nesbitt of NC-162 this morning (189 January 2013) of an active ELT on the field. Capt. Nesbitt contacted IC Maj. John May to pass along the neighbors report. Maj May then contact the AFRCC who confirmed that within the previous 30 minutes, there had been a 406 beacon Sarsat hit at the airport and provided the 406 beacon registration information for a single engine Mooney aircraft. They also indicated that the aircraft had been reported sold by a relative of the owner in Texas within the past week but did not have any contact information for the new owner. Flight Aware confirmed that the aircraft had been flown to the Charlotte area within the past week. Continued on next page ...
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A mission number was issued by the AFRCC at 11:15 am with Capt Corey Johnson from NC-121 and 1LT Scott Powell from NC-162 responding as a UDF team. The Mooney was located at the airport FBO and with the assistance of a mechanic on the field, silenced the ELT. Upon checking 121.5, the UDF team was still reporting an active beacon on the field. Suspecting further mechanical issue with the ELT, the mechanic disconnected the battery. An ELT signal was still active. Further search of the field resulted in the additional ELT found in an Ercoupe in a hanger at a residence. The mechanic for the aircraft based at the field assisted in turning that ELT off. Rarely will a UDF team locate two unrelated active beacons at the same airport at the same time. This is also the same airport that the most recent previous mission nine days ago resulted in an additional ELT find. Special thanks to Capt. Nesbitt for knowing the proper procedure to promptly contact an IC and to Capt. Johnson and 1LT Powell for their timely response and work to locate two ELTs on the same field. Total time from the first call to mission close out took less than 2.5 hours. The Wing will be credit with two non distress finds. John W. May, Capt, CAP, IC3/Operations Officer, Charlotte Senior Squadon NC-121

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Carolina WingTips
New Website and Email Address
NOTE: Effective immediately the primary domain for all web and email for NC Wing is now ncwgcap.org. The primary website is http://www.ncwgcap.org and all email addresses are [email protected]. To the greatest extent possible any URL that is for ncwg.cap.gov automatically is handled as the same URL on the ncwgcap.org web server. Any existing email address that points to ncwg.cap.gov automatically forwards to the same address on the ncwgcap.org domain. For example my address which was [email protected] will now be [email protected]. All email lists such as [email protected] will now be on the ncwgcap.org domain as well. Any member who currently has a ncwg.cap.gov address configured should take immediate steps to update your email client to set it to use your email address on the ncwgcap.org domain and to change the server name from ncwg.cap.gov to ncwgcap.org. If that email address is listed as contact in E-Services at NHQ you must also update your contact information to reflect the ncwgcap.org domain in order to make sure that you continue to receive wing based email list traffic and are able to post to the wing lists using the ncwgcap.org domain formatted email addresses. If you have questions about your wing email address and configuration for the new domain, send your questions to [email protected] We will continue to support the ncwg.cap.gov domain as a forwarding point to the new domain for the foreseeable future, however, the primary internet presence for NC Wing will be on ncwgcap.org. Please change your bookmarks and favorites to use the ncwgcap.org domain as soon as practical to avoid any unnecessary confusion. Please also pass the word along and make any changes to any printed materials that may have ncwg.cap.gov on them during the next scheduled refresh of those materials. This change will provide the wing with significantly greater flexibility in managing our internet presence at the wing level and below. DAVID E CRAWFORD, Colonel, CAP Commander, North Carolina Wing

Group 5 AE Day
I want to congratulate Lt Kathy Nicholas and all of the participants on a successful AE Day! Cadets from NC170 (Brunswick County) and NC023 (Cape Fear) successfully launched dozens of rockets this past Saturday, 19 JAN 13. Some significant altitudes were obtained. I personally witnessed one rocket obtain such a high altitude and prolonged descent time, that the rocket landed in South Carolina. It was an exciting event and very professionally executed. Semper Vigilans! Eric Orgain, Maj, CAP Internal Aerospace Education Officer, MER-NC-001

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Carolina WingTips Continued ...

G1000 Training Offered
I will conduct a G1000 ground school at Winston-Salem Composite Squadron on Saturday February 23. The CAP G1000 ground school is required before taking a Form 5 in a G1000 airplane. Please bring notetaking materials and if you have the Garmin G1000 simulator on a laptop you will find that helpful. Mission Observers are welcome to attend and will find the training useful. Plan to arrive between 8am and 8:15. RSVP to [email protected] with your intention to attend. Training will end by 6pm. The squadron location is in the left side of the North State Aviation building at: 4001 North Liberty Street. Winston-Salem, NC 27105 James Shepard, Major, CAP Assistant Stan/Eval Officer North Carolina Wing MER-NC-001

CERT Training Offered

Below are two CERT opportunities coming up in the near future. I hope as many members as possible in the Apex area will take advantage of the CERT class being offered. If you are not aware of these types of courses (that are very CAP-relevant), please go to the TERMS website and register so you can begin receiving email notifications of these statewide offerings. Many of these courses are eligible for room and meal reimbursement through NCEM, as is the case with the CERT conference coming up in May. Members should list CAP as their employer and use their home address when registering for an account. http://terms.ncem.org/TRS/ NOTICE - If any coursework is being sponsored or 'run' through a community college, list NC Emergency Management as your sponsoring agency. NC Civil Air Patrol is a NC Emergency Management Section effective January 1, 2012 with the new NC Department of Public Safety. Donald A Beckett, Lt Col, CAP Disaster Relief Officer, MER-NC-001

NC Department of Public Safety

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Middle East Region Cadet Leadership School a Success!

From 27 December to 30 December the halls of the Justice Academy West in Ednyville, North Carolina were filled with 27 Civil Air Patrol Cadets from Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina who were selected to attend the leadership school. In 1998 a Leadership school or Cadet Officer School became a prerequisite for the Eaker Award and subsequent promotion to C/Lt. Colonel. Because the school focuses much of the instruction time on leadership and company-grade cadet officer lessons, the class is only available to cadets that have obtained the rank of C/MSgt and above. During the 4 day event, the volunteer instructors cover many topics and lessons that help the cadets progress to the next level of their CAP careers; these topics include officership and character study, communications skills, critical thinking, leadership skills, and mentoring. The cadets also participated in volleyball games as a team building exercise. Even though the cadets were lodged in modern dormitories, with a full kitchen staff, basketball courts, pool tables, and air hockey, this weekend was no vacation. Each day of the school was packed with instruction starting after breakfast, which was held at 0630, and ended at 2000 each night. Cadets were broken into groups with an assigned leader and an assistant with the leadership changing each day to allow many of the cadets to experience those roles. This group of Cadets was very active in their participation and their desire to learn more about leadership, says School Director Major Jason Bailey. He adds, Many of them were up late hours trying to prepare for the next day, especially the speech they were to give on Sunday morning. It is this kind of commitment that makes a weekend like this profitable. The class culminated with a graduation ceremony on Sunday. With their families gathered each cadet was called before the executive staff to receive their certificate, patch, and key fobs from each of their leaders including Cadet Commander, Major Rachael Bailey CAP, Cadet Deputy Commander, Cadet Major Jacob Knox CAP, Director, Major Jason Bailey CAP, and Major Jeff Moore, USAF. The staff would like to congratulate the following graduates of the 2012 Winter Middle East Region Cadet Leadership School: C/CMSgt Justin Gaddy C/MSGT Emma Kate Bailey C/CMSgt Aiden Maxfield C/2nd Lt. Tim McCann C/Capt Jonathan Knapp C/MSgt Kelli Bradley C/Maj John Robertson C/Capt Aleasha North C/2nd Lt. Adam Riddell C/CMSgt Alex Brawn C/Capt Felix Reyes C/1st Lt David Bell C/Capt Montana Shores Continued on next page ... C/Maj Taylor Wedell C/Capt Andrew Moore C/Capt Lance Torres C/CMSgt Robert Abruzzino C/2nd Lt. Wesley Bishop C/Capt Sarah Cooke

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Major Bailey would like to thank the Staff of the Justice Academy West and the following RCLS Staff, without their leadership and dedication schools such as this would not be possible: Lt. Col. Jonathan Andy Wiggs Capt Kathy Gaddy Capt Michael Gallandt Capt Michael Staples Capt Dennis Bissell TFO Christina North

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This photo contributed by a staff member

Photos by 2nd Lt. Tony Bradley

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Group 1 ES Training Weekend

During the weekend of January 18 through January 20, Cadets and Seniors from North Carolina and South Carolina participated in emergency services training in western North Carolina. The event was sponsored by the Shelby Composite Squadron and held at the Larsen Farm in Bostic, North Carolina. With temperatures averaging 28 degrees at night to 59 degrees at midday, trainees and instructors eagerly set out to accomplish the training goals of the weekend. Participants signed into the mission by indicating their emergency service qualification goal. These skills ranged from ground team member to the more specialized ranger qualification. Those interested in mission base operations could find opportunities in mission radio operator, ground branch director, safety and a host of other command staff positions. The weekend consisted of two components formal and practical training exercises. Just as with any school, there is a foundation that is necessary for success and it traditionally comes from a book and instructors knowledge. Friday evening went well with over 38 cadets and seniors checking into the weekend and preparing for their training. On Saturday morning, students received formal instruction from qualified instructors. When evaluators felt the group was ready, the instruction shifted to practical application. Organized into skill teams, the instructors set them out to complete assignments. These teams worked collaboratively to achieve the training mission goals and implement the lessons learned earlier in the day. Instructors provided oversight to the various search teams to recommend best practices in achieving the mission goal. Sunday morning after breakfast the members prepared for their final exercise. Each one was given a chance to use the training they had received the day before. C/MSgt Rob Reeves, Communications Unit Leader trainee, valued the effort Shelby Composite Squadron put into the weekends activities. He indicated that these events provide good training experiences while working with other squadrons. This appeared to be the standard sentiment by all in attendance. Lt Col Robert Bauer, Group 1 Commander, was impressed by the turn out. Plans are in place to conduct more encampments within the Group. The intent is to hold a spring encampment in the Boone area. The Group 1 ES Officer Lt Colonel Phillips would like to thank each member involved in the preparation and planning of this event along with all those who attended, with a special thanks to SM James Larsen and his wife for the use of their farm for the training. Tony Bradley, 2d Lt., CAP, Public Affairs Officer, MER-NC-050

First day of training; the members are grouped between Ground Teams and Rangers. PHOTO By Louis Toms, Capt, CAP

More Photos ===>

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C/Tech Sergeant Willis teaches the cadets how to strap a causality into the stokes basket. PHOTO By Louis Toms, Capt, CAP

Tent City PHOTO By Tony Bradley, 2d Lt, CAP

The urban direction finding class taught by Major May. PHOTO By Louis Toms, Capt, CAP

Special Note: Capt. Louis Toms contributed to the written portion of this article.

The CAP Ranger knot class in the able hands of C/Lt Colonel Newlin PHOTO By Louis Toms, Capt, CAP

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National Emergency Services Academy Notice

This message is being sent to all CAP cadet and adult members that will be at least 13 years of age by the 21st of July. We know some of you have only joined CAP in the last few months, and probably thought you would not be able to attend any national events this summer. Or maybe youre a long time member looking to get additional training. Applications are now being accepted for the 2013 National Emergency Services Academy (NESA) held at Camp Atterbury in Edinburgh, Indiana. Applications will be accepted through the 2nd of June for courses being held during our two session weeks from the 20th of July through the 3rd of August 2013. There are courses for all members interested in emergency services, and this is a great opportunity for both new and old members to come train with hundreds of other personnel from across the country that have already signed up to attend. Slots fill up fast though. Apply online at: https://www.capnhq.gov/CAP.eServices.Web/default.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fCAP.Events_NESA.Web%2fDef ault.aspx Slots will be filled on a first come first served basis through the 2nd of June or until slots are filled. We encourage you to apply soon to get into the course or courses you desire. Some courses only have a limited number of slots and some traditionally fill up fast. NOTE: Registration is hosted in e-services, and you will need to login in order to register. Please note that participants can register to take multiple courses back to back, but not at the same time. Additional information about NESA and the courses available this year can be found at: http://nesa.cap.gov/. In addition to our normal complement of courses for ground teams, aircrews, and the incident staff we have several short courses this year to allow personnel to participate if they have limited vacation time or need training in varied areas. There are also a limited number of staff positions available for the 2013 NESA as well. Generally, staff members are prior NESA graduates, but some exceptions may be made by the NESA Director to ensure the best qualified personnel are used to provide this training. The current early bird registration fee to attend NESA available through the 17th of February is $90 for the short courses, and $180 for a full course. In order to receive this discounted rate members must register and pay their registration fee by the 17th of February. The registration fee includes, meals, lodging on site, printed training materials and aircraft and ground vehicle sortie costs for training on site. Participants are responsible for their own transportation to and from NESA, though many personnel are able to travel in corporate vehicles and aircraft as they are needed on site for training. If you have any additional questions please direct them to the NESA staff at [email protected] or call 1-888-211-1812 extension 323. We look forward to seeing you at the 2013 NESA!

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National Staff College Registration Begins

Registration is NOW open for National Staff College (NSC) which is the capstone course in the CAP Professional Development program. It will be held at Maxwell AFB, AL from 12-19 May 2013. To attend National Staff College, you MUST be an active senior member in the grade of Major or above for officers, or in the grade of Chief Master Sergeant (or Senior Master Sergeant with the permission of the National Commander), and must have attended Region Staff College or equivalent (all students). Commanders at all echelons in the grade of Major or above and ommand Chief Master Sergeants at the wing and region level are especially encouraged to attend (see CAPR 50-17 for details). Complete registration details are available at: http://www.capmembers.com/cap_university/level-v-executive/ Next, if the application asks for info, please include it as leaving it out could only delay the decision on your acceptance. Student fees will include: Registration Fee: $195 (plus transportation, lodging and meals)... so start budgeting now. Finally, there will likely be some pent-up demand for this event... so if you are considering attending, you should NOT wait until the last minute to register! RAYMOND N. FELICIANO., Lt Col, CAP DCS/Professional Development Middle East Region

New VA Wing Commander

I am very pleased to announce the selection of the next Wing Commander for Virginia Wing. After a thorough vetting process of two outstanding candidates, I have decided to select Lt Col James A. Covel as the next Virginia Wing Commander effective 1 February 2013. Lt Col Covel joined CAP in 1999, has advanced to Level IV in the CAP Professional Development program, and is close to reaching Level V. He is retired from leadership in law enforcement and brings to this leadership position a great deal of maturity and management experience. He is highly thought of throughout the Wing and I am certain will do a great job for this outstanding Wing in MER. Please join me in congratulating Col Select Covel on this next big step in his commitment to Civil Air Patrol. I am certain the wing will prosper and flourish under his leadership. At this time, we are tentatively planning a formal change of command ceremony at VAWG HQ on 10 February 2013. Col Dave Carter will be recognized for his outstanding service to VAWG as the outgoing Wing Commander and Col Select Jim Covel will be officially recognized taking command. Please look for more detailed information as those plans come together. I would also like to commend Lt Col Gene Jackson for all the hard work he obviously does for VAWG and for stepping forward with his willingness to serve VAWG at the highest level. VAWG is very fortunate to have qualified members of such caliber and commitment in the leadership of your wing. I look forward to the continued strong performance of Virginia Wing in the Middle East Region.
Larry J. Ragland, Col, CAP MER/CC [email protected]

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SQUADRONS TEAM-UP FOR WEEKEND ROCKETRY DAY AND SAREX

On Saturday 19 January, NC-170, Brunswick County Composite Squadron and NC-023, Cape Fear Composite Squadron, joined together for Rocketry Day at the Southeastern Airplane Modelers Airfield in Tabor City. The day began as sunny and cold with light winds. During the day temperatures warmed up to the 50s. Maj Eric Orgain from NC Wing was on site to support and record the activities. Safety Officer for the event was Lt Col John Kay who also acted as the Safety Officer for the ground team training for NC-170 during the rest of the weekend. Launch pads were set up under the supervision of senior members and C/1st Lt Joshua Crafts of NC-023. Senior cadets took the role of assisting younger cadets with checking their rockets and helping with repairs when needed. Using the Estes Altitrak tracking system 500 feet from the launch pad, cadets recorded altitudes achieved by each rocket. The competition for the highest altitude of an Alpha rocket using a A8-3 engine was by C/Amn Abby Clemmons with 88 meters recorded. C/MSgt Dakota Holbrooks rocket landed the closest to the launch pad - 11 feet. Each cadet received a Patriot rocket as a prize. All eleven cadets who built and launched rockets successfully completed either the Hands-On Phase of the Titan or Saturn section for their Model Rocketry Badge. A few cadets completed both sections that day. During the event, CAP N916CP, with a flight crew from both squadrons, flew over the field as part of a nearby SAR exercise and provided aerial photos of the site. The flight crew transmitted coordinates of an ELT to our communications team which the ground team successfully located on their mission later in the day. NC-170 hosted our neighbor squadron to a delicious hot dog lunch. While we were there we were treated to aerobatic demonstrations of remote controlled aircraft by some of the members of the Southeastern Modelers Airplane Association. Congratulations to 15 cadets who participated in the Model Rocketry Program and thanks to our 8 senior members who assisted. After the completion of the rocketry activities, the Brunswick County Composite Squadron, NC-170, ground team prepared for the afternoon of training. First on the list was to set up communications. Two VHF radios, along with mobile radios placed in vehicles, assured communications with mission base at all times. Cell phones were used as a backup communication source. Lt Col Kay, 1st Lt Neil Fowler (CUL), and 1st Lt Thomas Rooks (MRO), staffed the communications mission base. Individual tents for sleeping and an improvised field tent were set up along with a cooking and fire area. The ground team then prepared for the first search and rescue mission of the day. A briefing for the team reported a downed aircraft along with the last known coordinates, reported by the crew of CAP N916CP, operating in the area. A safety briefing was given to the team. 1st Lt Kathy Nicholas acted in the role of a witness. The cadets interviewed the witness in order to gather more facts about the missing aircraft. The team was sent to the field to find the training ELT using an L-Per device. The appointed ground team leader was 2nd Lt Norma Brittain who was supported by 2nd Lt Kathy Davis, 2nd Lt Chuck Brittain, and SM DeeDee Willetts. The cadet team was lead by C/MSgt Hunter Riddle and consisted of C/A1C Kevin Willetts Jr., C/Amn Larry Taylor, C/Amn Evan Addison, C/Amn Abby Clemmons, and Cadet Nick Bourgeois. The team took compass readings at three locations in order to triangulate a location on a map with the support of base command. At the final location a hasty search was performed across a large field. Various parts of the aircraft were found by the team and logged accordingly. The ELT was located and mission base issued permission to silence the ELT and to return to base. A debriefing followed. It should be noted that the crew of N916CP located the ELT with amazing precision.

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Later in the evening, the ground team enjoyed a meal of MREs and chili. The cadets gathered in the field tent for a review period of the ground team manual. As the temperatures cooled down the team had time to enjoy the camp fire and recap the events of the day. On Sunday morning temperatures were in the mid-thirties accompanied by a beautiful sunrise. Cadets and seniors enjoyed left-over hotdogs, oatmeal, and MREs for breakfast and the scheduled Sunday missing person search and rescue mission got underway. 2nd Lts Norma Brittain and Chuck Brittain conducted a briefing stating that an Alzheimer patient had gone missing from a nearby campground. The mission for the team was to locate the man. After the safety briefing the ground team went into the field to look for clues. The team split into smaller groups to cover more ground. A trail of footprints in the dew was followed by one group. Along the path various clues where found: food wrappers, water bottles, clothing, etc. After a period of time the man was located and the team was able to get him back to safety. Thanks to Kevin Willetts for serving as the missing person in this exercise. A debriefing was held to discuss the mission and lessons learned. The day ended with packing up the camp and policing the area for any trash that may have been left behind. All participating members of MER-NC-170 thank the Southeastern Modelers for allowing us to use their outstanding facility located in Tabor City. Everyone experienced a great weekend of meaningful training. And being able to see many of the RC model airplanes flying on Saturday was an added bonus. Content and photos for this article provided by: Kathy Nicholas, 1st Lt, CAP Aerospace Education Officer MER-NC-170, and DeeDee Willetts, SM, CAP MER-NC-170 William J. Sullivan, Capt, CAP Public Affairs Officer MER-NC-170

Rocket Inspection More photos ===>

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UDF Team Inspection

Ground Team at workbegins UDF mission

Preparing for launch We have lift-off!

Rocket recovery
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UDF team at work