Glider Academy underway with Sq. 11 cadet

Palm Springs Sq. 11 Cadet 1Lt Ashley Mayo is one of 24 cadets currently in Rome, Georgia attending the National Flight Academy, Glider program. The Rome News-Tribune newspaper today ran two articles featuring the academy. NFA-G Rome is Mayo's second National Flight Academy. She graduated from NFA-G in Colorado where she earned Cadet Pre-Solo Wings in 2009. Cadets attending glider academy for a second year may have the opportunity to solo.

Glider Academy Under Way at Airport by Daniel Bell, Staff Writer
CLICK HERE TO VIEW ORIGINAL ARTICLE

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The 24 Civil Air Patrol cadets participating in the National Flight Academy glider training at Richard B. Russell Regional Airport aren’t simply going up there and floating around, said retired Air Force Major Gen. George Harrison, one of the instructors and former director of the program.

There is a lot of classroom work, homework, and prerequisite work too, and that’s assuming one is even accepted into the program. About 150 people applied for the academy in Rome, one of only three such training programs in the country.

“You can imagine a 14-year-old trying to fly an airplane using trigonometry. It’s kind of tough,” said Harrison.

Woodrow Shepherd, the Southeast Regional Glider activity director, said the cadets, ranging from 14 to 17 years old, have to do a lot of reading before arriving in Rome, and then have to do a lot more reading once they’re here. They start with flights early in the morning, he said, then hit the classroom, then more flying, then more coursework.

Those cadets who are participating in their second academy will have the chance to fly solo before the week’s end, and the really advanced students may even earn a glider license and be able to take up passengers.

The cadets come from as far away as California and Maryland, as do the instructors and some of the equipment, because Rome’s academy is the best, said Shepherd. He attributed the success of the program to airport officials for working so hard, to Berry College for providing a great place to stay and eat, and to the quality of instruction.

The point of the academy, explained Harrison, is to stress the importance of leadership and education and to either fuel or ignite a love of flight.

“What I really care about is if they get turned on by science, if they get turned on by technology, and if they do something with their lives,” he said.

The academy continues at the airport and in the skies above Armuchee through next week and will wrap up Friday with a banquet at Berry College.

Read more:

Airport Glider Academy Starts Today by Kim Sloan, Staff Writer
CLICK HERE TO VIEW ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Sq. 59 Cadet Solos at Flight Academy

Congratulations to C/2Lt Elisabeth Loyd of Hemet-Ryan Composite Sq. 59 who soloed early this week during the National Flight Academy - Powered Track in Nebraska!

Group 3 is now two-for-two with solos at this National Cadet Special Activity. On Monday, June 27, C/CMSgt Megan Roberson of Palm Springs Composite Sq. 11 also earned her solo wings at NFA-P Nebraska.

Group 3's two newest pilots return from the Academy on Thursday, June 30. Wish them clear skies and safe flying when you see them next.

Group 3 Cadets aim high at National Flight Academy

(16 JUNE, LINCOLN, Neb.) – Cadet 2^nd Lt. Elisabeth Loyd of Hemet-Ryan Composite Sq. 59 and Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Megan Roberson of Palm Springs Composite Sq. 11 will learn more about flying powered aircraft this week at Civil Air Patrol’s National Flight Academy to be held June 16-30 in Camp Ashland, Neb.

The flight academy is specifically designed for cadets who want to learn to fly. Participants receive formal ground instruction and cockpit time with a certified flight instructor; the low instructor-to-student ratio provides opportunities for mentoring and individual attention. NFA also provides many participants the opportunity to solo.

The academy is one of 30 National Cadet Special Activities sponsored by CAP this summer. These activities allow cadets to hone their skills in a variety of areas – including search and rescue, flight and emergency services, science, leadership fundamentals, citizenship and military courtesies – and to explore aerospace technology and aviation careers.

Through its cadet program, CAP builds strong citizens for the future by providing leadership training, technical education, scholarships and career education to young men and women ages 12 to 20.

Cadet Loyd joined CAP in April 2008 and graduated from the California Wing Cadet Basic Encampment at Camp San Luis Obispo in San Luis Obispo, Calif. later that year, in August. Cadet Loyd is an active participant in CAP and has staffed multiple airshows and represented her unit at the Inland Empire Group 3 Cadet Color Guard Competition held in February 2011. She earned the unit’s prestigious Gen. Billy Mitchell Award in May 2011, signifying completion of Phase II of the CAP cadet program. Only 15% of cadets reach this milestone.

Cadet Roberson joined CAP in September 2009. In less than two years of membership, she has served her unit as both Flight Sergeant and most recently as First Sergeant. She is a 2010 graduate of the California/Nevada Wing Joint Encampment held at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton near Oceanside, Calif. Her personal decorations include the CAP Model Rocketry Badge and Veterans of Foreign Wars Cadet Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) of the Year Award. She is a two-time recipient of the President’s Volunteer Service Award – Gold presented by the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.

Both cadets have seen squadron members graduate from the Nebraska-based National Flight Academy program over the last two years. In 2009, Cadet 1st Lt. Leandra Lee of Palm Springs Composite Sq. 11 earned her solo wings at the academy. Hemet-Ryan Composite Sq. 59's Cadet 1st Lt. Bryan Gooch graduated from the academy last year.

To be eligible to apply for a National Cadet Special Activity (NCSA) such as National Flight Academy, cadets must be graduates of the week-long cadet basic encampment training program. National Activities are announced in November each year and applications are due in January. Much like college, cadets wait until March each year to find out if they were selected for a program. Selections are based on four factors including age, milestone awards achieved, years in the organization, and number of NCSAs previously attended.

-Capt. Crystal Housman

PAO, Inland Empire Group 3

Sq. 11 Cadet Selected for IACE

C/Capt Ricardo Villalta has been selected for the International Air Cadet Exchange (IACE) program. Villalta, of Palm Springs Composite Squadron 11, is one of just two Civil Air Patrol cadets nationwide selected to represent the U.S. in Japan this summer.

As a cadet ambassador, Villalta will travel through Japan in a group of other international aviation-related cadets pulled from the 18 participating IACE countries. The cadets will experience cultures, customs, and international aerospace first hand.

Want to see the world? Visit www.ncsas.com to learn more about IACE and other unique summer opportunities that await CAP cadets.

Congratulations Capt. Villalta!

CADETS TO COMPETE FOR STATE TITLE

Five Palm Springs cadets advance to California competition

(Palm Springs, Calif.) – Five area teenagers will compete this weekend, March 12-13, in the California Wing Cadet Competition being held at Vandenberg AFB near Lompoc, Calif. The cadets are all color guard team members and from Palm Springs Composite Squadron 11, the local unit of Civil Air Patrol.

The quintet are advancing to the state championship after winning an area competition held February 26 in Riverside. The cadets were named the Civil Air Patrol's Inland Empire Group 3 Color Guard and represent both Riverside and San Bernardino Counties in this weekend's competition; they are one of six teams competing at the state level.

Team members include:

Cadet Airman First Class Isaias Castro, 17, team commander and U.S. flag bearer

Cadet Senior Airman Patrick Rovney, 16, flag bearer

Cadet Airman Jacob Smith, 13, lead rifle bearer

Cadet Airman Danielle Peltier, 12, rifle bearer

Cadet Airman Michael Mayo, 12, alternate

The team is coached by Cadet First Lt. Ashley Mayo, 16, and Cadet First Lt. Cody Premus, 17.

During the weekend competition, the cadets will be tested both physically and mentally. Competition events include an in-ranks inspection, a mile run, and a standard drill performance including a 25-command parade style sequence conducted in order and from memory. The cadets will perform innovative color guard presentations both indoors and outdoors with only five minutes to view the performance area and plan their performance. Academic events include individual written tests over leadership, uniform regulations, military drill and ceremonies, and organization history. A team panel quiz will test the cadets' aerospace knowledge of aircraft systems, flight dynamics, rocketry, spacecraft, as well as aviation history and current events.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 57,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC) and was credited by the AFRCC with saving over 100 lives in fiscal year 2010. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counter-drug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the nearly 26,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America since 1941.

The organization’s local unit, Palm Springs Composite Squadron 11, meets every Wednesday night from 6:30 – 9:00 p.m. in the south hangar of the Palm Springs Air Museum. Squadron 11’s membership is comprised of cadets ages 12-20 and adult members 18 and older. For more information about Civil Air Patrol visit www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com

Sq. 11 Cadet Selected for Boys State

Congratulations to C/SrA Wyatt George of Palm Springs Composite Squadron 11. Cadet George has been selected by the American Legion and his school as a delegate for the 74th Session of the American Legion's California Boys State program scheduled for mid-June on the campus of California State University, Sacramento.

Cadet George, who joined CAP in June, is a graduate of the 2010 California Wing Cadet Summer Encampment. He is a recipient of the Presidential Volunteer Service Award given by the President's Council on Volunteer Service and Civic Participation. He is also a recipient of the President's Active Lifestyle Award presented by the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. His is a cadet in the Air Force Junior ROTC program and a varsity football player.

Boys State and the partner program, Girls State, are annual in-residence activities to promote leadership, citizenry, and introduce young men and women to the process of government. Outstanding delegates at each program may be selected to represent their states at Boys Nation and Girls Nation.

UNITS COMPETE FOR GROUP CHAMPIONSHIP

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

UNITS COMPETE FOR GROUP CHAMPIONSHIP

Cadets from four units vie for title and opportunity to advance

By Cadet First Lt. Cody Premus

(Riverside, Calif.) – Four Color Guard teams competed at the Inland Empire Group 3 Color Guard Competition, which was held last Saturday, 26 February 2011, at the San Bernardino Senior Squadron 5 facilities at Riverside Airport in Riverside, Calif.

Competing teams were scored in five performance events including the In-Ranks Inspection where each team member was thoroughly inspected by judges and the Mile Run in which teams submitted cadets’ most recent cadet physical fitness test (CPFT) run times. In the Standard Drill event, each team is given a 50’ x 90’ drill pad to execute a 25-command drill sequence called in order and from memory. Points are deducted if commands are missed or called out of sequence.

The competition includes two real-world performances as well. During the Indoor Practical event teams’ are given a room that they must post the Colors in. The room is normally very disorganized and the team is given 5 minutes to develop a plan to march in and post the Colors and march out. Teams are charged with moving as little furniture are possible to execute their plan.

The second real-world performance event is the Outdoor Practical. Each team raises the American Colors up a flag pole, secures them, salutes the Colors, brings them down, folds them, and returns the flag to the competition’s head judge. The Outdoor Practical involves a complex series of events, which can be challenging.

“You have to unfold the flag and hook it to the flag poll and raise it to the top, without dropping the flag,” said Cadet Airman Samuel Bertic of Cable Composite Squadron 25. “…and you have to look good the whole time!”

The competition was proctored by three judges including Maj. John Lane, United States Air Force (Ret.), and California State Military Reservists Staff Sgt. Barry Queen and Specialist Thomas Unson.

“This was my first time judging a CAP color guard competition and I think all of the teams did very very well,” said Lane, who was the head judge.

Squadron 11’s Team won the competition, and will represent Inland Empire Group 3 at the California Wing Cadet Competition scheduled for March 11-13, 2011 at Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc, Calif.

“Today went better then I had expected,” Squadron 11 team commander Cadet Airman First Class Isaias Castro said after Saturday’s competition. His team won four of the competition’s five events.

Palm Springs Composite Squadron 11’s team is comprised of color guard commander Cadet Airman First Class Isaias Castro, 17, junior flag bearer Cadet Senior Airman Patrick Rovney, 16, lead rifle bearer Cadet Airman Jacob Smith, 13, junior rifle bearer Cadet Airman Danielle Peltier, 12, and alternate Cadet Airman Michael Mayo, 12. The team is coached by Cadet First Lts. Ashley Mayo and Cody Premus.

Hemet-Ryan Composite Squadron 59 placed second. The team is led by Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Elisabeth Loyd, 16, flag bearer Cadet Technical Sgt. Theodore Brumley, 14, and rifle bearers Cadet Airmen Cody Richardson, 14, and Alyssa Ayala, 12. Cadet Airman Darien Carlson, 15, served as the team’s alternate.

Representing Cable Composite Squadron 25 from Upland, Calif. in third place. The team is led by Cadet Senior Master Sgt. Jon Henderson, 17, and flag bearer Cadet Airman Samuel Bertic, 13. Cadet Senior Airman Dylan Keetle, 14, and Cadet Airman First Class Daniel Urban, 15, served as the team’s rifle bearers.

March Field Composite Squadron 45 headquartered at March Air Reserve Base near Moreno Valley, Calif. also competed. The competition team is led by Cadet Staff Sgt. Corwynn Casem, 13, and flag bearer Cadet Airman Jairo Rodriguez, 14. The team’s rifle bearers are Cadet Airman Michelle Ulber, 14, and Cadet Airman First Class James Curtis, 13. The team is coached by First Lieutenant Courtenay Franklin.

The competition was organized for Group 3 by project officer First Lt. Michael Gunter of Chino Cadet Squadron 20. Gunter and a crew of his unit’s cadets facilitated the competition in an effort, he said, to see the competition elements first hand and hopefully compete next year. Additional support for the competition was given by members of San Bernardino Squadron 5. Riverside Airport Manager Mark Ripley donated an aircraft hangar for competition space.

The competition, which was the group’s first in two years, gave cadets a new opportunity to get to know one another. “I think this competition bonded us as Group 3 and brought together all of the cadet squadrons,” said Group 3’s Cadet Programs Officer Major Vicki Woodford-Findley after the competition.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 59,000 members nationwide. CAP, in its Air Force auxiliary role, performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the AFRCC with saving 72 lives in fiscal year 2009. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counter-drug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to the more than 24,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 68 years. Visit www.gocivilairpatrol.com for more information.

Inland Empire Group 3 consists of ten individual squadrons geographically dispersed throughout Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Group 3’s membership is comprised of cadets ages 12-20 and adult members 18 and older. For more information about Civil Air Patrol in the Inland Empire are, phone (877) 504-1316 or visit us online at gp3.cawg.cap.gov or www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com.

-- 30 --

Members Awarded Disaster Relief Ribbon with "V" Device

As a result of the several days of continuous rains in the Inland Empire during the week prior to Christmas 2010, Corona Municipal Airport, which is located within the Prado Flood Control Basin, became severely flooded causing extensive damage to property at the location and sparking a rapid evacuation of the airport and some several hundred aircraft. A request was received for Civil Air Patrol assistance from the City of Corona and the Corona Airport Management which was funneled through the Riverside County Regional Emergency Operations Centers and the California Emergency Management Agency. California Wing (CAWG) Civil Air Patrol was tasked with providing immediate assistance with evacuations as well as post-flood recovery clean up.

A total of 43 members from CAWG Groups 1, 3, 4, and 7 responded from distances as far north as Bakersfield and Santa Barbara, to as far south as San Diego. This assistance spanned a period of 17 days resulting in hundreds of man hours devoted to the recovery efforts. On Wednesday, 26 January 2011, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced Presidential Declaration 2011-1952 declaring multiple counties within California, disaster areas. As a result on 29 January 2011, CAWG Commander Col. Ken Parris issued Personnel Authorization # 11-04, awarding all 43 members the Disaster Relief Ribbon with the Presidential V device.

Text courtesy Squadron 20 website.

Sq. 11 Cadet Promotions - August 2009

Congratulations to the following Squadron 11 cadets who promoted to the grade noted during the month of August!

20 Aug: C/SMSgt Cody Premus
26 Aug: C/A1C Joshua Huntington
26 Aug: C/SSgt Karl Hofmann, Wright Bros. #12435