1

Thunderbolt Color

Guard Takes Texas

By Cadet SrA Dane Printz

A Thunderbolt Composite Squadron News Letter SWR-TX-295

www.thunderboltcap.org

Drill as One

Volume 2, Issue 1

Special points of in-

terest:

• Thunderbolt squadron wins Texas Wing Color

Guard Competition!

• Orth Earns Spaatz

• Commander’s Corner

• Coming Events...

Cadet Spotlight 2

Calendar 3

Emergency Services Update

3

Commander’s Corner 4

Inside this issue:

You’ve probably read

about the Cadet Flight

Fest 2012 in the Wings

Over Texas publication,

but that’s OLD news. Get

ready for Flight Fest

2013! There will be every

activity you can think of–

from ground training to

air operations. Cadets

and seniors can choose to

participate in O-rides,

flight marshalling, Aero-

space education, and

GTM3 training. It all

happens at the YMCA

adventure camp, and

what an adventure it will

be! We will bivouac for 3

nights and everyone is

sure to have a great time!

Don’t you dare miss out!

The Thunderbolt Squad-

ron’s Color Guard traveled

to Texas Wing Headquar-

ters, February 15– 17 for

the Texas Color Guard

Competition. The Color

Guard Team is made up of

our commander, MSgt

Alessandro Lione, SMSgt

Joseph Korona, SrA Damon

Printz, TSgt Gabriel

Oliver, and myself. Our

escorts were 1st Lt Dar-

ren Printz and 2d Lt Ed-

ward Korona. We com-

peted in 7 events, includ-

ing, Written Exam, which

covers topics in leadership

and aerospace, (1st Place

Team; Lione and Korona

tied for 2nd place individu-

als), Panel Quiz, aerospace

and current events, (3rd

Place Team), In-Ranks In-

spection (3rd Place), In-

door Practical Drill (1st

Place), Outdoor Standard

Drill (3rd Place), Outdoor

Practical Drill (1st Place),

and the Mile Run (1st

Place). Our Commander,

Lione, was the Out-

standing Cadet for the

event. Due to our lack of

experience we racked up

a lot of penalties but be-

cause of our outstanding

teamwork and military

bearing, we were able to

overcome the odds and

win this competition. The

judges liked our consis-

tency, discipline, and pre-

cision, which is what we

train for every time we

meet for CAP. The

judges gave us useful

feedback and gave us

great pointers to get

even better. Not only did

we learn about drill, we

now understand the prac-

tical aspect of these flag

ceremonies and have a

new reverence for our

United States Flag. We

had a lot of fun and I

encourage anyone to ask

us questions and get in-

volved. What if next year

we had the 1st AND 2nd

place teams?!

Cadet Flight Fest and

Ground Team Extravaganza

2013

March 2013

2

On Sunday, January 20, 2012 Cadet

Colonel Blake Orth received the high-

est award available to CAP cadets, the

General Carl A. Spaatz award from

Mayor Israeloff and the Fairview City

Council Members.

In order to achieve The Spaatz award, a

cadet must successfully complete all

phases of the CAP cadet program, and

pass the General Carl A. Spaatz Award

examination, which includes a compre-

hensive leadership and aerospace edu-

cation examination, an essay and a

physical fitness test.

After receiving the

Spaatz, cadets are

promoted to Cadet

Colonel, which is the

highest grade possible

in the cadet program.

Finally, the Spaatz

award must be pre-

sented by a military or

CAP general officer,

governor, congress-

man, federal judge or

cabinet-level official.

C/Col Orth, from Richardson, Texas,

has been a part of the Thunderbolt

squadron for the past six years. He

completed the Spaatz requirements on

June 28, 2012. He was 17 years-old at

this time.

C/Col Orth is the 1847th cadet to

achieve this milestone since it became

available in 1964. On average only 2

cadets in 1000 receive this award.

When asked what he liked most about

Civil Air Patrol, Orth stated that he

appreciated all aspects of CAP, but

enjoyed the cadet program the most,

especially the leadership, team building

skills and discipline. He also enjoyed

the opportunities for fun activities and

friendships.

When asked if he found it difficult to

earn the Spaatz, Orth said it took a lot

of dedication

and hard work.

According to

Orth, he was

just an ordinary

cadet and every

cadet can

achieve the

Spaatz if they

set their mind to

it.

His suggestion

for other cadets

wanting to earn a

Spaatz is “to set goals and work your

way up to it. Set long- term, mid- term

and short- term goals. Promote quickly

and attend the activities, because being

active and involved will help you stay

motivated.”

Orth had two goals from the time he

joined CAP, to go to an International

Air Cadet Exchange (IACE) event and

to achieve the Spaatz award. (He

achieved his first goal by participating

in the IACE Canada event.) Although

Orth will be leaving to do volunteer

work in Israel, he believes that the

Spaatz is a nice achievement to look

back on. “The Spaatz award taught me

a lot about self discipline and goal set-

ting. Cadets should know that the

Spaatz award is looked upon favorably

by colleges and employers. Cadets can

earn scholarships and grants to univer-

sities.”

So cadets, although challenging, ob-

taining a Spaatz is highly valued, it can

open up a slot for you at the Air force

Academy or bring any number of

scholarships to colleges and universi-

ties. As Orth states, promote regularly,

get involved, set your goals high, and

one day you too could be receiving a

Spaatz ribbon from your favorite con-

gressman, governor, or high level offi-

cial.

During world War II, he was commander of

the Allied air campaign against the Nazis.

Also, the bombing of Hiroshima and Na-

gasaki happened under his command. After

retiring from the Air Force, General Spaatz

became the first chairman of the Civil Air

Patrol National board.

The Spaatz Award is in honor

of Carl “Tooey” Spaatz, who

was the first Chief of Staff of

the United States Air Force.

In 1929, Spaatz and another

pilot set an important flight

endurance record of 150 hours

and 40 minutes.

Cadet Spotlight

Did You Know...

Colonel Orth receiving his award

PAGE 2 A Thunderbolt Composite Squadron News Letter VOLUME 2 , I SSUE 1

General Carl A. Spaatz was the First

Chief of Staff of the United States Air

Force and first Chairman of the CAP

National Board.

By 1st Lt Lori S Bray

Learned from the General Carl A. Spaatz

Award Fact Sheet presented by Civil Air

Patrol Cadet Colonel Jenny Jones

3

Civil Air Patrol's three-pronged mission in-

cludes: 1) Aerospace Education, 2) Emer-

gency Services, and 3) Cadet Programs. The

following excerpt from the

www.gocivilairpatrol.org site summarizes the

Emergency Services portion of this mission.

Emergency Services

Growing from its World War II experi-

ence, the Civil Air Patrol has contin-

ued to save lives and alleviate human

suffering through a myriad of emer-

gency-services and operational mis-

sions.

Search and Rescue

Perhaps best known for its search-

and-rescue efforts, CAP flies more

than 85 percent of all federal inland

search-and-rescue missions directed

by the Air Force Rescue Coordination

Center at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fl.

Outside the continental United States,

CAP supports the Joint Rescue Coordi-

nation Centers in Alaska, Hawaii and

Puerto Rico. Just how effective are

the CAP missions? Nearly 100 people

are saved each year by CAP members.

Disaster Relief

Another important service CAP per-

forms is disaster-relief operations.

CAP provides air and ground transpor-

tation and an extensive communica-

tions network. Volunteer members fly

disaster-relief officials to remote loca-

tions and provide manpower and

leadership to local, state and national

disaster-relief organizations. CAP has

formal agreements with many gov-

ernment and humanitarian relief

agencies including the American Red

Cross, Federal Emergency Manage-

ment Agency, Federal Aviation Ad-

ministration, National Transportation

Safety Board and the U.S. Coast

Guard.

Humanitarian Services

CAP flies humanitarian missions, usu-

ally in support of the Red Cross-

transporting time-sensitive medical

materials including blood and human

tissue, in situations where other

means of transportation are not avail-

able.

Air Force Support

It's hardly surprising that CAP per-

forms several missions in direct sup-

port of the U.S. Air Force. Specifically,

CAP conducts light transport, commu-

nications support, and low-altitude

route surveys. CAP also provides ori-

entation flights for AFROTC cadets.

Joint U.S. Air Force and CAP search-

and-rescue exercises provide realistic

training for missions.

Counterdrug

CAP joined the "war on drugs" in 1986

when, pursuant to congressional au-

thorization, CAP signed an agreement

with the U.S. Air Force and U.S.

Customs Service offering CAP re-

sources to help stem the flow of

drugs into and within the United

States.

Pasted from

<http://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/a

bout/civil_air_patrols_three_primar

y_missions/emergency-services/>

Thunderbolt is gearing up for active partici-

pation in the Emergency Services arena.

Several upcoming events like the Cadet

Flight Fest and Ground Team Extravaganza

will allow members, Cadets and Sr. Mem-

bers alike, the opportunity to advance their

training in select Emergency Services Op-

erations Qualifications such as Ground

Team Member and Urban Direction Find-

ing. These opportunities will continue to

emerge for our members over the coming

weeks and months. If you are interested in

Emergency Services and/or advancing in a

specific ES qualification, please contact

Dwight Bridges or Chad Bray for more in-

formation.

Emergency Services

PAGE 3 A Thunderbolt Composite Squadron News Letter VOLUME 2 , I SSUE 1

March 2013

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2

3Thunderbolt Squadron open

house

4 Registration Texas

Wing Conference-

31st

5 6 7 8Flight Fest and GT Extravaganza

2013– 11th

9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16Texas Wing

Headquarters Open

House

17 18 19 20 21 22Regional Color Guard Competi-

tion

23Regional Color Guard Competition

24 25 26 27 28 29 CTEP/TLC

Spring-31st 30

By 1st Lt Dwight L Bridges

4

The F-35 Lightning is one of our newest multirole fighters un-der development. It is designed to perform ground attack, reconnaissance, and air de-fense missions with stealth capabilities. There are 3 variations: The F-35A has conventional take-off and landing, the F-35B has short take-off and vertical-landing, and the F-35C is carrier based. If you get a chance, watch the videos on f35.com and see its awesomeness.

Speed 1199mph

Range 1379 miles

Lt Colonel Chad Bray, Thunderbolt Commander

Just when I thought I could no longer be surprised by the cadets in this unit, they pull off something amazing! To win the Texas Wing Color Guard Competition in the first year is truly amazing! The competition had several tough and seasoned competitors. As we stand victoriously, we must remember our Color Guard unit(s) will be represent-ing Texas Wing. Part of that responsibility is to open up the new Wing’s Headquarters, open and close the Wing’s Annual Conference, and to compete in the Southwest Re-gional Color Guard Competition. It is important to under-stand that not only will our color guard be looked at as representing Texas Wing, we, as a unit will be looked at as representatives, as well. So look your best, behave your best, and be proud of our accomplishments.

It is with great pride that I can now announce the promotions of two of our senior members. Sam Lal and Charlie Moore have been promoted to Captain. Not only have they been promoted, they have completed their Mis-sion Scanner (MS) certification, as well. Both are now working on a Mission Pilot (MP) rating. At the completion of their MP, we will be able to staff three mission aircrews and join in the ES call rotation. So, for the senior mem-bers, it is important to complete your MS and Mission Ob-server (MO) qualifications to staff these crews.

As it’s important to support the air search and rescue, we must also support ground search, as well. This can involve both seniors and cadets. With that said, it’s my great pleasure to announce 1Lt Ginny Aguilar has com-pleted her Ground Team Leader (GTL) certification. This now allows us to participate in ground crew operations, in addition to Urban Direction Finding activities. We also have a few more GTL trainees close to certification. Soon we should be able to field three teams, as well.

This is turning out to be an exciting year and we are not even through the first quarter. We have even more exciting things coming up. Do not forget the Thun-derbolt Cadet Flight Fest and Ground Team Extravaganza, and April’s Wing Conference in Houston. Both are going to have a lot of fun events. I’ll be looking forward to seeing you there!

Cadets and Senior Members:

If you would like to contribute to future issues of Thunderbolt Squadron’s awe-

some newsletter, please do not hesitate

to contact senior member Detje Printz at

ddddprintz@sbcglobal.net

Coming soon…

April 10-14 Texas Wing Conference

April 26-28 Mountain Flying Clinic

June 8-15 Powered Flight Academy

June 16-23 LESA

June 25-July 3 Texas Summer Encampment

PAGE 4 A Thunderbolt Composite Squadron News Letter VOLUME 2 , I SSUE 1