WYOMING

WINGS
November 2006

See cover story on page 2 . . .

 Wyoming Wings
The Wyoming Wings is an autho-
rized magazine published three
times a year in the interest of the
members of Wyoming Wing,
Civil Air Patrol. The printers are
a private firm in no way connected
with the Department of the Air
Force or Civil Air Patrol. Opin-
ions expressed by the publishers
and writers are their own and not
to be considered official expres-
sion by Civil Air Patrol or the Air
Force. The appearance of adver-
tisements in this publication, in-
cluding supplements and inserts,
does not constitute an endorse-
ment by Civil Air Patrol or the De-
partment of the Air Force of prod-
ucts and services advertised.
★ HEADQUARTERS ★
Wyoming Wing
Civil Air Patrol
Bldg. 233
Warren AFB
(307) 773-4519
Fax (307) 773-4783
★ MAILING ADDRESS ★
Wyoming Wing
Civil Air Patrol
P. O. Box 9507
Cheyenne, WY 82003-9507
Wing Commander:
Colonel Robert Cook
Editor:
2d Lt Jeanne Stone-Hunter
For information on
advertising rates and space,
please call
1-800-635-6036
Commander’s Corner
By Colonel Robert Cook
It struck me when I attended
the Wyoming Wing Conference
this past September that there
were a lot of familiar faces
about. As a staff member at
region headquarters I had the
opportunity to work with Colo-
nel William Morton on many
issues related to Wyoming
Wing. I had worked with Colo-
nel Jacquelyn Floyd for many
years at region headquarters and
at region staff college. In fact,
several people who attended the
region staff college from Wyo-
ming Wing were there when I
served on staff at the college. So
I guess it should not have come
as any surprise as to how open
and supportive my welcome into
the wing was.
Getting into the job as wing
commander was fairly well
defined. Wyoming Wing was
immediately tasked with imple-
menting the new banking sys-
tem that was mandated by
National Headquarters. Then we
had to immediately put together
a schedule and execution plan
for completing the Subordinate
Unit Inspections (SUI’s) before
the 30 November 2006 deadline.
This has to be accomplished or
we risk having those units that
have not completed the inspec-
tion by that date being restricted
from participating in any CAP
activities. In addition, we had to
start preparing for the upcoming
Staff Assistance Visitation
(SAV) by the CAP/USAF
RMLO for mid-October. Com-
bined with the SAV is the
annual Audit Survey. Coming
off a recent wing freeze means
that the Audit Survey will be a
most thorough review that will
focus on our management sys-
tems and asset accountability.
The SAV is a non-graded
inspection and is intended as a
learning tool for the wing so that
we will be able to improve our
management systems, identify
problem areas, and resolve any
safety and regulation non-com-
pliance issues. The Audit Sur-
vey is a graded inspection that
assesses our ability as a wing to
properly manage the resources
that we have assigned to us for
completing our missions. The
Continued on page 9 . . .
1
2006 Encampment
By 2d Lt Rick Hunter

T
he entire 2006 Wyoming
Wing Cadet Encamp-
ment was planned and
executed by the Cadet Staff.
Senior Member Staff operated
only as observers ensuring com-
pliance with CAP standards and
policies and to ensure all safety
policies, practices and proce-
dures were followed.
Using every measure, the
2006 Wyoming CAP Cadet
Encampment was a huge suc-
cess. Not one Cadet either
elected to leave or was sent
Continued . . .
Encampment
Continued . . .
home and no one was injured.
The Cadet Staff quickly made
personnel files, schedules, ros-
ters, a nightly newspaper and
award certificates flawlessly.
HIGHLIGHTS:
Obstacle Course: Everyone
had a great time on the US Army
course. Everyone at least
attempted every obstacle. Some
of the tasks were quite challeng-
ing, particularly the horizontal
pole walk. The first pole is about
4 feet off the ground; the second
is 6 feet and the third pole is 10
feet. Each pole is 30 feet in
length and they are at angels to
one another.
Just before final photos, 2d
Lt Hunter decided to take a brief
rest in the cargo net pit where he
was sat upon by ALL the Cadets
and promptly buried alive in
shredded rubber. He said it was
nice because the rubber was
warm and relaxing!
Orienteering Course: This
gave Major Mike Carlson an
opportunity to share his vast
knowledge of orienteering skills
with all. His class was a huge
success as shown by the fact that
all Cadets finished the laid out
course and no one got too lost.
After the Major’s class we
had a lunch of MREs. The Cadets
seemed to think they were a real
treat. Some of the ‘more experi-
enced’ Officers opinioned they
were better ‘back in the day.’
After cleanup it was time to
put Major Carlson’s lessons to
the test. The Cadets were
divided into teams; each team
received a set of coordinates, a
map, a compass and a starting
point. Then they set off to the
four winds. Fortunately all
returned well before our allotted
time expired.
Indoor Weapons Range:
This one it was harder to tell
who had the better time; the
Army Guard instructors, the
Cadets or the Senior Members,
D.J. aka Sniper, in particular.
The man knows how to handle
weapons, in fact the Army slo-
gan, ‘An Army of One’ was
probably inspired by him.
After an extensive safety
and orientation brief by Army
Guard Instructors, the Cadets
and staff fired actual weapons
converted to use laser targeting
rather than ‘real’ ammunition,
which of course is more cost effec-
tive and much safer. In addition to
the lasers the weapons also used
compressed air to activate the firing
mechanisms so the weapons
cycled, recoiled and sounded like
the real McCoy. There were more
than a few future machine gunners
in the group.
The weapons fired were an
M-16A2 5.56mm selective-fire
assault rifle; M-60E3 7.62mm
automatic submachine gun; M-9
9mm semi-automatic pistol;
M203 30mm grenade launcher,
a Thompson .45ACP caliber selec-
tive fire submachine gun and the
M-14 7.62mm selective fire rifle.
The M-203 was the most
popular weapon, maybe because
it had the biggest BANG. The
instructors set up three different
target situations for everyone.
The first was a standard shoot-
ing range set up for familiariza-
tion with the weapons. The sec-
ond situation was an amphibious
landing and assault and the third
was aggressing against an
enemy convoy and a head-
quarters unit.
The situations were pro-
jected onto screens using com-
puter generated imagery that
was also interactive, i.e., when a
target was hit, it reacted like a
real target would.
This is the exact same train-
ing the US Military uses to train
combat troops.
BLACKHAWK (UH-60)
FAMILIARIZATION: Another
great activity that was both
enjoyable and a learning experi-
ence for all. Everyone enjoyed
the FLIR (Forward Looking
InfaRed) radar targeting system
and seeing its capabilities. Most
were particularly amazed at
being able to read a small sign
Continued . . .
5
Encampment
Continued . . .
on a building about 500 meters
distant as if it were right in front
of them.
The absolute best highlight
of the week had to be the air-
craft rides on Saturday. The
C-130 Hercules ride provided
by the Wyoming Air National
Guard was great. We all got
great views of the Glendo
Reservoir and the area sur-
rounding Camp Guernsey.
The Blackhawk rides,
courtesy of the Wyoming Army
Guard, were however the piece
de resistance! One Senior Mem-
ber in particular was really look-
ing forward to a ride in a heli-
copter. Colonel Stonebreaker
probably has more time in fixed-
wing aircraft than everyone
present, including all the pilots.
I’m sure he has more flying time
than even he cares to admit. The
one thing he didn’t have was
any time at all in a rotary-wing
aircraft. Colonel Stonebreaker
had NEVER flown in a helicop-
ter before. I had the opportunity
to be on his flight sitting in front
of him. I believe I could safely
describe him as ‘giddy.’ I don’t
know if I had more fun flying or
watching the Colonel enjoy his
flight. I believe the latter.
Our pilot gave us a great ride
over several acres of Camp
Guernsey, we followed a river-
bed for about a mile or two and I
swear I could have reached out
with my foot and kicked the
back or drug it in the water.
The only hiccough was
when one Cadet staffer said,
“Hey, it’s raining in here.” And
another Cadet staffer said,
“Yeah, I feel it too.” Then they
looked at the Cadet between
them. It wasn’t rain.
In addition to all these fun
activities, Cadets’ days were
filled with classes on CAP his-
tory, Leadership, Aeronautics
and Lt Col Davis’ own brand of
‘CAP myth busting.’ Several of
the Cadet Staff learned what it
was like to stand behind a
podium instead of seated in
front of one.
There was the mandatory
marching, which turned out to
be more fun than expected, with
the two flights having a bit of
friendly competition between
themselves to see who was
better. I’ll never tell.
Meal times were interesting.
The Cadets were encouraged to
eat ‘in a military manner.’ That
consisted of them getting their
meal, finding a seat at an open
table and standing behind the
chair until the table was full;
then sitting in unison, eating
quietly and leaving together.
Some Cadets were better at this
than others, but by mid-week
everyone had mastered it; much
to the chagrin of the Senior
Member staff when we mingled
amongst the Cadets and tried to
engage them in conversation.
They must have thought we
were trying to trick them into
talking. We had to tell them all
at formation that was not the
case. The Senior Staff really did
want to get to know each and
everyone of them.
Each morning started out
with a physical training session
in which all of the Cadets and
most of the Senior Staff partici-
pated. Colonel Davis, you did
participate right? A few of the
Cadets found they had more
room in their tummies for
breakfast after PT than they
did before.
The capstone of the PT was
a final qualifying PT, which
consisted of push-ups, sit-ups, a
sit and reach and a one and a
half mile run. This was followed
by some ‘fun run’ sprints.
Graduation finally came,
much too soon as far as most
were concerned, every Cadet
and Senior Member looking
their best, military precision was
the order of the day, including
uniforms, grooming, shoes and
most importantly military
bearing. For having only one
week of military drill, the
Cadets did a great job and
impressed everyone present. ★
7
Commander’s Corner
Continued from page 1 . . .
areas to be reviewed cover sup-
ply, communications, vehicles
and aircraft, and real property.
Combined with all this
activity we had to work through
the close-out of FY06 and the
start of FY07 and start working
towards end-of-year close-out.
So if you are wondering why
everyone is so busy, this is it in a
nut shell. With all this work, we
still need to be looking at where
we want the Wyoming Wing to
be by September 2009. From my
perspective, one of the major
issues facing the wing today,
and CAP in general, is retention.
Historically, CAP has done
well with recruiting, but we do
not do so well with retention. In
fact, annually we lose about as
many members as we bring into
Civil Air Patrol. In order to
counter this trend we need to
focus on ensuring that new
members are promptly given the
guidance and training needed to
understand the organizational
structure and culture of CAP
(Level I and Cadet Protec-
tion Program Training). By
mentoring new members (cadets
and officers) these members will
have a specific someone to
whom they can ask questions to
better understand where they
Support the Cadet Programs . . .
Our youth are the future of Civil Air Patrol!
can make a difference. New
senior members need to be
encouraged to select a specialty
track early on so they can utilize
the skills they bring with them
or develop new skills for sup-
porting the unit or wing. All
officers in Wyoming Wing
should have at least one spe-
cialty track. This single act will
have the officer focused on a
path where their efforts will be
directed to a specific area of
emphasis. Without emphasis,
there is no focus. Without focus,
there is no feeling of accom-
plishment. Without accom-
plishment, there is no reason
to continue volunteering time
and effort.
The process is the same in
the Cadet Corp. We need to
ensure the new cadets have
someone to whom they can ask
questions so that they can
quickly understand the levels of
development, the materials to
learn, the culture of the Cadet
Program, and the benefits of
participation. We need to ensure
that each cadet has the oppor-
tunity to develop leadership
skills through training pro-
grams that are available to all
cadets in Civil Air Patrol. This
includes Basic Cadet Training,
encampments that may include
power and glider training, the
Color Guard and Drill Teams,
Cadet Advisor Council, and the
CAP National Cadet Activities
that include Advanced Tech-
nologies Academy at Peterson
AFB, Colorado, the Airline
Careers Exploration at Denver,
Colorado, the Aerospace Educa-
tion Academy at Oshkosh, Wis-
consin, the Air Education and
Training Command Familiariza-
tion Course at Columbus AFB,
Mississippi, to name a few.
I can not recall when last we
had cadets from Wyoming Wing
participate in the International
Air Cadet Exchange Program
(IACE). We should have as
many of our cadets who have an
interest in participating in this
IACE program be able to do so.
All cadets and officers
should complete the Brigadier
General Charles E. “Chuck”
Yeager Aerospace Education
Achievement Award. If you
have not done so, put this on
your training objectives.
If we can make these issues
a priority in the wing, we will be
on our way to increasing recruit-
ing and retention.
★
9
 Editor’s Comments
By 2d Lt Jeanne M. Stone-Hunter

Please allow me to introduce
myself. I’m Jeanne Stone-
Hunter and I’ve been a CAP
member since early September,
2006. I am a Cheyenne native,
graduate of the University of
Wyoming and former Marine
officer. My husband, Rick,
joined CAP earlier this year. He
participated in this summer’s
cadet encampment and had a
great time. Rick dragged, I
mean, invited me to a couple of
meetings and after I saw what a
great group of people you are,
he didn’t have to twist my arm
too hard to get me to join. He
also talked me into taking over
his CAP job, Wing Personnel
Officer, while he spends a year
in Iraq as a civilian firefighter.
And I thought I’d have a lot time
on my hands while he was gone!
When Lt Col Skrabut asked
me to take over as magazine
editor and told me the due date I
readily accepted the assignment.
Later, it sank in that I only had
two weeks to pull an entire issue
together. Any sane person
would have called the Lt Col
back and respectfully declined
but not me. Instead, I begged
and nagged everyone I ran into,
all the members of the Yahoo
group and anyone else whose
address I could glean off any
unrelated email, for articles.
Thankfully, you sent me enough
articles to get my first issue off
the ground. Thank you one
and all for your help. Thanks
in advance for your help on the
next issue. I’m accepting
articles already, hint, hint.
I want to thank Colonel
Cash for all her hard work on the
magazine, including this issue.
She’s done a wonderful job. I
only hope I can prove an
adequate replacement for her.
Thanks to Colonel Morton,
Colonel Cook, Lt Col Davis and
Lt Col Skrabut who provided
considerable guidance, both as a
new member and magazine
editor. I also owe a debt of grati-
tude to Deanna Waldemer with
Denison Bros Publishing. She
patiently answered my many
questions and transformed
our raw input into an attrac-
tive issue.
Here is my contact information:
Jeanne Stone-Hunter
jeanne.hunter@bresnan.net
Hm. 307-514-4366
Wk.307-777-4512
Cell 307-638-9349
I’m looking forward to a long
and successful career in CAP
and to meeting each of you.

If you desire more information on the

WYOMING CIVIL AIR PATROL,
please complete this form and mail to:
Wyoming Wing, Civil Air Patrol
P. O. Box 9507, Cheyenne, WY 82003-9507

Name ____________________________________________________________________________

Address __________________________________________________________________________

City ________________________________________ State ________________ Zip ____________

11
Awards Presented at Conference
WY Wing Gains New Commander
Lt Col Stanley Skrabut, Wyoming Wing Headquarters
WYOMING—Civil Air Patrol’s Wyoming Wing
changed commanders and focused on a wide range
of topics during the wing’s 2006 conference Sept.
15-17 in Cheyenne, attended by wing members,
CAP leadership, National Headquarters staff and
Rocky Mountain Region Commander Col Russell
Chazell.
Col Bill Morton, outgoing wing commander,
opened the conference by welcoming attendees
and setting the agenda, which echoed the confer-
ence theme of “Back to Basics.”
During the Saturday and Sunday breakout ses-
sions, members received briefings on a myriad of
topics. Some topics focused on new technologies,
such as the various computer applications used to
manage squadron and wing operations. Others out-
lined new programs, and still others provided
guidance on performing tasks more efficiently.
A separate agenda, focused on leadership
development, was established for the cadets.
At the awards banquet, Cadet Lt Col Kelsey
Aitchison, Wyoming Wing cadet of the year, gave
a moving speech on CAP’s impact on her life.
After awards were presented, Chazell carried
out the change of command ceremony, with Col
Robert Cook taking over command of Wyoming
Wing from Morton.
The following awards and recognitions were
presented:
• Distinguished Service Award—Col William
Morton Jr.
• Exceptional Service Award— Lt Col Eric
Davis and Capt Steve Grisham.
• Meritorious Service Award—Col Jackie
Floyd, Lt Col Stan Skrabut, Maj Elden Carpenter,
Maj Steve Ellis, Maj Carolyn Webber and Cadet
Lt Col Kelsey Aitchison.
• Commander’s Commendation—Col Betty L.
Cash, Lt Col Joshua R. Carpenter, Lt Col George
R. Hanrahan Jr., Lt Col Assunta S. McDonald,
Maj Donald E. Barker, Maj Mark R. Whitaker,
Maj Beverly K. Carlson, Maj Michael Carlson,
Capt Patricia Clark, Capt Patricia A. Larson, Capt
Bruce D. Lessig, Capt Kenneth P. Moerscher,
Capt Mark A. Watson, Chaplain Capt McKinley
D. Wood, Capt Michael D. Woodworth, 1st Lt
Larry E. Ash, 1st Lt James Ferrell, 1st Lt Michael
W. Gray, 1st Lt Bill H. Jepson, 1st Lt Brian A.
McNutt, 1st Lt Jane H. Sailors, 2d Lt Gavin C.
Donnelly, 2d Lt Jon P. Mason, 2d Lt Jodi R.
Norris, 2d Lt John M. Ellis, 2d Lt Randall K.
Hunter, 2d Lt Dee J. Sadler, Senior Member Jerry
L. Williams, Senior Member Doniv L. Feltner,
Technical Flight Officer Joshua A. Thomas,
Cadet 2d Lt Krystina L. Beatty, Cadet 2d Lt Tyler
S. Dimock, Cadet 2d Lt Jeremiah L. Longo, Cadet
2d Lt Lyall C. Woolery, Cadet Chief Master Sgt
Heather M. Gould and Cadet Chief Master Sgt
Corey J. Zubik.
• Aerospace Education Award for Senior
Members—2d Lt Susan Burkett, 2d Lt Steven
Schofield and Capt Patricia Clark.
• General Billy Mitchell Award—Cadet 2d Lt
Lyall Woolery.
• Senior Member of the Year—Capt James
Grisham.
• Cadet of the Year—Cadet Lt Col Kelsey K.
Aitchison.
• Rocky Mountain Region Cadet Programs
Officer of the Year—Lt Col Eric Davis.
• Rocky Mountain Region Moral Leadership
Officer of the Year—Capt Rita Malone.
• Moral Leadership Officer of the Year—Capt
Rita Malone.
• Squadron of the Year—Cloud Peak Composite
Squadron.
• Squadron of Merit—Cody Cadet Squadron.
The Wyoming Wing, made up of 14 squad-
rons and a headquarters element in Cheyenne,
has more than 250 volunteer members.
13
 Want to Learn
the Secret to
Better Aerospace
Education Scores?
By Lt Col Stan Skrabut
Vice Commander, Wyoming Wing
Ever since I was a cadet, and from what I
hear even earlier than that, cadets have had
trouble passing aerospace education exams. I
have found a method that will help you achieve
higher scores. It is a practice site on the Web
that has over a hundred different practice tests
with hundreds of questions. You can find the
site at http://www.ny212.org/modules/.
I developed this site about five years ago in
order to help cadets pass their exams. I am
happy to say it has been a success. The only
problem is that, like CAP, it is a best kept
secret. I am working on bringing it to the
forefront.
The testing site has three different types of
exams: multiple choice, matching, and cross-
word puzzles. The site is broken down into
three areas. The first area focuses on the Aero-
space Dimensions modules. The second area
focuses on Aerospace: Journey of Flight exams.
The final area has links to the leadership exams
found on the Cadetstuff.org site.
Based on research I have been recently
doing, individuals who use online practice
exams as a study method tend to do better than
those who do not. As a research project, I plan
to explore this further by focusing on cadets
taking aerospace education exams. I hope that
if you are asked to assist in this research
project, you will do so.
From the feedback I have received from
individuals using the practice tests, they are
reporting that the test have been very helpful to
them. I encourage you to check them out.
Impressions
Colonel Robert Cook
W
hat strikes you most about a person
when you first meet them? Whatever
that something is, it creates a picture in
your mind of what that person is about and, to a
certain extent, if they are someone with whom you
would want to work. This is the same when we are
viewed by our active-duty counterparts. If we
present an appearance of a highly skilled profes-
sional, then generally we will be treated as such. If
our dress and military bearing is in line with what
is expected of our military counterpart, then we
will present an image of being a professional. Cer-
tainly, our uniformed military personnel are just
that, professional.
There are several ways in which we can project
an image of professionalism. One way is to be
courteous, polite, and respectful. Another is to cor-
rectly wear only authorized uniforms that are clean
and have the appropriate creases in all the right
places. Usually there are four creases in the dress
uniform, one in each pants leg and one in each
shirt sleeve, as appropriate. Another way to project
professionalism is to render the proper respect for
the flag during retreat. Rendering a salute to a
higher ranking officer or returning a salute to a
lesser ranking officer or cadet is a way of showing
respect as well as a form of greeting.
When walking together or as a group, we
should strive to walk in step and not as a “gaggle
of geese”. Again, appearance is everything. If you
look professional, then you will be treated as a
professional. We are volunteers, but we are also
professionals. Some of us are medical specialists,
hydrologists, urban planners, executive secre-
taries, aircraft mechanics, certified financial
planners, accountants, police officers, and
lawyers. So why should we be anything other than
professional in our volunteer work? We bring the
same skills to Civil Air Patrol that we use in our
day-to-day business dealings.
So lets all strive to make that great first and
lasting impression. It will enhance the level of
professionalism of the whole organization.
15
17
18
19
21
 WANTED
PILOTS & AIRCREWS

¾ REQUIREMENTS: Become a Member

Desire to contribute Time and Talent
¾ BENEFITS: Pride in Supporting your Country and
your Community
Flying Opportunities in:
★ Search and Rescue
★ Homeland Security
★ Cadet Orientation Rides
★ Emergency Services

CONTACT WYOMING CIVIL AIR PATROL

1-800-FLY-2338 http://www.capwyhq.org

23
 Why Professional
Development is Important
Vice Commander, Wyoming Wing
In order for our program to
be effective, our members must
be trained. This training not only
focuses on our emergency ser-
vices but also on our leadership
responsibilities. Presently, we
are falling short in meeting our
training needs in professional
development.
At the time of writing this
article, we had 176 senior mem-
bers in Wyoming Wing. Of
those 176 members, only 161
(91%) had completed Level I
training, 30 (17%) completed
Level II, 24 (14%) completed
Level III, 14 (8%) completed
Level IV, and 10 (6%) com-
pleted Level V.
So what? Why is this impor-
tant? At the recent National
Board, Safety gave a presenta-
tion that showed that a majority
of accidents were caused by
members who had only com-
pleted Level I professional de-
velopment training. From that
group, the majority of them
were in CAP fewer than eight
years. We are also finding out
that when members move be-
yond only Level I training, we
are retaining them longer. The
have buy-in into the CAP pro-
gram. In short, members who
are not moving forward in pro-
fessional development training
are a risk to our other members,
By Lt Col Stan Skrabut
our equipment, and they tend to
leave our program sooner.
Eighty-three percent of our of-
ficers fall into this category.
This is a risk factor that must be
addressed.
Level I training is the only
required part of the professional
development program for offic-
ers. There is no good excuse
why nine percent of our mem-
bers have not completed this
portion of the program.
As I write this article, I have
helped conduct two Subordinate
Unit Inspections (SUI). There
are a couple of trends I notice
immediately that pertain to pro-
fessional development. Mem-
bers who are assigned duty posi-
tions are not excelling in these
positions. They are not excelling
simply because they have not
been entered into a specialty
track and trained how to do the
job-based on the specialty track.
In most cases, simply exposing
a member to a specialty track
guide helps to get them started
on the right foot. Having prop-
erly trained members helps the
unit function properly as well as
reduce the workload on select
members. Presently, thirty-two
percent of our members are not
advancing in a specialty track.
As mentioned earlier, mem-
bers who are not moving past
Level I are leaving our organiza-
tion sooner. By investing our
members with good training we
are making them valuable to our
organization. If they feel valu-
able, they will continue to serve.
Advancement through the vari-
ous levels of professional devel-
opment also provides opportuni-
ties to recognize members for
success through awards and pro-
motions. It is important to rec-
ognize members for doing good
work.
Finally, the skills learned in
CAP can be applied to other ar-
eas, not only CAP. One of our
members mentioned to me that
she used some of the lessons
learned at a recent unit
commander’s course at her
place of employment. She was
thrilled at the results, as were the
people she affected. By attend-
ing courses in CAP can help you
develop skills that could lead to
not only a promotion in CAP but
also at work.
Colonel Cook has set the
following goals relating to pro-
fessional development: 100%
completion of Level I training;
100% of members entered into
and progressing in a specialty
track; and 100% completion of
general emergency services
training.
25
 By Patricia Clark,
Capt, CAP
Gillette Ground Team School
August 11-13, 2006
Wilma (the ranch’s resident
deer), cadets, and senior mem-
bers attended a Ground Team
School in Gillette on August
11-13, 2006. Fourteen senior
members and eighteen cadets
participated. Squadrons repre-
sented included, Powder River
Composite with 11 attendees,
Laramie Valley Composite with
9 attendees, Cody Cadet with 5
attendees, Cloud Peak Com-
posite with 5 attendees and
Cheyenne Composite with 2
attendees.
The school utilized an area
southwest of Gillette, Gillette’s
Squadron Commander’s (Capt
Patricia Clark’s) ranch, for a
mission base. Billeting areas for
tents were provided. One resi-
dential home was used as a
mess-hall. An outdoor wooded
area provided a bistro setting
and doubled as a classroom.
Field operations were conducted
in terrain ranging from rugged
rolling hills to wooded areas to
flat flood plains. An air sortie
was conducted out of Cowley,
WY to coordinate with the
Ground Team School mission
base for communication practice
(Air-to-Ground and Ground-to-
Air Signals).
Purpose of the school was to
train and qualify members for
Ground Team Member Levels
3, 2, and 1. Members also
received communications train-
ing. The CAP plane offered
training in air to ground signals,
ground to air signals and pro-
vided assistance with an ELT
search. Ground team members
participated in a missing person
search and mapping with
bi-angulations and tri-angulations.
Evening training focused on
team building.
9
 Yes, Virginia, the Wyoming Wing
Does Have a Website
Vice Commander, Wyoming Wing
Believe it or not, Wyoming
Wing has its very own Web site.
You can find it at http://
www.capwyhq.org/. I mention
this because a majority of Wyo-
ming Wing members I run into
have never heard that we have a
Web site. This is a pity because
there is a lot of great informa-
tion on this site. Let me take a
moment to let you know what
you are missing.
First of all, on the home
page, we provide you with the
last six months of Wyoming
Wing News. You can quickly
see all the great things fellow
members are doing from promo-
tions to awards, search and rescue
missions to school graduations.
On the menu bar, you will
find links to the events calendar,
Wyoming Wing information, in-
formation about CAP, Wyo-
ming Wing news, units in the
wing, various staff positions,
aerospace education, cadet pro-
grams, emergency services, and
information for the media. One
of the most important links is
the events calendar. This is
where you can find out what is
happening in Wyoming Wing.
You also have the opportunity to
add events to this calendar.
Naturally, they will have to be
approved before you will see
them listed. Under the calendar
link, there are also drop-
down links to the upcoming
encampment and the upcoming
By Lt Col Stan Skrabut
conference. We update these
two important events once we
get new information.
Under the Wyoming Wing
link, you will find a dropdown
menu with links to a staff listing,
the events calendar, important
documents and forms, and Wyo-
ming Wing stats. We have been
posting important information
on the important documents
page. You should review it often.
The About CAP links provide
information about CAP in general,
and links to unit locator resources.
The news section has a lot of
great resources to include Wyo-
ming Wing Web news, links to
press releases from around
Wyoming, links to our monthly
newsletter, links to video clips, a
link to our photo gallery, and
other useful links. Each month,
we put out a newsletter. Have
you seen one? I hope so. We
have been doing it for over a
year and a half. We also have
links to the monthly aerospace
newsletter. Did you know that
you can subscribe to the news-
letter and have a notice sent to
you when it is ready?
You can subscribe at http://
www.capwyhq.org/phplist/
public_html/lists/. There are
also links where you can submit
your own news or links. Again,
they are moderated so you will
have to wait until they are
approved before you can see
them on the Web. For each
event, we try to put pictures up
on our Web site. Be sure to
check out the photo gallery. You
can also use the photo gallery to
show various activities to pro-
spective recruits.
Under the Units menu, you
can find information about each
unit. There is information
regarding when and where they
meet. We also link news
releases to the respective unit.
Each of the different staff
positions are linked under the
Staff menu item. Under the dif-
ferent staff positions, you will
find information relevant to the
particular position to include
news and links to resources to
help you do your job. Take a
moment to see what is being ref-
erenced under each position.
Aerospace education, cadet
programs, and emergency ser-
vices are singled out for special
attention because they are our
primary missions. Each position
has a wealth of resources listed.
Finally, the media center has
a number of resources dedicated
to news media that are looking
for information about CAP.
If you ever happen to be
browsing through our site and
experience a problem or find in-
correct information, please let
me know at stan.skrabut@
gmail.com. Otherwise, I hope
you find our site useful. Take a
moment to check it out and even
subscribe to our newsletter.
27
 Wyoming Wing of Civil Air
Patrol Participates in Drug
Demand Reduction Program
The Wyoming Wing of the
Civil Air Patrol is participating
in the brand new CAP Drug
Demand Reduction (DDR) pro-
gram. The new program includes
many new options to fund DDR
programs.
Funding is available for the
following:
1. Promotional items available
from Printex, with a special
catalog available to CAP.
2. Educational and training
items available from PSA, also
with a special catalog for CAP.
3. Rocket kits from AC.
The Wing is responsible for
shipping fee and the rest of the
cost is paid by NHQ. Special
forms are available on the NHQ
site. Forward completed forms
to Lt Col McDonald at the Wing
headquarters. Requests are com-
bined and forwarded to the
RMR DDRC for review. Upon
approval by the Wing Com-
mander requests are forwarded
to NHQ for a special approval
number which is sent to the sup-
plier allowing the unit to make
the purchase. Orders are shipped
directly to the wing.
United Against Drugs.
Clothing and electronics
may NOT be purchased under
this program. An 80%- 20%
split between wing and NHQ
applies for other supplies, such as
paper and office supplies for DDR.
A product catalog is avail-
able at www.cap.gov. Select the
“members” link at the top of the
page, and then “Drug Demand
Reduction” (on the left, right
above eServices). Included for
purchase are Power Point pre-
sentations, games and puzzles
and other great ideas.
Units should begin now to
participate in the Red Ribbon
Week for 2007 (usually held the
last week of October). CAP
acquires Red Ribbons directly
from NHQ at no cost.
To make our program work
to its fullest each unit should:
1 Appoint a senior and a
cadet DDRO. The selected
members’ contact information
should be sent to Lt Col
McDonald at www.wywgddra
@yahoo.com.
2 Encourage cadets to partici-
pate in the NHQ poster contest
to design the ribbon for next year.
3 In early fall 2007 units
should contact their local
school to join forces on the Red
Ribbon program. National
Guard support is being sought to
provide Helicopter support to
schools for this program. Con-
tact with the schools doesn’t
have to be elaborate. The DDRO
should introduce him/herself to
school administrators and
present the idea of the Red Rib-
bon Week. If the school agrees
to participate, get the number of
students (concentration can be
on only the 5th grade as they do
in COWG or on 6th -8th grade).
These students are excellent
candidates for your cadet pro-
gram. The event can be some-
thing as easy as dropping off the
ribbons and a game or two to the
school to hand out or unit in-
volvement in passing out the
ribbons.
Lesson plans will soon be
available on the NHQ site for
unit use. Lt Col Cook will
forward CDs with helps and
suggestions.
29
Cadet Staff of the 2006 Wyoming Wing Encampment, remarkably (and inexplicably) all doing “The Fig
Leaf Pose”. L to R: Cadet Stroble, Cadet Gould, Cadet Cox, Cadet Peterson, Cadet Longo, Cadet Aitchison,
Cadet Beatty, Cadet Woolery, Cadet Dimock and Cadet Zubik

Cadet Programs Update

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
AND
SCHOLARSHIPS

National Cadet Special

Activities
National Cadet Special
Activities (NCSA) applications
are due to Lt Col Davis by 31
December 2006. Interested cadets
should contact Lt Col Davis.
Other Special Activities are
also available. The application
process will be much like it was
last year, with an electronic
application directly to NHQ,
followed by a paper application,
resume and cover letter to Lt
Col Davis. Lt Col Davis and
others will rank the applicants
per NHQ requirements. Cadet Lieutenant Colonel Aitchison receives the Meritorious Service
Continued . . . Award.

31
Cadet Programs Update
Continued
Encampment 2007
The Wyoming Encampment
is tentatively planned for August
2007 and planning is already under-
way. Applications will be due in
July and the cost is estimated at
between $120 and $150.
Encampment Staff Positions
Cadets and Senior Members
are being sought to serve on
staff. Candidates are being
sought for Cadet Commander
and Senior Member Encamp-
ment Commander. Cadets inter-
ested in applying should have
earned the General Billy
Mitchell Award to apply and
preference will be given to those
who are close to earning the
Amelia Earhart Award before
the Encampment starts. Apply
by submitting a cover letter and
resume to Lt Col Davis by 1 Jan
07. Late applications will NOT be
accepted under any circumstances.
Senior Members interested
in serving as Encampment Com-
mander should submit a resume
and cover letter to Wing HQ,
addressed to the Wing Com-
mander. The résumé should
cover the member’s entire CAP
experience. Include a cover
letter detailing qualifications
pertinent to the position. The
deadline to for submission is
1 Jan 07.
OLD BUSINESS
Awards
The Cody Cadet Squadron
was selected as the 2006 Squad-
ron of Merit and the Cloud Peak ' Senior Member Jerry L.
Composite Squadron was se- Williams
lected as the 2006 Squadron of
the Year. Captain Steve ' Technical Flight Officer
Grisham was selected as the Joshua A. Thomas
2006 Senior Member of the ' Cadet Second Lieutenant
Year for the Wyoming Wing.
Cadet Lieutenant Colonel
Krystina L. Beatty
Kelsey Aitchison was selected ' Cadet Second Lieutenant
as the Wing’s Cadet of the Year Tyler S. Dimock
and received a Meritorious
Service Award for her out- ' Cadet Second Lieutenant
standing leadership and commit- Jeremiah L. Longo
ment during the 2006 Wyoming ' Cadet Second Lieutenant
Encampment. Cadet Aitchison
Lyall C. Woolery
also was the guest speaker for
the banquet and spoke about ' Cadet Chief Master
how being a member of CAP Sergeant Heather
impacted her life. M. Gould
Many people received
Commander’s Commendations, ' Cadet Chief Master
and here is a partial list. These Sergeant Corey J.
members were awarded the Zubik
Commendations for their
incredible work on the 2006
Encampment: HAPPY TO BE
HERE!!
' Major Beverly K.
Carlson
PROUD TO
' Major Michael Carlson SERVE!!
' Chaplain (Captain)
McKinley D. Wood FIRED UP AND
' First Lieutenant Jane H. MOTIVATED!!
Sailors
(Oft-heard expression at the
' Second Lieutenant John 2006 Wyoming Encampment
M. Ellis Cadet Staff of the 2006
Wyoming Wing.)
' Second Lieutenant ★
Randall K. Hunter
' Second Lieutenant Dee
J. Sadler
33
Laramie Valley
Launches First Balloon
With funding from the
NASA Wyoming Space Grant,
the Laramie Valley Squadron
recently launched a balloon with
an information gathering pay-
load device. The purpose of the
NASA program is inspiration
and education. The squadron’s
payload contained a digital cam-
era to capture inspirational
photos, an ELT practice beacon
to track and recover the payload
and instruments to measure and
34
By Mark Watson, Capt, CAP
record; pressure to calculate alti-
tude, internal temperature to
measure effectiveness of the
enclosure and external tempera-
ture to map the atmospheric
changes with altitude.
At approximately 8:30 am
on October 14, 2006, the
Laramie Valley Squadron
released their first balloon. The
weather was nearly perfect with
a temperature of 37 degrees
Fahrenheit and surface winds
less than five mph from the
WSW. Two senior members and
five cadets helped with the
launch. The launch site was
state land just north of Highway
130 at the Big Hollow Road
about 12 miles west of the
intersection of Highways 130
and 230.
The balloon release went
smoothly with a rise-rate esti-
mated at 1000 ft. per minute.
Continued . . .
13
Balloon Launch
Continued . . .
The squadron was able to keep
visual contact while packing up the
launch site. After a stop for refresh-
ments the group proceeded to the
Overland Trail Historical
marker on Highway 130, were
visual contact was reestablished.
The balloon was proceeding
rapidly on a vector of 80 degrees
(true). It was estimating that the
track should put the balloon
very close to Laramie when it
burst. Trying to track the target
became difficult because the
balloon was at a greater distance
vertically than horizontally. The
Elper antenna was used at an
angle to the sky in an attempt to
Direction Find (DF) the signal,
but yielded confusing results.
Estimating that the payload
would be descending, the group
broke into two teams and pro-
ceeded to two of the highest
points in Laramie, a hill on
Harney St. near 22nd St. (team
one) and the hill at the north end
of 15th St/ (team two). The team
at 22nd and Harney received an
audible signal for the first few
minutes at that location. The DF
indicated a heading of about 80
degrees, but the audible signal
was soon gone. The two teams
rejoined at the north end of
Jacoby Golf Course and again
found a heading of about 80 de-
grees, but no audible signal.
Team Two was then sent to the
Happy Jack exit on Interstate 80,
at which point they found a
heading of about 0 degrees with
the Elper. The group took a
break for lunch before proceed-
36
ing from the Happy Jack exit to
Pilot Hill Road. From 1:30 pm
to 4:00 pm squadron members
ran the entire length of Pilot Hill
Road and some of the side roads
in an attempt to locate the sig-
nal. In the end, the teams real-
ized that the high tension line at
the north end of Laramie was
emitting broadband radiation
(around 121 MHz) that was
swamping the DF (on 121.5,
121.6 and 121.775 MHz). The
conclusion was that the payload
may have stopped emitting on
impact or fallen into a well
shielded location and the after-
noon had been spent chasing the
power line noise. The search
was called off at 4:00 pm due to
lack of any useful signal and the
fact that the beacon battery had
a design lifetime of 10 hours.
During a subsequent search,
Captain Mark Watson again
failed to locate the payload. It is
well labeled with the squadron’s
address and phone number and
contains Priority Mail postage
inside. The launch team hopes a
hunter or hiker finds and returns
it. The payload included a Hobo
data logger with pressure, inter-
nal and external temperature and
relative humidity sensors. The
payload also included an ELT
transmitter beacon with lithium
battery and a 1.3 MP digital
camera with added timer circuit.
Total weight with batteries and
parachute was less than 350
grams and it was launched on a
Kamont 300 g balloon inflated
to 48 inches in diameter.
Lessons learned:
1. Bring binoculars.
2. Station a recovery team
downwind before the launch.
3. Consider coordinating with a
CAP training flight to get better
ELT coverage once the payload
lands.
4. Run the beacon antenna up
the parachute shroud lines so it
won’t bend or break went it hits
the ground.
5. Either switch to the larger bal-
loons to launch a GPS transmit-
ter, or build a transmitter small
enough for the 300 g balloon.
6. When in doubt about a DF
signal, try the other frequencies
to see if it shows up there as
well. The beacon is a pretty nar-
row band transmitter and won’t
show up on 121.6 or 121.5
MHz.
Overall it was a great day of
training for ground search meth-
ods with an emphasis on Elper
usage. The group made good use
of the new EF Johnson radios
and the cadets handled them-
selves well in all situations.
Future launches will likely
include GPS units to track the
balloon’s position in real time
during the flight and other in-
struments such as a cosmic ray
counter. Once the basics such a
launch and recovery are under
mastered many other scientific
possibilities may be pursued.
The NASA Wyoming Space
Grant is open to all CAP cadet
squadrons and commanders are
encouraged to apply.
★