WingTips
The official publication of Minnesota Wing Civil Air Patrol
Viking hosts
Cirrus/BRS
training
by 1st Lt Mark Helseth
Viking Squadron
Viking Squadron, locat-
ed in Eden Prairie,
Minn., hosted a Ballistic
Recovery System
demonstration and train-
ing seminar at Flying
Cloud Airport Dec. 17.
The unit had a good
turnout. Participants
learned a tremendous
amount about the BRS
parachute and Cirrus air
bags, as well as the
potential hazards these
items could pose to first
responders. The BRS is a
live rocket and can kill if
handled improperly.
Due to the risk associat-
ed with the rocket, the
participants concluded
that hands-on training
should be a mandatory
requirement for all CAP
search and rescue ground
team members.
BRS said they would be
willing to do another
seminar this spring, and
Viking is planning to
host it again.
January 2006
North Hennepin Squadron holds cadet change of
command and more at annual awards banquet
by Lt. Col. Dick Johnson
North Hennepin Squadron
North Hennepin Squadron,
located in Crystal, Minn.,
awarded the General Billy
Mitchell award to C/Chief
Master Sgt. Mitchell Arnet
and to C/Chief Master Sgt.
Emily Vinge at the
squadron's annual awards
banquet held at the Golden
Valley VFW Dec. 13.
The Mitchell Award, named
after Brig Gen. Billy
Mitchell, is the first of
major achievement awards
which are granted by the
cadet program of CAP. Lt. Col. Joe Volding, Group 3 commander, reads the
citation for C/Chief Master Sgts. Mitch Arnett and
A change of command cer-
Emily Vinge's Mitchell Awards.
emony was also held where
C/1st Lt. Patrick Vinge the Squadron's Cadet of the ly killed in 2003 in an air-
relinquished command of Year and Capt. Gina craft training accident. The
the unit’s cadet squadron to
Chavez was named the Robillard family honored
C/2d Lt. Mitchell Arnet. Senior of the Year. North Hennepin Squadron
Squadron Commander, Lt. C/Chief Master Sgt. Jason with memorials as a token
Col. Richard Johnson LeBahn was awarded the of their appreciation to
received the Gill Robb first scholarship award CAP for a rescue in Nevada
Wilson Award from Group from the James Robillard of their family by CAP
3 Commander Lt. Col. Joe Scholarship Fund. LeBahn many years ago.
Volding. This award signi- will soon receive his pri- The banquet was attended
fies the completion of the
vate pilot's license. by some 80 people repre-
senior member training pro- senting CAP members and
gram and is named after The scholarship fund is
their guests.
one of the CAP founders. named after Jim Robillard,
a Crystal Airport flight
Emily Vinge was named instructor who was tragical-
Page 2 WingTips January 2006

Commander’s Column: Year passes without safety incidents

by Col. Steve Miller, Some, obviously, have sis items.
wing commander more weight than others. The timeliness of units sub-
Congratulations to all Safety is a major emphasis mitting their reports is an
Minnesota Wing members! item. Growth in member- emphasis item. The Unit of
We went a full year without ship, attendance at the two the Year is earned by the
a safety incident. wing commander's calls unit which receives the
This is excellent! It shows and commanders' workshop most emphasis item points.
that when we all focus on are other major factor in Remember, what we get
safety, it works. The safety the emphasis items.
out of CAP is directly pro-
pledge we read before Participation in the three portional to what we put
meetings, search and rescue missions of CAP (aero-
into CAP. Let's all have a
exercises and other Civil space education, cadet pro- great, SAFE and prosper-
Air Patrol activities is not grams and emergency serv-
Col. Steve Miller ous 2006.
just a bunch of words. It ices) also affects a unit's
performance on the empha- -Semper Vigilans
illustrates the way we do in all of our missions for
business - safely. America. Let's all keep up
the great work.
That pledge helps keep us
focused on doing the right As we begin a new year, I
Changes occuring at wing
thing, by promoting an want to provide you with Two month’s ago in
uncompromising safety an overview of the 2006 WingTips, Col. Steve
environment for ourselves "Commander's Emphasis Miller announced that the
and others and by prevent- Items." The commander's new wing maintenance
ing the loss of, or damage emphasis items are used to facility is now operational.
to, CAP assets entrusted to evaluate which unit Here are some updates:
us. It reminds us to perform receives the Minesota Wing Lt. Col. John Quilling,
all activities in a profes- Unit of the Year award. chief of staff for opera- This means that mail will
sional and safe manner. It tions, and Capt. Nick be processed daily and
Emphasis Items are
further reminds us we are Scherger, wing, are work- entered into the mail data-
assigned a numeric value.
accountable for our actions ing on the fleet. Wing base so units can see if
administratior Kirsty their doucments have
McCracken has moved in
WingTips is a publication of arrived at wing. The wing
to the wing office and has will be cancelling the P.O.
Minnesota Wing Civil Air Patrol,
begun her work. Box that has been in use
U.S. Air Force Auxiliary
6275 Crossman Lane There is a new address for for the past few years.
Inver Grove Heights, MN 55076 wing mail, as well as an If you have items to be
www.mncap.org office phone and fax line. faxed to the wing staff,
wingtips@mncap.org They are: please use 651-552-7007
The views expressed, either written or implied, are not neces- Minnesota Wing, CAP and not the state director's
sarily those of the U.S. Air Force, the Civil Air Patrol or 6275 Crossman Lane fax line.
Minnesota Wing. Submissions should be sent to the above Inver Grove Heights, MN A dedication ceremony for
email address. 55076 the new facility is planned
Wing Commander: Col. Steve Miller Phone 651-291-0462 for April 2006. Details
Wing Public Affairs Officer: Capt. Al Pabon Fax 651-552-7007
Wingtips Editor: Maj. Shannon Bauer will be announced soon.
Page 3 WingTips January 2006

Fort Snelling Squadron hosts military-style dining out

by Lt. Col. Tony Tarpy
Fort Snelling
Fort Snelling Squadron,
located in Minneapolis at
the Air Reserve Station,
conducted a "Dining-Out"
to celebrate the cadet pro-
gram and a year of service
to CAP Dec. 1.
Maj. Gen. Doyle Larson,
president of the E.F.
Rawlings Chapter of the
Air Force Association,
served as the president of Col. Kevin Sliwinski, Minnesota Wing; Capt. Jay Sliwinksi, Fort Snelling Squadron;
the mess. Lt. Col. Doug Kilian, Fort Snelling Squadron; C/Maj. Josh Wadell, C/1st Lt. Cory
Members of the squadron Titus, C/Staff Sgt. Julie Crevier and TFO Jason Suby, all Viking Squadron; and
invited all members of friend Linda Odegard at the Fort Snelling Squadron Dining Out Dec. 1.
Minnesota Wing and sever- and his wife Nancy and Matheson received the ed the squadron's cadet
al dignitaries, including Wing Finance Officer Col. Mitchell Award and was commander, who, in turn,
Wing Commander Col. Kevin Sliwinski and his promoted to C/2d Lt. by appointed C/Sgt. Maxwell
Steve Miller and his wife wife Bobbi. Larson. Meyer as the squadron's
Charlotte, Wing Chief of
C/Chief Master Sgt. Trevor Matheson was also appoint- first sergeant.
Staff Chaplain Don Mikitta

Wing offers training opportunities for seniors this spring

Cadet Programs will be
conducting a Training of
Cadet Leaders Course
Feb. 10 and 11 at
Flemming Field in South
Saint Paul, Minn.
Training Leaders of Cadets,
or TLC, is a curriculum for
adults who implement the
cadet program at the
squadron level. This two-
day course provides senior
members with a strategic
perspective of the cadet
program, leadership skills
for helping youth achieve
their goals and training in
how to manage a successful
program.
This course is a require-
ment for the senior rating in
cadet programs. Senior
members (sorry no cadets)
interested in participating
can register by clicking on
the TLC link at the
Minnesota Wing Website.
Members can get more
information from Capt.
Janelle Gates, the course
director.
A Squadron Leadership
School, or SLS, will be
conducted March 18-19 in
Duluth, Minn. For more
information, contact course
director Capt. Brian
Freseman.
SLS is a requirement for
the senior member
Certificate of Proficiency,
or Senior Member Level II.
The course provides CAP's
adult members with a basic
understanding of CAP oper-
ations at the squadron level
and how those operations
affect CAP's national mis-
sions. Additionally, mem-
bers learn more about CAP
customs, core values and
communications. Case stud-
ies, discussion and group
assignments are integral
facets of the SLS.
A Corporate Learning
Course, or CLC, will be
conducted at Red Wing
Squadron in Red Wing,
Minn., March 17-18. For
more information, contact
course director Lt. Col.
Vicki McGuire.
CLC discusses the relation-
ship the CAP squadron has
with wing. Specifically,
CLC discusses how wing-
level operations help to
accomplish CAP's three
missions. It describes the
working relationships wing
staff officers have with
each other and their
squadron level counterparts.
January 2006
Worthington Squadron recognizes law enforcement officers
Capt. Joe Bradfield
Worthington Squadron
Worthington Composite
Squadron recognized a
Minnesota State Highway
Patrolman and the Jackson
Co. Sheriff and three of his
deputies for their assistance
in the squadron's distress
find near Jackson
Municipal Airport last year,
on Sept. 11, during their
annual Christmas party,
Dec. 19.
The law enforcement offi-
cers, who had been search-
ing for the aircraft for near-
ly two hours, eagerly met
the CAP air and ground
crews that night at the air-
port.
Relieved that the CAP
Senior member & cadet
officer promotions
Lt. Col.
Dennis Yeager, Minnesota Wing
Captain
Terrence Best, Northland
1st Lt.
Steven Sawyer, Southeast Minnesota
2nd Lt.
Susan Blessman, North Hennepin;
Gary Schaedler, Saint Paul;
Kenneth Schauf, 130th;
and Nichulis Zak, 130th.
C/2nd Lt.
Jason Lebahn, North Hennepin;
Andrew Puckett, Hutchinson; and
Kyle Steever, Southeast Minnesota
WingTips Page 4
craft was discovered upside
down in a cornfield east of
the airport. There were no
fatalities or injuries in this
accident.
To recognize the officers
for their assistance in the
find, and out of a sense of
camaraderie between the
agencies, Worthington pre-
sented each officer with a
framed certificate, a
Minnesota CAP mug and a
wing patch. Each office
Jackson Co. Sheriff and deputies receive recognition also received a decal ver-
from Worthington Composite Squadron for their par- sion of the "Find Ribbon."
ticipation on the ground teams that located an aircraft
NOTE: The squadron just
which went down near the Jackson Municipal Airport
recently made another find
last year.
on Dec. 12 near Arco,
search teams had located with the air crew, forming Minn. This is a different
the aircraft even before two separate parties led by incident from the one
landing, the officers joined CAP members to the air- referred to above.
the ground teams, along craft into the field. The air-
Momentous occasions ...
Lt. Col. Warren Rowher and Maj. Barney Harstad, both Worthington
Squadron, retired from the Civil Air Patrol Dec. 19. (Longer story will appear
next issue.)
C/2nd Lt. Mitch Arnet became the cadet commander of North Hennepin
Squadron Dec. 13. He assumed command from C/1st Lt. Patrick Vinge.
C/Capt Patricia Friese, 130th Squadron, was selected to serve as the cadet
commander of this year’s cadet Noncommissioned Officer School.
C/Capt Patrick Vinge, North Hennepin Squadron, was seleced to serve as the
cadet commander of this year’s Basic Cadet Officers Course.
C/Lt. Col. Michah Stanley became the cadet commander of Wothington
Squadron Dec. 21. He assumed command from C/Capt. Ryan Stanley.
Where are they now?
Former C/1st Lt. Kevin Sperling is attending
the aeronautics program at the University of
North Dakota and recently earned his instru-
ment rating. Photo at right.