guard joins war on terror...guard was involved in our nation’s response to sept. 11 within minutes...

Guard joins war on terror

Adjutant general praises Guard’squick, effective response to Sept. 11

By Maj. Gen. James G. BlaneyThe Adjutant General

Like every American, I will neverforget exactly what I was doing themorning of Sept. 11, when our nationwas the target of an unbelievably evilseries of attacks that ended more than4,000 innocent lives, shocked the world,and attempted to destroy our way of lifeforever.

As American Airlines Flight 11smashed into the north tower of theWorld Trade Center, it was 7:45 a.m. inWisconsin and I was at St. Mary’s Hos-pital in Madison, where I was scheduled to have kneesurgery that morning. When a second airliner, thistime United Flight 175, slammed into the WTC’s southtower 21 minutes later it became apparent we werewitnessing an unbelievable act of terrorism rather thana tragic accident.

Although I would rather have personally directedthe Wisconsin Guard’s response to the terrorist attacksover the next two weeks, I knew the Wisconsin Guardhad two outstanding deputy adjutants general, a su-perb staff, experienced commanders — and nearly10,000 of the finest men and women in Wisconsin.

I knew the state’s National Guard was in goodhands so I was not the least bit surprised as I watchedhow professionally and effectively the Guard per-formed in the first uncertain weeks that followedSept. 11.

As I was wheeled into a hospital operating room,

By Tim DonovanAt Ease Staff

The Wisconsin NationalGuard was involved in ournation’s response to Sept. 11within minutes of the World TradeCenter incident that signaled theattack’s beginning.

After taking immediate steps toprevent any harm to WisconsinGuard personnel and facilities, theWisconsin National Guard pre-pared for its inevitable involvementin military operations.

Two military operations wereestablished in response to Sept. 11:Operation NOBLE EAGLE, for home-land defense; and Operation EN-DURING FREEDOM, the war on terror-ism overseas.

As At Ease went to press atthe end of November, the Wiscon-sin National Guard had more than650 members engaged on bothfronts.

A simple gestureof appreciation

Brig. Gen. Al Wilkening was makingthe first of three visits to the Capitol thatday to consult with Gov. McCallum.

The Guard was also taking fast ac-tion to protect our own personnel andfacilities: within minutes of the sec-ond airliner’s impact in lower Man-hattan, all Wisconsin Guard armoriesand air bases were put on Threatcon(Threat Condition) Bravo; when thePentagon was hit a half hour later se-curity was increased to ThreatconCharlie; and by noon we had imple-mented our highest security level ofThreatcon Delta.

And all across Wisconsin, men and women of theNational Guard stood ready to do anything they wereasked to do in response to the terrorist attack onAmerica.

By the time I could return to my duties two weekslater the Wisconsin National Guard was involved: The128th Air Refueling Wing supported military opera-tions both at home and abroad, and the 115th FighterWing was supporting the North American AerospaceDefense Command.

More Guard involvement would follow and morestill may be ahead.

As I think back to the events of Sept. 11, mythoughts fill with the same shock and horror all Ameri-cans experienced that terrible day. But my thoughtsare also filled with pride in the men and women whoserve in the Wisconsin National Guard and who al-ways accomplish every mission that comes their way.

The most visible Guard support could be seen at nine Wisconsin airports, where troopshave supplemented security since Sept. 27. Pictured are members of the 32nd MilitaryPolice Company on duty outside Dane County Regional Airport in Madison.

Members of the 128th Air Refueling Wing push a fuel cellinto a KC-135 Stratotanker while serving at an undisclosedlocation in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Photoby Staff Sgt. Pamela Farlin.

Americans have expressedtheir feelings about the Sept. 11terrorist attacks in many wayssince the firstchilling imagesfilled our TVscreens and ourthoughts on thatsecond Tues-day of Septem-ber.

An entirenation mournedfor the victims, most hoped forswift justice, and many otherslooked for military action againstthe people responsible for the at-tacks.

In Hayward, Wis., at leastone person had another feelingto express.

Arriving at the Hayward ar-

mory one morning after the at-tacks, members of the 724th En-gineer Battalion headquarters

found a smallbouquet offlowers leaningagainst thebuilding.

Attachedto the flowerswas an anony-mous note ofsupport for the

Guard soldiers who drill thereand who represent the U.S.armed forces in this northernWisconsin community.

The note told the Haywardsoldiers that someone was think-ing of them while they serve —and it ended with a simple“Thank you all.”

A small bouquet of flowers, left at the Hayward armory,greeted soldiers of the 724th Engineer Battalion a fewdays following Sept. 11.

This unsigned note was leftat the Hayward armory.

Missions range fromairport security toOperation ‘EnduringFreedom’ support

November 2001

Celebrating 24 years of service tomembers of the Wisconsin Army andAir National Guard and their families

Maj. Gen. Blaney

at 422 airports nationwide.The seven Wisconsin airports

were General Mitchell InternationalAirport in Milwaukee, Dane CountyRegional Airport in Madison, Aus-tin Straubel Airport in Green Bay,Central Wisconsin Airport inMosinee, La Crosse Municipal Air-port, Outagamie County RegionalAirport in Appleton, and WittmanRegional Airport in Oshkosh. The

airport security mission, expectedto last up to six months, is performedunder state control by authority ofTitle 32 U.S. Code.

OCT. 1: Approximately 50 mem-bers of the 128th Security ForcesSquadron, Milwaukee, were or-dered to active duty.

OCT. 4: Approximately 50 mem-bers of the 115th Security ForcesSquadron, Madison, were orderedto active duty.

OCT. 7: U.S.-led air strikesagainst Al Qaeda terrorist campsand military targets of the Talibanregime in Afghanistan began at ap-proximately 11:30 a.m. Central time.

Security at Wisconsin Armyand Air National Guard installa-tions was increased to Force Pro-tection Condition Charlie shortly af-ter air strikes began.

OCT. 8: Aircraft from the 115thFighter Wing, Madison, con-ducted a mission for the NorthAmerican Aerospace DefenseCommand (NORAD) following arequest from the Federal AviationAdministration.

OCT. 13: Members of the 32ndMilitary Police Company who madethe initial response to supplementairport security were relieved bytroops from other Wisconsin Na-tional Guard units.

OCT. 17: Approximately 75 mem-bers of the 128th Air Refueling

“As commander-in-chief of theWisconsin National Guard, I amproud that our state will makean important contribution...”

— Gov. Scott McCallum

Chronology

SEPT. 11: Attack on Americabegan approximately 7:45 a.m.Central time.

The Wisconsin NationalGuard immediately increased levelof security at all Army and AirGuard installations statewide.

See ‘Terrorism’ page 5

Guard leaders consulted with Gov.Scott McCallum on security is-sues in Wisconsin related to thet e r r o r i s tattacks.

S E P T .12: Aircrews andKC-135 air-craft fromthe 128thAir Refueling Wing flew three fed-eral missions from the wing’s baseat Mitchell Field, Milwaukee. The

crews flew as volunteers to sup-port Air Force-tasked homeland de-fense missions.

SEPT. 14:P r e s i d e n tBush signedan executiveorder autho-rizing up to50,000 mem-bers of the

Guard and reserve to be called upunder a partial mobilization.

SEPT. 20: Members of the128th Air Refueling Wing de-ployed to an undisclosed over-seas location to support U.S. mili-tary operations.

Participating members of the128th Air Refueling Wing were onactive duty as volunteers andwere not part of the partial mobi-lization.

SEPT. 27: Members of the 32ndMilitary Police Company, Milwau-kee and Madison, were orderedto supplement airport security op-erations at seven Wisconsin air-ports.

The airport security missionwas directed by Gov. Scott Mc-Callum following PresidentBush’s request to all the nation’sgovernors to place Guard troops

Editorial

[email protected]

: TWENTY YEARS AGO...From the Fall 1981 edition:

The 128th Tactical Control Flight of theWisconsin Air National Guard at Mitchell Fieldin Milwaukee participated in a joint UnitedStates, Great Britain and Canadian trainingexercise, Maple Flag VII. During the month-long exercise, the 128th controlled 1,800sorties. Missions included combat rescueand recovery, low level surveillance andexercise airspace control, plus flying 85,000pounds of equipment for use in the exercise.

Other news from 20 years ago:

The Wisconsin Air National Guard received 18A-10 “tank killer” aircraft to replace the formerOA-37 observation planes. Climbing the ladderis Brig. Gen. David Hoff, commander of the 128thTactical Support Wing at Truax Field in Madison.

�

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Column left...CLICK!Photo by Randy Kostroski

Monroe’s 1158th Transportation Companyspent its annual training in West Germany,working directly with an active Armytransportation company.

“We know about the fog of war. Now we learn about the war of fog.”

— Maureen Dowd, New York Times

“This is the first war of the 21st century.”— U.S. President George W. Bush

“No one can tell where this will end.”— Stephen J. Forsberg, Army Times

In the sobering weeks since the shocking im-ages of death and terror splashed across our TVscreens, we have come to know that the worldis changed.

Everyone agrees we are at war. But whatkind of war? How can it be fought? What arethe rules of engagement? Who is the enemy?How will we know when we have won?

Into the puzzlement rising from the attackson New York and Washington — the pundits havepoured an ocean of comment. A brittle ice ofnormalcy has formed across the pond of our dis-quiet. But we sense that even our leaders arefeeling their way forward — making it up as theygo along.

There is no book for this war.Nor is it a purely military task: Law enforce-

ment, intelligence agencies, the diplomatic com-munity, and America’s financial wizards have allsigned up to fight alongside soldiers, sailors, air-men, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — and be-hind all of them stand the people, more unitednow than we have ever been. Still, the questionhaunts: How can the armed forces operate inthis new, untried environment of asymmetric andunconventional warfare?

Just now — with the world turned upsidedown — is precisely the time when America canplace its trust in the National Guard.

All experience is not obsolete; not every les-son learned since 1636 can be forgotten.

Today’s crisis requires the same readiness tofight and the same willingness to sacrifice thatGuard members have always shown. The prob-lems of prying up terrorist networks will be solvedby enduring habits of patience and resolve thatserved our country at Bennington and atGettysburg; in Papua New Guinea in World WarII, where Wisconsin Guardsmen slogged alongjungle trails towards victory at Buna; and in theskies near Kosovo, where Badger State AirGuard members kept NATO’s planes aloft withtimely refueling.

Warriors of the Wisconsin Army and Air Na-tional Guard are as ready now to be called out“upon a minute’s notice” as were the farmers ofLexington and Concord in 1775.

Above all, the mission is the same: To de-fend freedom from the enemies of freedom.

Calm down, America… your Guard is up.

At Ease staff

If you might be thinking about acareer with the U.S. Air Force — or evenif you just like airplanes and fast-pacedcomputer games — check outwww.airforce.com.

This official Web site is slick, well-designed and, naturally, Air Force blue.

The animated front page, with allthe sophisticated come-ons of atightly-designed magazine cover, alsogives you plenty of utility. A row ofseven buttons links you with a catalogof possible Air Force careers, a site de-voted to the U.S. Air ForceThunderbirds aerial demonstrationteam, a cartoon adventure story fea-turing a futuristic team of zoomiesknown as “Stealth Force,” plus infor-mation on education, health profes-sions and Air Force events, and a sign-up sheet to request information fromyour local recruiter.

Or simply click on the big “ENTER”graphic, and youare whiskedaway, by meansof a cockpit dis-play-styled ani-mation, to the“real” homepage.

Click on oneof three areas —Past, Present, or Future — and you canuse a row of button links to explore vari-ous topics. For example, in the Pastsection, you can play a nifty Air Forcetrivia game or unroll an animatedtimeline of significant events in the his-tory of aviation, among other choices.

The Present section includes a mediagallery and a hangarful of aircraft cur-rently in the inventory, plus other use-ful information on today’s Air Force.The Future section has buttons aboutspace, technology and “tomorrow’s vi-sion.”

Each of the three time-based sec-tions also has a button marked “Flight

Plan.” In thisWeb site,“flight plan” is acode word refer-ring to anindividual’s Airforce career. Inthe Past sec-tion, the flightplans are

thumbnail biographies of Air Force he-roes such as actor/pilot Jimmy Stewartand Maj. Gen. Dick Catledge, founderof the Thunderbirds.

The Present section shows flightplans of several real-life airmen, maleand female, in mid-career. If you click

on “Future” and go to “Flight Plan,”you can get acquainted with recentAir Force recruits, like Susan Powell,shown here explaining why she joinedthe Air Force. You can also click the“Build Your Flight Plan” button, whichopens up a questionnaire to help guideyou in planning a potential Air Forcecareer.

If by now you’re getting bored withall this high-concept, career-orientedstuff, navigate in two clicks to the “AirForce Arcade” button in the “Present”section, and voilà! six breathtakingfighter-jock games to keep your eyes,hands and brain busy for a while.

Navigation is swift and easy atwww.airforce.com. One word of cau-tion, however: If you are accessing thissite from a dial-up connection, some ofthe fancy animations might take awhileto load. On a cable, DSL, or other high-bandwidth connection, wait times areno problem.

Overall, this Web site is a great am-bassador for the U.S. Air Force.

Rated Items

Website content: ��Ease of use: ��

Download speed: ��Interactive features: ��

(scale of 1-5, 5 being highest):

Relevant to Guard: ��Total Rating: ��

At Ease is an official publication authorized under the provi-sions of AR 360-1, and is published quarterly by the Depart-ment of Military Affairs, State of Wisconsin, in cooperationwith Detachment 1 of the 139th Public Affairs Detachment,Wisconsin Army National Guard. It is distributed withoutcharge to the members of the Wisconsin Army and Air Na-tional Guard. All material submitted for publication should beaddressed to: Editor, At Ease, P.O. Box 8111, Madison, WI53708-8111, telephone (608) 242-3055, DSN 724-3055, orby E-Mail to: [email protected]. Opinions expressedherein do not necessarily reflect the views of the WisconsinDepartment of Military Affairs nor those of the Departmentsof the Army and Air Force.

Method of Reproduction — OffsetCirculation — 17,000Maj. Gen. James G. Blaney..................The Adjutant GeneralLt. Col. Tim Donovan.........................State Public Affairs OfficerKelly Pensinger................................Publications EditorLarry Sommers..................................Photo and Copy EditorStaff Sgt. (Ret.) Tom Doherty.........................................HistorianContributing staff writers and photojournalists: Master Sgt. SteveOlson, Maj. Bob Giblin, Capt. Gary Thompson, Lt. Gina MarieWilliams, Staff Sgt. Julie Friedman, Staff Sgt. Tom Michele,Sgt. Keith Fenske, Spc. Lisa Munson, Spc. Adam Bradley, SpcJim Wagner, Spc. Angela Milan, Pvt. Sara Roeske, Mike Callen.

Air Guard Contributors: Maj. Chris Rodel, Master Sgt. LarryRush, Tech. Sgt. Wayne Rodriguez.

147th Aviation deploys to Kuwait

ABOVE: One of four UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the 147th is loadedonto a C-5 Galaxy in July for the journey to Kuwait.

By Steve OlsonAt Ease Staff

Wisconsin National Guard soldiers from1st Battalion, 147th Aviation, switched fromwoodland green to sandy brown BDUs asthey left Wisconsin for a one-year mission inan arid kingdom where temperatures typicallyexceed 115 degrees.

On July 26, the 147th began the first offour rotations, each lasting approximately 90days, as part of Operation Desert Spring inKuwait.

The Madison-based unit has 14 UH-60Black Hawk helicopters and about 250 sol-diers. The battalion also has a company, withseven helicopters, that is part of the IndianaNational Guard.

For the first rotation, from Augustthrough October, the 147th deployed approxi-mately 20 Wisconsin soldiers and three air-craft while the Indiana company providedabout 10 soldiers and one Black Hawk.

The 147th contingent is now part of an

aviation task force that includes a Utah ArmyNational Guard unit, which flies AH-64Apache attack helicopters.

The task force’s mission is to demonstrateU.S. resolve in the Persian Gulf region, deteraggression, and if deterrence fails, defendKuwait, according to Army Guard officials.

Preparation for the deployment startedmore than a year ago and included field train-ing in the Utah desert.

With the Utah training and other realisticmission simulations under their belts, thedeparting 147th soldiers were quietly confi-dent as they awaited their long flight on a C-5 Galaxy transport from Madison’s TruaxField.

“We’re pretty upbeat and anxious to getstarted,” said Sgt. Johnny Simmons of WestBend, who is a 147th crew chief.

Understandably, his enthusiasm was tem-pered by the anticipation of a three-month-long separation from his family. Simmons said,“While I was on active duty, my wife got usedto my being gone from home on deployments.

Tuition stays at 100 percent

At Ease Staff

Gov. Scott McCallum answeredthe question of whether the Wis-consin National Guard’s tuitiongrant program would be kept at 100percent at a standing-room-only billsigning ceremony at the Guardstate headquarters auditorium Nov.29. The answer was “yes.”

Although the tuition program’s100 percent level was included inMcCallum’s budget proposal, theLegislature’s conference committeereduced tuition grants to 85 percent.

A McCallum line-item veto re-stored the grant to 100 percent, butfunding was insufficient to pay forit until Assembly Bill 509 passed 98-0 in the Assembly and by a voicevote in the Senate. McCallum’s sig-nature was the final step in a pro-cess that Guard officials had beenwatching closely all year.

Maj. Gen. James G. Blaney, whoworked closely with the governorand legislators to preserve the tu-ition program, said he was delightedwith the outcome.

“I can’t tell you how happy I amthat Gov. McCallum and our Legis-lature made this important invest-

ment in our Guard members,” Blaneysaid. “The tuition program is criti-cal to our ability to attract and re-tain the best young men and womenin Wisconsin.”

Blaney noted that appropriat-ing $1.5 million needed to fund thetuition grant program from a tightstate budget was especially difficultand was a strong showing of sup-port for the Guard.

“Since September 11, we’vequite rightly seen renewed appre-ciation and gratitude for all thosewho serve in the military and Na-tional Guard,” McCallum said.“That appreciation is reflected in thebills I am proud to sign today.”

Besides the tuition bill, Gov. Mc-Callum signed four additionalGuard-related bills into law:� Assembly Bill 558 designates

military veterans of this current timeperiod as Operation Enduring Free-dom veterans, entitling families ofthese individuals to veterans ben-efits. The bill also entitles Guardmembers to extensions on profes-sional or occupational licenses for90 days following discharge fromactive duty, and allows them to ei-ther withdraw or complete coursework at universities and technicalcolleges without paying additionaltuition and fees.� Assembly Bill 560 eliminates

the interest ordinarily due on pay-ments from income tax returns filedunder an extension by members ofthe armed forces who are participat-ing in Operation Enduring Freedom.

� Assembly Bill 571 providesthe same benefits to National Guardmembers called into service to thestate as those benefits provided byfederal law to individuals called intoactive duty. The benefits includeplacing a 6 percent interest rate capon obligations incurred before en-try into the armed forces and pro-tection from eviction.� Assembly Bill 572 establishes

re-employment rights to those

But this one is the first since our daughterwas born, so it will be different.”

His wife, Jill, remarked, “It won’t be easy,but I’m sure we’ll get through it OK. I justhope the time goes quickly for both of us.”

Gov. Scott McCallum, addressing thedeploying Guard troops, noted the impor-tance of support on the home front: “I want

called into service. Under federallaw, certain re-employment rightsand benefits are provided to indi-viduals who are absent from workbecause of service in the armedforces or National Guard. This billcovers individuals not included inthe federal law.

“On behalf of the state of Wis-consin, let me thank you again foreverything you are doing to pro-tect citizens and preserve our free-

Top Guardbenefit savedby governor,legislature

to acknowledge the important sacrifices thismobilization brings to your families and youremployers. Without strong support from yourfamilies and employers, it simply would notbe possible for the Guard to assume an im-portant worldwide mission like this one.Thank you for standing behind the troopsand supporting them while they serve.”

doms here in Wisconsin andthroughout the United States,” Gov.McCallum said. “This legislationwill help ensure that you are neverpenalized for serving your country.”

McCallum also signed billsdesignating April 9 as “Prisonersof War Remembrance Day,” andadding one representative of theWisconsin chapter of the Para-lyzed Veterans of America to theCouncil on Veterans Programs.

Flanking Gov. McCallum as he signed five National Guard-related bills into law Nov. 29were Maj. Gen. James Blaney, left, and Veterans Affairs Sec. Raymond G. Boland. Severallegislators who sponsored the bills were also present for the ceremony. Shown standingbehind McCallum are Rep. Sheryl Albers, Rep. Terry Musser and Sen. Rod Moen.

RIGHT: Sgt. Johnny Simmons, a 147th crew chief, and his wife, Jill, alongwith their two-year-old daughter, Jordan, get ready to tour a giant C-5transport before the 147th’s departure for Kuwait. Photos by Steve Olson.

Wisconsin veterans can get 6.8percent home mortgage loans

The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) nowhas $24.9 million available for home mortgage loans with an inter-est rate of 6.8 percent, WDVA Secretary Raymond G. Boland said.

In addition to the low interest rate, WDVA home mortgage loansoffer several advantages to Wisconsin veterans, such as no discountpoints, no funding fee, no requirement for private mortgage insur-ance, and a fixed rate of interest for the 30-year term.

“The monthly payments on a WDVA home loan may be sub-stantially lower than a conventional loan. Beside the attractive in-terest rate, there is no requirement for mortgage insurance, which isa significant savings.” Boland said.

The loan must be used to buy or build the veteran’s principalresidence. It may not be used to refinance an existing mortgage.WDVA requires at least a 5 percent down payment.

WDVA home mortgage loans no longer have maximum incomelimits, so higher income veterans may qualify. However, the amountof the WDVA home mortgage loan may not exceed $278,750.

WDVA also offers home improvements loans with a 7.45 per-cent interest rate. Veterans may borrow up to $25,000 with 15 yearsto repay for a variety of alterations, construction and repairs of theirprincipal residence, including garage construction. Veterans nowmay have more than one WDVA home improvement loan if theyhave sufficient equity and can repay multiple loans.

To obtain WDVA home loans, veterans must meet military ser-vice and state residency requirements set by the Wisconsin Legisla-ture.

“WDVA home loans are funded though the sale of general obli-gation bonds,” Boland said. “Unfortunately, the state was set to sellthe bonds for the home loan program on Sept. 11, the day that ter-rorists struck and shut down financial markets in New York. Thestate was not able to set up another sale until Sept. 28. However,WDVA now has the funds required to continue to provide homeloans.”

For more information about WDVA home mortgage and homeimprovement loans, contact a county veterans service office. Moreinformation is also available on the WDVA Web site at http://dva.state.wi.us.

State News Briefs

The state biennial budget, signed recently by Gov. Scott McCal-lum, exempts military retirement pay from state income taxes be-ginning January 2002. This exemption will provide more than $8million in savings to military retirees and surviving spouses in Wis-consin. As a result of the new exemption, veterans and survivingspouses who receive military retirement pensions may decide toend the state tax withholding on their monthly checks beginning in2002.

Those who wish to end the withholding of state taxes from theirretirement pay should contact one of the following agencies:

Retired members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force(active and reserve components): Phone, fax or write no late thanNov. 15, 2001. Include your name, Social Security number, and arequest to stop state withholding effective January 2002.

Defense Finance and Accounting Service-Cleveland/ROCADP.O. Box 99191Cleveland, OH 44199Toll free: 1-800-321-1080 or Fax: 1-800-469-6559

Retirees can choose to end statetax withholding on pensions

By Keith FenskeAt Ease Staff

It was a still, cool, dark earlymorning Aug. 17. Soldiers of 1stBattalion, 632nd Armor, packedtheir equipment and mounted theirM-1IP main battle tanks for thelast time.

The tankers made a nightmovement from their South Postassembly area at Fort McCoy tothe crossing at Highway 21, aonce common event — but thistime would be their last ever.

The decommissioning of thearmor battalion has created mixedreactions from its soldiers, manyof whom are sad to see their tanksgo away.

“You hold your breath, hop-ing it’s not going to happen,” saidSgt. Robert Johnson of Headquar-ters Company. “Now that the de-cision has been made, we have tomove on with our lives and learna new trade.”

The armored vehicles andtheir crews assembled in the can-tonment area to turn in their basicindividual issue equipment and

clean the gun tubes. Then camethe final journey to the vehiclewash racks before the tanks werehanded over to the Guard’s main-tenance facility.

“It’s one thing to carry yourweapon into battle, but as a tanker,your weapon carries you,” saidSpc. Andrew Marvin of CompanyA. “You had a secure environ-ment to operate and fight from.The way a tanker sees things, ifyou are walking, you are in aworld of hurt.”

There is a special sense of prideamong the tankers, many of whomwould travel great distances on drillweekends for the privilege of be-ing a member of an armor unit.

“We have soldiers that woulddrive more than three hours to getto drill,” said Sgt. Bill Frederick,also of Company A. “They did thisbecause they had a unique oppor-tunity — to work with tanks. It’sunlike any other job in the Army.”

“You can never do a job likethis in the civilian world, “ saidMarvin. “I’ve been a tanker formore than nine years and can’tthink of another Army position

that could have been more re-warding. I’m going to miss it.”

It has been known for quitesome time that this day wouldcome — a day when they wouldshed their armor and take on awhole new mission. For theMerrill-based Company A, thetransition will take the unit backto its beginnings.

“Our unit will become TroopE, 105th Cavalry,” said 1st Sgt.Greg Smith, the unit’s top ser-geant. “The Merrill unit wasoriginally a cavalry unit 100 yearsago. Of course, back then, thetroops rode horses. But it is in-teresting how history swings full-circle after 100 years,” he added.

“The switch to cavalry willalso provide many educational

opportunities for our soldiers,”said Smith. “Learning our newmission will keep our soldiers mo-tivated and allow them to functionas the tightly-knit unit that theycurrently are.

“One of the downfalls of be-ing an armor unit was that wespent a lot of travel time to FortMcCoy for our training. As a cav-alry unit, we can do less travelingand more training right at ourhome station. That fact alone willsave us countless hours of valu-able drill time.”

For Frederick, the cavalryand armor missions go hand-in-hand. “We are very lucky to begoing cavalry,” he said. “Cav-alry and armor are like brotherand sister. We’ll be performing

Sgt. Bill Frederick, a tank gunner for Company A, 1st Battalion, 632nd Armor, receivesorders from his tank commander before the unit’s final crossing of Highway 21 onAugust 17th.

By Larry SommersAt Ease Staff

A Wisconsin Army NationalGuard member on security dutyat Austin Straubel InternationalAirport in Green Bay saved a tod-dler from choking on a piece ofcandy.

Sgt. Brent W. Voelker,Bonduel, a member of the Head-quarters Company, 2nd Battalion,127th Infantry, was in conversa-tion with an elderly couple whenTrisha Ellis, Iron Mountain,Mich., called for his help, accord-ing to a statement given to theBrown County Sheriff’s Depart-ment.

Ellis’ daughter Ashlin, ap-proximately two years old, wasstruggling for breath and begin-ning to turn blue. At first her air-way was only partly obstructed,said Voelker, but after trying toget the child to cough up the ob-struction, her airway closed com-pletely.

“I then picked her up,”Voelker reported, “cupped herchin with my left hand and admin-istered four back blows and fourchest thrusts. I then checked in-side the infant’s mouth and sawnothing. I continued this cyclethree more times.

Green Bay airport securityguard saves toddler’s life

“After the fourth cycle, uponobserving the mouth I saw a pieceof candy.” Voelker then dis-lodged the candy with his finger.

The mother, Trisha Ellis,thanked Voelker for saving

Sgt. Brent Voelker patrols Austin Straubel InternationalAirport in Green Bay on security duty. He is credited withsaving the life of a toddler choking on a piece of candy.Photo by Julie Friedman.

632nd fires up M-1s for last timesome high-speed missions withour new unit. We are the oneswho go out and scout the enemy.It will be great to begin our newunit training.”

Although the soldiers ofCompany A have a whole newmission awaiting them, they willnever forget the thrill of beingtankers.

“We all loved our tanks.There is no other weapon like it,”said Smith. “When we move, theearth shakes. Our presence scaresthe heck out of the enemy. In pa-rades, people would point to usand take our pictures. We gener-ated a lot of curiosity and excite-ment because our tanks are suchan awesome and dominatingpiece of weaponry.”

Ashlin’s life.Voelker was awarded the

Wisconsin CommendationMedal by Gov. McCallum Oct.28 at an Armed Forces Salutein Wausau.

Volk Field trains active-duty unit forhumanitarian response assignment

Maj. Bryan SpallaVolk Field

Kosovo was probably beauti-ful once, but does anyone remem-ber when?

All major buildings and facili-ties have structural damage. Elec-trical service, once intermittent, isnow almost nonexistent, and noone can say when it will be re-stored. Ruptured water and sew-age lines have contaminated alldrinking water, and pestilence fromthe unsanitary conditions couldreach biblical proportions. Authori-ties at the airport have abandonedall operations until a full-scale op-erational reassessment can bemade. Residents have fled, somebanding together in the surround-ing countryside and others goingsouth to cross into Macedonia andAlbania. It is a society disruptedby warring factions, murder, theft,and constant minor incidents ofviolence against people and prop-

erty.This real-world situation be-

came the basis for an April deploy-ment of the 22nd Air RefuelingWing, McConnell Air Force Base,Kansas, to Volk Field Combat Readi-ness Training Center (CRTC). TheKansas unit immersed itself in Op-eration Swift Response, a six-dayAir Mobility Command Humanitar-ian Assistance Response Training(HUMRO) exercise.

“This was the first HUMROexercise conducted where the par-ticipants were exposed to the haz-ards and problems that will occurwhen deploying to devastated ar-eas,” said Lt. Col. Terry Meissner,chief of contingency plans andoperations. “We were pleased toassist Air Mobility Command indesigning and executing this exer-cise.”

The unit was introduced toHUMRO in January 2000, when itbecame one of five active-dutyunits tasked to stand by for humani-

tarian assistance missions for a setthree-month period. The unit de-cided to enlist the expertise of theReadiness Safeguard instructorcadre at Volk Field.

Tailoring exercises to closelymimic real deployment situations iswhat cadre members do best. Theyproduced a coordinated, writtenexercise plan designed to task theunit with several real-world sce-narios. The plan included a sitesurvey, advance party arrival, unitdeployment, force bed-down, com-mand and control set-up, establish-ing perimeter defense and internalsecurity, providing just-in-timetraining, and conducting daily op-erations for an undetermined lengthof time.

Members of the wing arrivedat Volk Field ready to perform andwere immediately tested by thetraining plan. Some of the sce-narios in the plan: A local airportofficial arrives and wants to knowwhy the unit is on his field. Anorphanage contacts the deployedcommander with a request for sup-plies for refugees. Numerousdowned trees block any passageon roads, immediately tasking unitcivil engineers. A number of civil-ians are shot at a local village and a

team is sent to provide aid. Para-site exposure causes a minor epi-demic. Vandals break into the com-pound and try to steal a number ofitems. Finance and contracting re-ceive more requests than they havefunds for. Military members exhibitstress-related symptoms. On a tripto purchase goods, a contractor isovertaken and robbed. And the listgoes on.

Training for the 22nd Air Refu-

Engineers prepare to aid Nicaragua in 2002By Bob GiblinAt Ease Staff

While a military buildup towage war against terrorism domi-nates much of the nation’sthoughts, words and deeds, theWisconsin Army National Guard isleading another effort — one fo-cused on peace, friendship andnation-building.

Wisconsin Guard combat en-gineers are spearheading a jointtask force that will build or repairschools and clinics, install waterwells, and provide medical and vet-erinary care, in rural Nicaragua. Theoperation will involve more than 41military units from 20 states and willdraw from both active and reservecomponents of the U.S. Army, AirForce, Navy and Marines, as wellas Nicaraguan military forces.

Joint Task Force Chontales,named for the Nicaraguan depart-ment — or region — where theoperation will take place, has beenin the intensive planning andpreparation stage since January2001. However, the operation ispart of a series of exercises, underthe New Horizons program, thathave been providing humanitarianand civic assistance to Central andSouth America for several years.

“While the people of Nicara-gua benefit from the engineering

projects and medical care, the op-eration provides the military withcritical mobilization, deploymentand joint readiness training,” saysLt. Col. Patrick Gallagher, the Wis-consin Army National Guard com-bat engineer commanding the taskforce.

This exercise is especially chal-lenging, he says, because of thetremendous logistical issues in-volved. The exercise involves ninetwo-week rotations, each with asmany as 650 military personnel. Inaddition, military equipment andsupplies will move by rail from FortMcCoy and other locations to U.S.sea ports for shipping to Nicara-gua. From the receiving port in Nica-ragua, equipment and supplies willbe transported by barges up-river,deep into Nicaragua.

The exercise kicks off in Janu-ary 2002. Early-arriving soldiers willconduct port operations, establisha base camp and begin rebuildingor reinforcing roads leading to theproject sites.

Engineering projects to becompleted between January andMay include:� La Gateada Clinic: Build three

clinics.� El Coral Clinic: Build two clin-

ics.� Los Canales School: Build a

new two-room school.

� Rancho Alegre School: Builda new two-room school adjacent toan existing school.� Los Millones School: Reno-

vate an existing two-room schooland build a new two-room school.� Muhan Clinic: Build a new

clinic adjacent to an existing clinic.� Quinama School: Build a new

two-room school.� Sebaco: Building repairs and

upgrades (three locations).

Many of the projects also willrequire construction or rehabilita-tion of access roads, drilling newwells and building new latrines.

In addition to the engineeringprojects, medical and dental per-sonnel will treat up to 500 patientsper day.

Gallagher says that so far, theexperience has been fast paced,exciting and very interesting. “Ourfull-time staff has been working

An advance team inspects a clinic site at Rancho Alegre, Nicaragua. Wisconsin ArmyNational Guard photo.

Security Forces protect and secure the area surrounding atruck explosion during a HUMRO exercise conducted byVolk Field CRTC. Photo by Master Sgt. Neal Hoffoss.

“Protestors” are taken into custody by Security Forcesduring a HUMRO exercise conducted by Volk Field CRTC.Photo by Master Sgt. Neal Hoffoss.

very hard. This has involved a lotof coordination with our STARCWisconsin staff, FORSCOM(United States Army Forces Com-mand), 1st Army, U.S. Army South,U.S. Army Southern Command, theNational Guard Bureau, the hostnation, and all branches of the ser-vice. It has been a tremendouslearning experience for me person-ally and for all of the members ofthe task force planning staff.”

eling Wing was compressed andintense. The exercise required ex-tensive research and coordinationin the preparation phase and atten-tion to detail in the execution.

“The Volk cadre did an out-standing job presenting us withextremely realistic events that arelikely to happen when we deploy,”said Col. Mark Anderson, com-mander of the 22nd Air RefuelingWing’s Volk Field deployment.

TerrorismContinued from Page 1

Wing, Milwaukee, were ordered toactive duty to continue the unit’ssupport of military operations be-gun on a volunteer status Sept. 20.

OCT. 19: About 30 members of128th Air Refueling Wing, Mil-waukee, returned from a de-ployed location where they hadbeen supporting Operation EN-DURING FREEDOM since Sept. 20.

OCT. 24: Members of the 128thAir Control Squadron began set-ting up a mobile radar site inMcHenry County, Ill.

OCT. 30: The Department ofDefense announced that 73 mem-bers of the 115th Fighter Wing hadbeen called up under the partialmobilization. The wing, which issupporting Operation NOBLE

EAGLE homeland defense opera-tions, already had a significantnumber of its personnel on activeduty as volunteers.

NOV. 8: The Department of De-fense announced that 12 mem-bers of the 829th Engineer Detach-ment, Richland Center, had been

called up under the partial mobili-zation. Unit members were activeduty the same day. They wouldeventually deploy to an undis-closed location in support of Op-eration ENDURING FREEDOM.

NOV. 21: Two Wisconsin air-ports, in Eau Claire andRhinelander, were added by theFAA to receive security from theNational Guard. The Guard pres-ence at nine airports was orderedexpanded by 25 percent throughthe holidays.

229th engineers reshape Wisconsin terrainStory and photos by

Steve OlsonAt Ease staff

Whether it’s halfway aroundthe world or just the other endof the state, if there’s a need todig, haul, grade and level mas-sive amounts of earth, the 229thEngineer Company continuallyproves it can handle the mis-sion.

During this year’s annualtraining in June, the 229th, fromPlatteville and Prairie du Chien,built a runway extension for asmall airport in the JeffersonCounty community of Palmyra.The engineers also constructedthree gravel parking lots and anaccess road in the Kettle Mo-raine State Forest, near Eagle,at the request of the Departmentof Natural Resources.

Despite heavy rains in earlyJune, the engineers did theirbest to plow through the result-ing mud with their dozers, grad-ers, scrapers and dump trucks.

Although the wet weatherdid not hamper their work, it didlead to one particularly long andsleepless night. On the eveningof June 11, a severe storm thatwreaked havoc in Oshkosh andother areas of the state whipped

through the 229th’s field siteand brought the unit to the brinkof evacuation.

“Our severe weather plancalls for everyone to grab theirweapon and immediately get onthe deuce-and-a-halves, so wecan move them to the local highschool,” said 1st Lt. RobertPruitt , commander of thePlatteville detachment and com-pany executive officer.

Fortunately, the storm sub-sided with no damage to thecamp.

“I’ve got to hand it to ourmaintenance section,” said Sgt.1st Class Richard Stelpflug.“They had the trucks ready togo and in place just in case.”

The 229th’s camp — nextto the local graveyard — did notgo unnoticed by the residents ofthe area. The engineers andtheir construction projects werefront-page news in the local pa-pers.

In addition to their construc-tion projects, the engineers gota chance to practice combat ma-neuvers. On June 9, beforemore than 100 spectators, in-cluding soldiers’ family mem-bers, they staged a simulatedassault, with 229th soldiers onthe attack against fellow unit

members in defensive fightingpositions.

Along with the combat ex-ercise, the construction experi-ence gained in this year’s annualtraining projects increased theunit’s proficiency in its mission-essential task list (METL). The229th is part of the Force Sup-port Package (FSP), whichmeans it has to be able to de-ploy anywhere in the world onshort notice. As a result, alltraining opportunities are criti-cally important. “Our missionis to open and construct com-bat roads and trails, so theseprojects are definitely in linewith our METL,” said Pruitt.

Of course, the unit’s projectsalso greatly benefited the localcommunities. Palmyra AirportManager Don Agen said,“These guys are doing a greatjob. We couldn’t have done therunway expansion without theGuard.”

Last year, the 229th builtroads along the border betweenCalifornia and Mexico for theImmigration and NaturalizationService .

Next year, it will participatein a large humanitarian-aidproject in Nicaragua called TaskForce Chontales involvingmany Wisconsin Guard engi-neer units.

So it’s no exaggeration tosay that — in state, out of state,at home or abroad — the ser-vices of the 229th are in demandall around the world.

A bulldozer and scraper from the 229th Engineer Companyof Prairie du Chien and Platteville build a gravel parking lotin the Kettle Moraine State Forest near Eagle.

Spc. Phil Budden of the 229th compacts soil with a “vibe-roller” as part of the KettleMoraine project. Budden lives in Platteville.

Spc. Tony Steinhart positions the laser surveying systemrod during the Kettle Moraine project. Steinhart is a UW-Platteville student and lives in Platteville.

Sgt. Anthony Farmer, left, and Spc. John Schwanbeck repair a telescoping light pole atthe 229th’s field site next to the Palmyra airport. Farmer is a physical education teacherat Dodgeville High School and Schwanbeck is a sheet metal worker from Baraboo.

Guard engineers from the 229th fix a lightpole used toilluminate construction sites.

Q’s and A’s of black beretsAs the U.S. Army transforms

itself to meet the challenges of the21st century, it has adopted theblack beret as official headgear forall soldiers. How does this affectthe soldiers of the Wisconsin ArmyNational Guard?

The At Ease staff, working froma number of sources, pulled to-gether the information most Wis-consin Army Guard members needto know about this prominent uni-form change. Findings are pre-sented below, in question-and-an-swer format.

� � � �

Q: When will the black be-ret become official wear for theWisconsin Army NationalGuard?

A: It already has. The Wis-consin Army National Guardtransitioned to the black beret onSept. 1, 2001, according to an Au-gust 18 memorandum from Brig.Gen. Kerry G. Denson, deputy ad-jutant general for Army.

Q: How should the beret beworn?

A: According to the memo,“The beret is worn so that theheadband (edge binding) isstraight across the forehead, 1inch above the eyebrows. Nohair may be visible on the fore-head beneath the headband.The flash is positioned over theleft eye, and the excess mate-rial is draped over to the rightear, to at least the top of the ear,and no lower than the middle ofthe ear. Personnel will cut off

his Aug. 18 memo.“When soldiers perform activi-

ties where the beret would becomesoiled, damaged, or where it is justnot appropriate, the commander ofthe unit can direct wear of the BDUcap,” said Master Sgt. KittieMessman, Army uniform policyofficer, Office of the Deputy Chiefof Staff for Personnel, according toa July 6 article from the Army NewsService.

Commanders of major com-mands and separate units willestablish local policy for wearof the beret during weekend andannual training periods, and thestate surface maintenance man-ager and director of aviationwill make the same decisionsfor employees in their mainte-nance shops, according to theDenson memo.

The patrol cap will also beworn by “personnel in initialtraining categories who are not is-sued or who do not wear the blackberet.” The same categories ofsoldiers will wear the garrisoncap with the Class A and B uni-forms.

The service or “saucer” capappears to be a thing of the past— except that, as noted in the July6 article, “blue and white servicecaps will still be worn with thedress blues and white uniformsrespectively.”

Q: Anything else to keep inmind?

A: Yes: “Only those person-nel authorized to wear the tan,green, and maroon berets, or those

assigned to Air Assault coded po-sitions, are authorized to wearbloused boots with the class A andB uniforms.” (Denson Aug. 18memo.)

Q: How are WisconsinGuard members adjusting?

the ends of the adjusting ribbonand secure the ribbon knot in-side the edge binding at the backof the beret. When worn prop-erly, the beret is form fitting tothe head; therefore, soldiersmay not wear hairstyles thatcause distortion of the beret.”

“It takes a little bit of formingto make sure the beret is level onthe head,” noted Command Sgt.Maj. John Hauschildt, senior en-listed advisor for the WisconsinArmy National Guard.

Q: How is insignia to beworn on the beret?

A: “Officers and warrant of-ficers wear non-subdued grade in-signia centered on the beret flash,”said the Denson memo, “and chap-lains wear their branch insignia.Enlisted personnel wear their dis-tinctive unit insignia (DUI) cen-tered on the beret flash.”

Q: How should the beret becared for?

A: Berets may be dry-cleanedonly, according to Hauschildt. Itshould not be laundered in a regu-lar washing machine, primarilybecause its wool fabric is subjectto shrinkage.

Q: What other uniformheadgear is prescribed, and onwhat occasions?

A: “The Patrol cap (formerlycalled the BDU cap) is worn withthe BDU in field environments andon deployments when the Kevlarhelmet is not worn; on work details;or when the commander deter-mines that the wear of the beret isimpractical,” Denson directed in

Command Sgt. Major John Hauschildt adjusts Sgt. KeithFenske’s beret. Photo by Tom Michele.

West Bend medevac unitspends AT on ground

ROTC Cadet Bill Kalich of the 832nd Medical Company guards the unit’s tactical operationscenter during annual training at Fort McCoy in June. Kalich is a former active-duty Armymedic with the 10th Mountain Division.

Story and photos by SteveOlson

At Ease Staff

The UH-1 Huey helicopter pi-lots, crew chiefs andflight medics in the832nd MedicalCompany (Air Am-bulance) operated atan unfamiliar alti-tude during annualtraining —namely,ground level.

Typically duringannual training, the832nd, of WestBend, flies air am-bulance missionssupporting thetroops training at Fort McCoy andother locations. This year’s annualtraining, however, was not typical.

Before the unit’s annual train-

Jill Hjelsand

ing period, the Army groundedHuey helicopters with masts thatexceeded 400 flying hours sincenew. Cracks had been detected insome Huey masts, which connect

the transmissionwith the rotorblades. Obtainingnew masts nor-mally would not bea problem. TheArmy, however, isreplacing its agingHueys with UH-60Black Hawks. As aresult, new Hueymasts are hard toobtain from themanufacturer.

The air ambu-lance company had only one Hueymast available during annual train-ing that did not exceed the speci-fied flying hours, according to 1st

Lt. Jill Hjelsand, an 832nd pilot.The 832nd’s one operable

Huey was a workhorse for bothdaytime and night-vision goggleflight training by the aviators. Forthe unit’s maintenance sectiontraining, a grounded Huey wastransported to Fort McCoy,Hjelsand said.

The lack of helicopters did notdeter the 832nd, which seized theopportunity to train its soldiers inan array of field operations in ad-dition to weapons qualificationsand other tasks.

“We’re keeping everyonevery busy, and no one is com-plaining about being bored,”Hjelsand said.

With this year’s annual trainingexperience, the next time the 832ndhelicopter crews soar over FortMcCoy, they’ll know exactlywhat’s down there.

Wisconsin salutes Americanspirit at September ceremony

Members of Wisconsin’s military marched toward theState Capital grounds Sept. 16 for the “Wisconsin Saluteto America’s Spirit” ceremony. Members of the armedforces, fire fighters and police officers were amongthose honored by Gov. McCallum and other stateofficials. Photo by Spc. Carl Hackbarth.

A: “A lot of the WisconsinArmy National Guard soldiers I’vetalked to like the new black berets,”said Hauschildt. “Our soldiers takea lot of pride in wearing the Armyuniform, and they want to lookgood in it.”

Realistic armor battle caps 632nd’s final summerBy Jim Wagner

At Ease Staff

Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 632nd Armor,scrimmaged in an armor-on-armor matchat Fort McCoy during their August annualtraining.

For the first time, the unit was able totrain with anti-tank and artillery units in ajoint training exercise. Tank crews foughtin two consecutive combat missions to testtheir skills on the battlefield.

Rainy weather was a good omen for thetank battles. For the first time since annualtraining began, tank commanders didn’thave to worry about a 100-foot-tall plumeof dust giving away their position. Now,with a good coating of rain packing downthe dust and making visibility easier, at-tacking tankers could focus on stealth tomove forward under concealment.

The scenario pitted advancing armoredaggressors against armor and anti-armorelements defending a location.

“Our objective was to attack the defend-ers’ position and overtake them, then to se-cure the area,” said Sgt. Gene Engebretson,an armor crewman from Company A.

As a steady drizzle came down, smoke-filled artillery shells exploded on either sideof the battlefield to cover the flankingmovements of M-1 tanks.

Attackers were the first to suffer“losses” in the battle: simulated TOW(Tube-launched, Optically-tracked, Wired-guided) missile attacks by anti-tank ele-ments on the south flank of the field tookout maneuvering attackers. But defendercasualties mounted when a simulated ar-tillery shell took out two tank crews whofailed to button down their hatches.

From there, the fierce scrimmage camedown to a battle of inches. After layingdown concealing smoke, the aggressorforces used TOW missiles to destroy anti-armor elements of the defense hidden inthe tall pines on the right side of the field.

This, in turn, allowed the tanks to ad-vance on the south flank, through a seriesof leapfrog movements.

Meanwhile, a strong push up the northflank put the aggressors closer to their ob-jective. The move came at a price, as firstone, then the other, of two M-1IP tanksproviding cover from the center werepicked off by TOW-firing defenders. Theflanking moves, however, allowed the ag-gressors to seize the objective.

The second mission was even better forthe aggressors. Normally, an attackingforce is at the mercy of a better-entrencheddefensive force. A combination of supe-rior firepower and more experience, sol-diers said, was the reason the second mis-

sion went so well.“The first mission went pretty well,

even though we lost half of our people,”Engebretson said.

“That first time around, it came to a lackof communication, as we coordinatedmovements with different elements in thebattle. But that’s what training is for —working out the kinks in operations likethis. In the next battle, we got through with-out losing anyone.”

Capt. Shaun Mistlebauer, Commanderof Company A, says the missions executed

were a rarity for anyone training in theArmy National Guard, and one that soldiersshould relish.

Funding problems and issues of ar-mored mobility have kept the 632nd fromparticipating in a joint arms exercise likethis since the unit first got its M-1s.

“When you take a situation like the onewe had today and put it together, it’s reallyamazing when you pull it off,” saidMistlebauer . “It’s a credit to the soldiersof the Army National Guard that they couldput it together and make it work so well.”

Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 632nd Armor, furl the unit’s colors prior to casingthem during its deactivation ceremony at Fort McCoy Aug. 23. The tankbattalion, a mainstay of the 32nd Infantry Brigade since 1971, was equippedwith M-60A3 and later with M-1 tanks. In the brigade’s reorganization as aseparate light infantry brigade, heavy armor is not needed. A lightreconnaissance unit, Troop E, 105th Cavalry, is being reactivated in Merrilland Antigo, two of the former armored unit’s cities. The other three 632ndArmor cities — Wausau, Mosinee and Marinette — will host the brigadeheadquarters detachment, an artillery headquarters battery detachment,and a company of the 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry, respectively. Photo byJim Wagner.

Heave-ho!

After a series of challenging missions in the field, soldiers of the 1stBattalion, 632nd Armor clean their M-1 tanks for the last time.

On the offensive, an M-1 heads into battle near Fort McCoy’s BadgerDrop Zone.

A parting shot in one of the 1st Battalion, 632nd Armor’s final tank-on-tank scrimmages, an M-1 fires through concealing smoke.

Children of Wisconsin National Guard members take part in a tug-of-war at this year’s Youth Camp, held June 29 through July 1 at FortMcCoy. The camp is for children between the ages of 8 and 17.Other activities included a compass course, rappelling, river crossingvia rope bridge, tie-dyeing, volleyball, swimming, dancing, andconfidence and ropes courses. Children learn teambuilding, respectand discipline and build friendships with fellow campers. WisconsinNational Guard Family Program photo.

By Master Sgt. Larry Rush115th Fighter Wing

Madison’s F-16s are now more accurateand deadly than ever, thanks to a new elec-tronic targeting system, the Litening II.

According to i ts manufacturer,Northrop Grumman Corporation, “TheLitening II combines night and day tar-geting and navigation capabilities in asingle, low-cost, high-performance pod.It enables the F-16 to detect and iden-tify ground targets for extremely accu-rate delivery of both conventional andprecision guided weapons.” (Quotedfrom company Web site.)

Accuracy in bombing a target is oneof the primary aims of a pilot, and pre-cision bombing technology has beenaround for a while. The Israeli Air Forcehas successfully used such systems foryears. Israel’s tight air space and unique

geographical-political issues challengethe skills of their pilots, who are requiredto drop bombs only in hostile areas.Electronic/laser sensor systems placedon their aircraft have helped them to con-centrate munitions on small targets, withminimum risk to innocent lives.

The 115th Fighter Wing began re-ceiving the Litening II system in August.It features a sensor pod placed on theright front side of the F-16. The sensor’sjob is to provide reliable target acquisi-tion and tracking for air-to-ground dayor night strikes. Northrop Grumman ad-vertises the system as easy to install andmaintain, with a good pipeline of manu-facturer support.

“It will definitely help the pilots getbombs to the target,” said 2nd Lt. BartVanRoo, 176th Fighter Squadron pilot,“and this targeting system is less riskyto the pilot and aircraft.”

Tankers go afoot on light infantry courseBy Jim Wagner

At Ease Staff

There are some things you just don’texpect to see together in this world: Refrig-erators in the Arctic, snow in Brazil, rain inthe Sahara desert. But tank crews partici-pating in a light infantry conditioning course?

That’s exactly what tankers from Com-pany D, 1st Battalion, 632nd Armor, did —tackling the many obstacles designed to testthe skill, coordination and determination ofinfantry soldiers training at Fort McCoy.

The tankers approached the course witha healthy dose of good-natured teasing andencouragement. For many, the last obstaclecourse they’d seen was at basic training yearsago.

“I’m too out of shape for this kind ofstuff; the last time I did any of this I was 19,”said Cpl. Mike Altman, a tank gunner inDelta Company and a loss prevention spe-cialist at Shopko in his home town of RiverFalls. “But it’s a good challenge.”

The “Weaver,” an obstacle that calls forsoldiers to wend over and under an inclineof planks, proved especially challenging.Making and repeating such movements, saidAltman, is not high on the tanker’s priority

list. Crews are more concerned about de-veloping arm strength to load the heavy shellsfound in most tanks, he said.

Sending the company to the infantry con-fidence course was intended as a morale-booster and motivator now that the unit nolonger has an armor mission. DeltaCompany’s last days as a tank unit were dur-ing the two-week annual training exercise inAugust. After washing and turning in theirAbrams tanks at the end of annual training,crews were to cross-train into other militaryoccupational specialties.

Sgt. 1st Class Ronald Charneski, aStevens Point native who works at theArmy National Guard OrganizationalMaintenance Shop 13, said activities likethe confidence course, planned for the lastdays of annual training, are a “last hurrah”to say goodbye to the unit they’ve trainedin for years.

“There’s a lot of disheartenment thatthe 632nd is going away,” Charneski said.“Many of us have been together for years.This is something fun for everybody to dotogether, even though we’re going to takeit easy because we’re taking our ArmyPhysical Fitness Test on the last day ofannual training.”

Training the trainers: instructors gear up for DLStory and Photos by

Kelly PensingerAt Ease Staff

Learning field artillery skills ona TV screen? Is this the newestNintendo game? No, this is the lat-est Distance Learning (DL) course,soon to be offered to soldiers in theWisconsin National Guard.

Last July, a handful of Wiscon-sin Military Academy (WMA) in-structors came together for a week-

Master Sgt. Gregory Wendt and Sgt. 1st Class Michael Perldemonstrate push-ups live on camera at the WisconsinMilitary Academy’s Distance Learning classroom.

long “train-the-trainer” session.They had already completed thetraining course to become accred-ited instructors and were now learn-ing to use the DL equipment atWMA. The soldiers learned howto demonstrate skills and proce-dures on camera, as well as con-trolling and reading Powerpointpresentations.

“We have a lot of interactionand everyone is very enthused,”said Randy Williams, a DL instruc-

tor from Fort Sill, Okla. Williamsmonitored the WMA cadre andtested their skills on the last day.

“Distance Learning will savethe Army a lot of money,” saidMaster Sgt. Gregory Wendt, aWMA and member of the 1st Bat-talion, 126th Field Artillery. “Itwon’t work on all classes, butsome.”

WMA will soon begin using theDL technology to teach its field ar-tillery courses.

Sgt. 1st Class William Reins (seated) gets computer assistance from Staff Sgt. JeraldZahn. Both participated in Distance Learning training at the Wisconsin Military Academy.

Pfcs. Craig Manecke, left, and Jason Seubert, tankers with Delta Company,1st Battalion, 632nd Armor in Mosinee, take time out from training exercisesat Fort McCoy to run through the light infantry conditioning course. BothEdgar, Wis., natives, Manecke, a construction worker at ManeckeConstruction, and Seubert, who is a grounds maintenance worker at NorthCentral Health Care, took part in two weeks of training exercises designedto improve their unit’s effectiveness under combat conditions.

The Litening II targeting pod from Northrop Grumman Corporation isinstalled snugly along the belly of a 115th Fighter Wing F-16. WisconsinAir National Guard photo by Randy Kostroski.

Litening II targeting system zeroes inbomb strikes for 115th Fighter Wing

Forplacementonly

Swooping like a hussar of old, a Wisconsin horse soldier at full gallop discharges his pistolon a silhouette target at Fort McCoy.

Two Army mules provide solid transportation for a Signal Corps sergeant and his wood-coffined radio gear.

“Cavalry officers on steaming mounts... appeared... on a dozen roads far from anythingsignificant... muttering over and over, ‘Where the hell are we?’” A troop of mountedinfantrymen patrols a dirt road near a rural gas station, potent symbol of the coming age ofmechanization. Photos courtesy of the Wisconsin National Guard Museum.

Axis threat looms over

Tom Doherty

By Tom DohertyAt Ease Staff Historian

In August 1940, while Britishand German fighters were maneu-vering each otherinto the EnglishChannel and theHome Guard wasdigging in on theEast Anglian penin-sula to await theGerman invasion, aquarter-million Na-tional Guardsmenwere gathered atcamps across theUnited States, wip-ing the sleep fromtheir eyes, waking up to a taste ofmid-20th Century warfare.

In Wisconsin, the first twoweeks of the 2nd Army maneuversserved as a prelude to the Battle ofWisconsin, a massive showdownbetween two armies of 30,000 meneach.

In theory, the Reds — underWisconsin’s Gen. Fish — weremoving out of Iowa to defendagainst the aggressor Blues. TheBlues, in theory, were attackingnorthwest from their staging areanear Milwaukee.

In fact, however, the maneuver-ing was confined to a north-southline destined to shimmy back andforth over much of central Wiscon-sin, including virtually the whole offour counties: Juneau, Wood, Jack-son and Monroe.

A thousand square miles.The decisive factor was rain. A

solid week of rain.

A gathering of eaglesOn Tuesday, August 20, 1940,

passengers aboard the riverboatBlackhawk, headed down the Mis-sissippi to Prairie du Chien, puzzledover the antics of Army Air Corpspilots who peeled their bombers outof formation and swooped downone by one, coming low over the

water and thundering overhead.They took no comfort from the real-ization that their boat had becomean impromptu target.

Planes were gathering from allpoints, heavy B-17s from Californiaand Louisiana,lighter B-18s and C-34s from Washing-ton and New York,nearly two dozen P-36 pursuit planesfrom all over. Forthree days, V-shaped formationscircled over Madi-son as the AirCorps assembled at

the municipal airport.Newspapers treated the airmen

like movie stars. The East High gym-nasium, where they were billeted,took on the glamour of Beverly Hills.The papers detailed their hobbies,hometowns, daily routines, eventhe menus at the cafeteria. It was agreat coup for the Air Corps recruit-ing program, then in hot competi-tion with the Navy and Marines.

The VFW expected to make akilling from its parking concessionat the airport, where 40,000 spec-tators were expected next weekend.

The problem was the rain. It hadstarted about the time the bombersroared over the riverboat, and itcontinued throughout the first fewdays of maneuver and probe alongthe front. It continued throughoutthe night that infantrymen of the128th Regiment were pulled fromthe line and sent on a long loopingtrain ride over the Mississippi andback.

That weekend the VFW menstaffing the parking concession inMadison found themselves virtuallyalone in a vast wet field. A fewflights made it to the battle zoneboth days, but the massed waves ofaircraft that the schedule called fornever materialized. Rain and foghad grounded the Air Corps.

In Rock County, bridges werewashed out. Across the state, veg-etables rotted on the vine. Heavycorn stalks were about to collapsein the soupy ground.

Still, Red and Blue groundforces continued to slug it out,each side seeking an opening fora killer blow.

At the northern tip of the ma-neuver area, the 5th Regular ArmyDivision and elements of the 32ndand 33rd Guard divisions werecoiled for a massive, armor-tippedassault that would slice southeast-ward, severing the Blue’s advanceforces from the main body.

Meanwhile, Blue armor hadfound a weakness in Wisconsinlines, which had been thinned toconcentrate troops in the north. TheBlues hastily prepared a mecha-nized column to break through theRed defenses.

By mid-day Monday, 60,000chilled, exhausted, thoroughlysoaked men, strung out over partsof a half-dozen counties, werepoised for Armageddon — whensuddenly it was all over. Distantcommanders had huddled one lasttime, and the “cease fire” went out.The battle was called on account ofrain.

Post-game critiqueIf, in the grip of a kind of post-

game euphoria, some Guardsmenfelt they had proven themselvesworthy for any bully then struttingthe globe, the 2nd Army command-ing general’s critique of the maneu-

vers set them straight. Lt. Gen. Fordspared no one.

While he praised what he calledthe “high spirits” of men and offic-ers, he criticized commanders forlack of competence, and troops fora refusal to follow.

After detailing specific short-comings of officers, he concludedwith the ominous understatementthat “Some officers were not equalto the demands made upon them.”He then zeroed in on the enlistedmen, claiming that their physicalcondition was poor and their dis-cipline even worse.

In Louisiana, Gen. Brees waseven more blunt in his criticismof the 50,000 Guardsmen there:“You are out of training. Yourphysical condition is poor. Youdrink too much water. You don’teat regularly and you fail to fol-low instructions.” More than 800men had been hospitalized duringthe maneuvers in Louisiana, mostfor heat prostration.

But the most extensive — andmost demanding — criticismswere never released to the pressor the Guardsmen.

After his appointment as Chiefof Staff of the Army in 1939, Gen.George Marshall knew his first ma-jor task would be to manage a sud-den, massive expansion of theArmy. In the spring of 1940 he or-dered Gen. Leslie McNair to orga-nize a new headquarters to assessthe training needs of units slatedfor mobilization and to prepare thestanding Army to deliver that train-ing.

From McNair’s point of view, thenationwide August maneuvers wereimportant primarily as instrumentsfor measuring the strengths andweaknesses of the Guard, and onlysecondarily as training exercises.

As reports from the field arrivedat his desk in the Army War Collegeon the Potomac, he realized just howbig his job would be.

The list of National Guard defi-ciencies compiled by NcNair and hisstaff included:

“1. Obviously deficient trainingof small units and in minor tactics.

“2. Faulty employment of theinfantry division and of its combattactics.

“3. Failure fully to appreciate thepurpose of motor vehicles and ex-ploit their capabilities.

“4. Inadequate reconnaissanceand lack of contact between adja-cent units.

“5. Inadequate support of infan-try by division artillery.

“6. Faulty signal communica-tions….”

The list went on.Clearly the Depression had left

its mark on the Guard as it had onthe Regular Army — the skimpybudgets, the climate of isolationism,the slackness that sets in whenthere is no sense of an urgent mis-sion. Catch-up measures in the late1930s had helped, but not enough.

“A sound, methodicalprogram”

Now McNair was confrontedwith the task of readying under-strength, under-equipped, poorlytrained, inadequately led state mili-tias to take the field against one ormore of the most modern, efficientand thoroughly professional armiesin the world.

He knew that he would be pres-sured to distribute these forces assoon as they were activated. Voiceswithin the War Department andCongress would call for their early

deployment into defensive roles orinto specialized training. McNairtook his stand early and dug in todefend it.

What was needed, he de-clared, was a “sound, methodicalprogram of basic and generaltraining.” The troops must firstmaster fundamentals on the indi-vidual and small unit levels. Thenthey would engage in combinedtraining as “combat teams” — in-fantry, armor and artillery actingin close coordination.

Finally, they would participatein “smooth and coordinated largeunit training.”

In his speech to the officers atCamp McCoy, Gen. Ford had said,“There is nothing too difficult forthe American soldier. There is nosacrifice too great.”

Congress and the Americanpeople were not so sure. In the sum-mer of 1940, Americans wanted tosave Great Britain and to crush theNazis, but they did not want theirsoldiers to do the fighting. Theywanted a shareof the defensecontracts andof the good lifethose contractscould bring totheir home-towns, but they did not want localmen forced into the Army those con-tracts were equipping.

Some doubted the United Stateshad the character to take on the Na-zis. In a Sunday newspaper article,one popular interpreter of psycho-logical theory lamented that theUnites States’ social evolution hadturned American men soft and“feminized.” Have the U.S. men lostthe savage reflexes needed for theirown defense? he asked.

On a more practical level, expertsworried about the technical de-mands of modern warfare. Toachieve mastery over exotic and de-manding machines under the grim-mest and most threatening condi-tion, millions of men would have toknow a lot more than simply how tomarch and shoot. Did the U.S. haveenough time and enough bright,technically savvy young men to

meet the demands of a modern army?But if the public and Congress

were undecided about the properrole for the U.S. in the war, and theability to succeed in whatever rolecast in, President Franklin Rooseveltand the generals never lost sight ofwho the enemy was, what his capa-bilities were and what it would taketo bring him down.

The enemy was Germany. Tobeat Germany the U.S. had to fightGermany’s kind of war on Germany’sterritory. Therefore, that was the warthe U.S. Army would be trained andequipped to fight.

Though no one could haveknown it at the time, all four Guarddivisions training in central Wiscon-sin were destined to fight a very dif-ferent kind of war in a very differentpart of the world.

Worm’s-eye viewThe big picture was lost upon

the young Guardsmen packing upfor the trip home. Many had enlistedwithin the past year after authorized

strength levelshad been raised.This was theirfirst taste ofArmy life out-side of the ar-mory. Their view

of the mock war was fragmentaryand chaotic.

The experiences they were mostlikely to remember seldom had to dowith battles, which, from theirworm’s-eye view, were incompre-hensible anyway. Men ofMarshfield’s Company C, 128th In-fantry, were more likely to rememberthe day a low grade dysenteryswept through their ranks.

While most of their regiment wasfiercely engaged in whipping theMichigan troops at the La CrosseRiver, Company C was held in re-serve and glad of it. They attributedtheir disability to an excess ofchokecherries, which they had themixed fortune to find in abundancearound their camp.

On the brighter side, a week laterthe mayor of their city showed up inperson to deliver 10 gallons of icecream, 50 pounds of cheese and 75

pounds of butter — a gift from thecity, occasioned by the shortage ofdairy foods at the maneuvers.

Like the other Wisconsin troops,the Marshfield men took the short-age personally. The gift was a moralvictory, a slap in the face to thosedistant menu planners who soughtto inflict dry bread and canned milkupon Wisconsin men in their homestate.

Some men would remember com-bat as a series of fraternity pranks.One night during the final battle,men of the 128th from Beloit andnearby towns heaped barracks bagsin a road, took to the woods, thenambushed and captured a columnof Blue reconnaissance vehicleshalted by the roadblock.

The same men later scatteredpaper plates in the path of enemyarmor and vehemently insisted to anearby umpire the plates were in factmines. The tankers insisted theplates were garbage. The rattledumpire ruled in favor of the infan-trymen.

On another occasion, confrontedwith an enemy officer who refused tobe captured, infantrymen kidnappedhim, drove off in his station wagon,deposited him on the road miles awayand drove back to battle.

Throughout the final battle,troops heard reports of two cavalryofficers on steaming mounts who,night after night, appeared in the rainon a dozen roads far from anythingsignificant, huddling over aroadmap with a flashlight and mut-tering over and over, “Where thehell are we?”

There also was that last soldierlounging on a street corner in Spartawho declined the offer of a ride backto camp, telling the driver, “Theydon’t need me, I’m dead.”

At one time or another, all of thedazzled young amateurs became fa-miliar with that peculiar combinationof boredom and anxiety that settlesupon soldiers when they sweataway the hours in ignorance, wait-ing for events to explode upon them.

They felt the exhilaration and ter-ror of the outside man on an ice-skaters’ whip: A general miles awayflicks his wrist, and they go plung-

“Elements of the 32nd and 33rd Guard divisions were coiled for a massive, armor-tipped assault....” Two of the Red ArrowDivision’s new light tanks, at the head of a column of trucks, wait for the mock battle to begin.

war game

ing headlong toward destruction ona muddy road at night. And theygot a feel for the randomness of it allwhen an umpire breezily pronouncedthem wounded by shrapnel or deadfrom machine gun fire.

Strike North, Strike South?All through the last weeks of sum-

mer and into the fall, Guardsmenacross the state bided their time, wait-ing for orders from Washington. Asleaves colored and drifted down, theytried to imagine winter in Louisiana.

Rumor had it they would be head-ing there soon. Meanwhile, the frontpages in Eau Claire and Marshfield,Appleton and Milwaukee continuedto detail the piecemeal destructionof London by Nazi dive bombers,which now were coming at night.

But, on the other side of theworld, history was being made thatnever reached the newspapers. Fordecades, two factions within theJapanese military had each been vy-ing to impress its plan for strategicexpansion upon the other.

That Japan would continue touse its growing military power todominate Asia was a foregone con-clusion. All that remained to be de-cided was the schedule of con-quests. The Strike North group ad-vocated use of conquered Chineseand Manchurian territory as a stag-ing area for war against Russia. TheStrike South group wanted to seizethe Asian colonies of the westerndemocracies.

In September 1940, the emperordecided. On the 19th, he signed theTripartite Pact, allying his nation toGermany and Italy. The pact grantedJapan control of any lands in Asiathat it could take with its own power.

In turn, Germany and Italy wereassured of Japanese pressure on theBritish fleet. Within weeks Japaneseinfantry divisions were swarminginto French Indochina, where theymet token resistance from Vichyforces.

Soon they were deep in therainforests of Thailand, Vietnam andLaos, training intensively for junglewarfare.

The emperor had chosen tostrike south.

“...Americans wanted tosave Great Britain and tocrush the Nazis, but theydidn’t want their soldiers

to do the fighting.”

Story and photos byKeith FenskeAt Ease Staff

All is quiet along a sandstoneridge at Fort McCoy’s Range 7.Several hundred feet away, a groupof soldiers huddles behind an ar-mored personnel carrier. A light rainwashes nearby leaves.

“You may fire when ready,”says a sergeant. The troops peer to-ward the ridgeline, waiting.

“Fire in the hole! Fire in thehole! Fire in the hole!” shouts a sol-dier. Everyone ducks for cover.

A huge flash of light flares fromthe ridge, a thunderous boompierces the silence, and debris andsmoke billow into the air.

“That’s what I call a fireworksdisplay!” cheers a soldier as the dustsettles.

Welcome to the world of the

Army combat engineer.This was business as usual for

members of Company B, 173rd En-gineer Battalion, who detonated 155pounds of high explosives con-structing firebreak at annual train-ing.

“The demolition mission wasrequired to clear large quantities ofsandstone from a portion of the im-pact area’s firebreak so our exca-vating equipment could navigate it,”said Sgt. 1st Class Neil Schauer ofSpencer, Wis. “We used Composi-tion 4 (C-4) explosives to removethe impeding sandstone.”

The firebreak, which surroundsthe north impact area, consists of a60-foot clearing between woodedareas. Most of the work on this fire-break had been done; the engineers’mission during annual training wasto complete it.

A blast area survey was con-

Engineers blast fire break in McCoy woods

A cloud of smoke and debris rises from a ridgeline onRange 7 following the detonation of C-4 high explosivesAug. 15 by engineers of Company B, 173rd EngineerBattalion.

A soldier with the 173rd Engineer Battalion, runs M-13flash tube wire down the hill in preparation for thedemolition.

Story and Photos byLarry Sommers

At Ease Staff

CLOSEUP: A soldier under akevlar helmet, seen through a rain-streaked windshield, jolts sidewaysbehind the steering wheel as hedrives a Heavy Expanded-MobilityTactical Truck (HEMTT).

Welcome to Hollywood East,Fort McCoy, USA: At the washrack, an assistant sprays water over

the HEMTT’s cab to make rain.Spc. Patrick W. Palmer, clinging tothe truck’s side, rocks up and downto impart a lurching motion. Stand-ing on a concrete stanchion in frontof the stationary vehicle, a camera-man, his lens zoomed in tight,shoots through the windshield atStaff Sgt. Darrell W. DeBoer, whopretends to drive the vehicle.

They were videotaping a newArmy-wide training tape:“HEMTT Safety.” TACOM — the

U.S. Army Tank Automotive-arma-ments Command — commissionedthe 20-minute video. RonPapiernik, TACOM’s civilian man-ager in charge of the project, se-lected Kevin Irwin, a veteran Balti-more videographer and producer, toscript, shoot and edit the tape.

Papiernik and Irwin turned tothe 1158th Transportation Com-pany, Wisconsin Army NationalGuard, for professional help inshowing the right way to drive andmaintain the workhorse tacticaltrucks.

“It’s going to help 18-to-20-year-olds, who may have neverdriven anything larger than a pas-senger car,” said DeBoer ofEdgerton, a senior mechanic in theBeloit-based Detachment 1,1158th Transportation Company.“They will see (the HEMTT) ismassive — the truck alone, empty,weighs 40,000 pounds.

“I’ve seen videos like this my-self, but often they are old and out-of-date. TACOM has taken the timeand money to re-shoot this ‘in thenow,’ and new soldiers will see thisis not some old video but is up-to-date.”

Irwin confirmed that thevideo’s main purpose is to showyoung soldiers that the HEMTTis much different from theirfather’s station wagon and must beapproached with a whole differ-ent driving style.

Papiernik and Irwin had pre-

That’s a wrap: 1158th stars in HEMTT video

ducted the day before to determineexact placement of explosivecharges for maximum impact. Theengineers also detonated a small testcharge to help calculate the dam-age an explosion would cause to thesandstone.

The early morning rain didn’tkeep the engineers from nearly threehours of preparation. Soldierswielding pickaxes and shovels dugholes six inches deep and two feetwide and inserted the C-4 charges.The holes were then packed withdirt and covered with sandbags tohelp force the energy of the blastdownward at the rock being re-moved.

Detonation cord linked the C-4charges so they would all blow atone time. One long strand of deto-nation cord was run to a safe dis-tance from the blast area.

“Safety is the number one con-cern out here,” said Spc. Jim Hoade,Chippewa Falls. “We take manyprecautions when handling explo-sives. There is absolutely no roomfor error.”

With everyone a safe distancefrom the blast area, the engineersissued a warning to Range Controland received clearance to proceedwith the mission. After a safetybriefing, it was time to finish the job.

Everyone got into a safe posi-tion and the igniter was pulled. Theexplosion took only one second butaccomplished the desired result.

Although the finale is brief, it isworth all the preparatory effort thatgoes into a demolition mission, ac-cording to Company B soldiers.

“I’ve been doing this for a lotof years and I enjoy the work,”said Staff Sgt. Mike Crawford,Eau Claire. “It’s fun working withthis unit and the great soldiers thatare a part of it. It’s also fun per-forming a real mission like this,versus blowing up dirt on arange.”

“This is what being an engineeris all about” he said.

viously used drivers from the1158th in a TACOM safety videoon the M-1070 Heavy EquipmentTransport (HET), which they shotin May 2000 at Arizona’s YumaProving Grounds. Capt. KevinQuist, battalion training officer forthe unit’s parent organization, the732nd Maintenance Battalion,was the go-between who arrangedfor Wisconsin Guard troops andtrucks to be used. DeBoer andPalmer, who were put on ordersfor one week in October 2001 toshoot the new HEMTT video, hadnot been a part of the previous ef-fort; but after four days of shoot-

ing, the principals were impressedwith their skills and attitude.

“We knew we could count onCapt. Quist,” Papiernik said, “toprovide us with troops that looksharp, are enthusiastic, and knowwhat they’re doing.”

“Younger troops,” explainedPalmer — “if you just give thema manual and turn them loose witha truck, and you say, ‘Read thisbook, follow the book’ —someone’s going to get injured.This will be the visual that showsthem what the book tells them.”

Added DeBoer: “It’s a visualthey can relate to.”

Spc. Patrick W. Palmer, left, a mechanic with the 1158thTransportation Company, uses his body weight to rock thecab of a Heavy Expanded-Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT)with Staff Sgt. Darrell DeBoer at the wheel, as Tom Zoukis,a production assistant for Sharpshooters Video, Inc., ofBaltimore, Md., sprays water to create the effect of rain onthe truck’s windshield. The Army training video, shot at FortMcCoy in October, was on the subject of safety, and featuredmembers of the 1158th because of their professionalismand military appearance.

Videographer Kevin Irwin follows a Heavy Expanded-Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT) as it attempts a slalomcourse of highway cones at the Fort McCoy wash rackduring the videotaping of an Army safety video. The slalomrun at 15 miles per hour was designed to demonstrate thelimits of maneuverability of the massive army truck. TheHEMTT and drivers were provided for the video by the1158th Transportation Company.

Grabbing the sky hook: gusty, dusty and dicey

Chaplain corps keeps packing spirit

Story and photo by Gina WilliamsAt Ease Staff

Sunday morning is a time of comfortfor most people, who have the luxury ofsitting inside a large house of worshipwith padded pews. But for America’swarriors, “church is whenever the chap-lain arrives,” according to Lt. Col.Terrance L. Stratton, Wisconsin StateArea Command chaplain. Faced with ashortage of chaplains for this year’s an-nual training, the soldiers in the field

took advantage of worship serviceswhenever they could.

For soldiers like Spc. Tony D. Fritcher,Appleton, an infantryman with Headquar-ters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Bat-talion, 127th Infantry, prayer services area chance to spend some time coping withcertain stresses of the field.

“I needed an attitude adjustment, andGod always seems to put me in the rightplace,” said Fritcher. Chaplain (Maj.)Kevin J. Hoogland, of Merrill, Wis., ledprayer services for 2nd Battalion, 127th

By Lisa MunsonAt Ease Staff

Standing less than two feet under ahovering, 22,000-pound aircraft: Nor-mally, not recommended. Not somethingthat most people would even consider —except, perhaps, when time is short andthe alternatives may be even more danger-ous.

“When time is a critical aspect of themission, we’re going to opt for the routethat takes five minutes to complete insteadof 40 minutes,” said Staff Sgt. DerekGrowley, a supply sergeant for the 1st Bat-talion, 120th Field Artillery.

The time-saver is sling loading — at-taching thousands of pounds of suppliesor equipment to a hovering helicopter.While the procedure itself takes less thantwo minutes, it also knocks a lot of timeoff the clock and may be, in the long run,the safest transportation option. “Slingloading may prevent me from driving myhefty deuce-and-a-half through enemyterritory,” Growley pointed out.

Growley and two other sling load in-spectors trained soldiers from several bat-talions on sling load procedures and safetyprecautions during annual training at FortMcCoy in August.

The soldiers first learned hand signalsto direct the incoming helicopter to theplace where the load is waiting to be air-lifted. They then learned how to properlyattach the sling load harness around theobject, which could be as heavy as aHumvee.

After the harness is on, a three-soldierteam hooks the load onto the hovering air-craft: One watches for possible safety vio-lations, one hooks the load, and one stead-ies the soldier hooking the load.

“You would be amazed at the windforce coming from the helicopters,” saidStaff Sgt. Christopher Donovan, a slingload inspector. “Without that support,the soldier would be blown all over theplace.”

Safety goggles, face scarves, helmets,and tucked in BDU blouses are standardwind protection for sling loading.

Infantry, and other Wisconsin units.“I’m assigned to the 1st Battalion,

632nd Armor, and this year I’m (also) act-ing 32nd Infantry Brigade Chaplain,” saidHoogland. “Our mission is to provideleadership in moral, ethical and spiritualguidance.”

During annual training exercises, chap-lains have to be available 24 hours a dayfor emergencies that are called in to theBrigade Emergency Operations Center.The emergencies range from death in asoldier’s family to attempted suicides, ac-cidents, or simply problems coping withstress of deployment.

Chaplains also have to be field-expe-dient, moving services to quiet or safe lo-cations in the field as circumstances dic-tate.

“There’s a chaplain’s kit in the truckbut I prefer just a Bible,” Hoogland said.“I like to go ‘light,’ that way I can do aservice anywhere.”

“In my unit we have no chaplain’s as-sistant. Other units have chaplains assis-tants and no chaplains,” Hoogland said.“Some units have no chaplains and nochaplains’ assistants.”

Finding qualified candidates tostrengthen the Chaplains Corps is a chal-lenge.

“There is a shortage of priests in theoutside world,” said Chaplain (Capt.) DanH. Farley, a Roman Catholic priest whoserves four civilian churches and is chap-lain of the 1st Battalion, 120th Field Artil-lery. “We live in a modern, materialisticsociety, where there are too many optionsand people don’t hear the call to minis-try.”

Farley explained that he has one sol-dier training to be a chaplain’s assistant,but there’s not a lot of room for advance-ment. A soldier must move out of thechaplain’s assistant position into another

Maintenance troops from Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 128thInfantry, get ready to hook a water trailer to a UH-60 Black Hawk.

Soldiers of Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry, gatheraround chaplain assistant Staff Sgt. Jeffrey L. Miller (left) and Chaplain(Maj.) Kevin J. Hoogland for a field expedient prayer service.

Two great peoples divided by a common tongue:Brits ‘tub their kits’ while Yanks lug rucksacks

Lisa MunsonAt Ease Staff

“I don’t drink coffee,” saidCapt. Fraser Cuttle. “I prefermy Russian packed tea, thankyou.”

Not your typical AmericanGI: A Brit, in fact.

Cuttle and two other soldiersfrom the United Kingdom trainedwith 2nd Battalion, 127th Infan-try, as part of a soldier exchangeprogram during annual training atFort McCoy in August.

In the exchange program,soldiers from each nation learn

how the other nation trains itstroops.

“I’ve been having a wonder-ful time here,” said Cuttle. “TheWisconsin National Guard reallyknows how to treat their sol-diers.”

Cuttle says the NationalGuard is comparable to the Ter-ritorial Army in Britain.

“The dedication of the sol-diers is on the same level. Wedo physical fitness and eat threesquare meals a day. Also, we‘tub’ it every chance we get,”said Cuttle. “Tub” is BritishArmy slang for moving long

distances on foot while carryingone’s life-belongings on one’sback.

“The rank structure and of-ficer-enlisted relationship isalso very similar,” says Cuttle.“The biggest difference isequipment availability. I askeda soldier here how they wouldsurvive if one of their humveesbroke down. He told me they’djust get another one from fleet.Back in Britain, we’d be tub-bing it back to camp.”

“I don’t know about the wholefleet abundance of vehicles,” saidCuttle. “I prefer to be in control

of my own survival.”Another thing Cuttle had to

adjust to was the handy size ofthe Army-issued rucksack. In theBritish Army, rucksacks, called“kits,” are the size of the Ameri-can duffel bags. On every roadmarch, all soldiers are required tocarry one.

Another difference is thatthere are fewer incentives tojoin the Territorial Army. Wherethe National Guard offers exten-sive college benefits, great re-tirement pensions and numer-ous opportunities to travel, theTerritorial Army can only offer

worldwide travel.“When I heard about all the

money available to these kidsfresh out of high school, Icouldn’t believe it. If Great Brit-ain were to offer such benefits,there would be a waiting list tojoin. It’s absolutely incredible,”said Cuttle.

After his two weeks in Wis-consin, Cuttle headed home.Capt. Michael Hanson, com-mander of Company C, 2nd Bat-talion, 127th Infantry, went homewith Capt. Cuttle to observe Brit-ish Territorial Army training inCheshire, England.

job to be promoted. This causes a va-cancy in the chaplain’s assistant positionand a new soldier has to be recruited andtrained.

When not working for the Guard,Farley does marriage intervention forcouples on the verge of divorce and par-ticipates in various outreach programs.However, wearing a uniform does havea certain impact.

“I very much enjoy interaction withsoldiers,” said Farley. “I wear the sameuniform they do and when you approachthem, there’s a connectedness that opensdoors which otherwise would not be open.They normally wouldn’t talk to a pastor,but when one’s standing right in front ofthem they open right up.”

From a priest’s perspective, Farleynoted there is little difference between ci-vilians and soldiers.

“They all have issues,” said Farley.“The personal issues are all the same andthe biggest challenge is time. There’s notenough time to do the ministry you wantto do.”

Chaplain services are important formaintaining troop morale, according toCpl. Brian Blahnik, Stevens Point.

“It helps to keep the soldiers moti-vated,” said Blahnik. “They may attendservices regularly at home and during an-nual training they may not have the op-portunity to attend and that could impactnegatively. In the military, especially thereserve side, you’re taking civilians, andtaking a lot of freedoms away, and askingthem to make sacrifices. Religious beliefsare the last thing they’re going to sacri-fice.”

“When you have chapel services, it’salways something you look forward to,”Blahnik said. “It’s a kick of motivation.When you don’t have it, it’s just anotherday in the field.”

13th Medical Dental Detachment enjoysserving state residents at free clinics

ABOVE: Spec. Heather Schutt entertains 2-year-old Tiffany Johnson of Suring whilethe toddler’s older sisters get dental sealants.

Amber Carlson, 8, is allsmiles before havingdental sealants applied.

Sgt. Wendy Hawley watches as 8-year-old Donald Perraultof Adams brushes his teeth before getting dental sealantsapplied during GuardCare 2001 in August.

RIGHT: Amber Carlson proudly shows off her new dental sealants to her mother, Ruth.

Story and photos byJulie Friedman

At Ease Staff

The soldiers of the 13th Medi-cal Dental Detachment (MEDD)made friends in two more commu-nities this year while conductingtheir annual GuardCare exercise inGillett and Marinette in northeast-ern Wisconsin.

Since 1995 theexercises haveserved 17 differentcounties. This yeara total of 963 peopletook advantage ofthe clinics heldAug. 13-17 in coop-eration with theOconto Countyand MarinetteCounty health de-partments.

The free clin-ics, which are set upin local schools,provide basichealth screeningservices and health education forresidents who lack insurance cov-erage. Many who do have insur-ance bring their children specificallyfor dental sealants, because manyinsurance carriers do not cover theexpensive preventive treatment.

One parent who really appre-ciated the free sealants was RuthCarlson of Suring, who broughtthree of her four children to theclinic in Gillett. Several years agoher oldest son had his teeth

sealed, and she and her husbandhad to pay the entire cost them-selves.

“When I saw the article in thepaper about this clinic,” she said,“I realized right away what a greatopportunity this would be for myother children.”

Carlson said she was especiallypleased by how friendly the Guard

soldiers wereand how wellher youngestdaughter Amber,age 8, behavedfor them.

“She’s usu-ally not very co-operative, butshe did reallygood here,”Carlson said.

In additionto the dentalsealants, theclinics offeredHead Start examsfor children ages3-6, sports

physicals for school-aged youths,and physical exams for adults in-cluding vision screenings, glau-coma tests, and vaccinations fortetanus and hepatitis B. Smokingcessation counseling was alsoavailable, with free nicotine patchkits provided by the University ofWisconsin Medical School’s Cen-ter for Tobacco Research and In-tervention.

Barb Martin of Oconto came tothe clinic in Gillett and got a com-

plete physical exam, including anelectrocardiogram and a cholesterolscreening.

“I have to admit that I put thisoff for a long time,” she said, “be-cause I’m normally so intimidatedby doctors — but this is such anice group of people. They’re veryprofessional but they make you feelso relaxed.”

For the soldiers of the 13thMEDD, the exercises are goodtraining for actual deployments.The two detachments from Madi-son and Marshfield get to worktogether in a real-life scenariowhere they move to an area, setup a clinic, and start providing ser-vices within 24 hours.

“It’s good for us to work as ateam with the Madison detach-ment,” said Pvt. Jason Manning,a dental technician in theMarshfield detachment. “It’s alsonice to help out the people whoneed it.”

“This is a lot more rewardingthan just going to Fort McCoy,”said Sgt. Wendy Hawley, a dentaltechnician. “You feel a lot of pridebecause you know you’re doingsomething worthwhile.” Hawleyhas participated in four GuardCareexercises in her seven years withthe 13th MEDD.

Spec. Kathryn “Coty”Hutchens is a dental assistant incivilian life who joined the 13thMEDD three years ago. “I just lovethese exercises,” she said. “I waitevery year for this. That’s why Ijoined the Guard.”

Officer Candidate School graduates 32By Gary Thompson

At Ease Staff

“All the way!” shouted 32 of-ficer candidates upon their gradu-ation from the 426th Regiment’sOfficer Candidate School Class 43.

Of the graduates, 21 Wiscon-sin Army National Guard soldiersand one United States Army Re-serve soldier accepted their com-missions as second lieutenants.

Class president 2nd Lt. ScottKulla received the Erickson Tro-phy for distinguished leadershipand academic achievement. TheErickson Trophy is a replica of theSons of Liberty bowl designed byPaul Revere during the Revolution-ary War.

Graduates who postponedcommissions received certificatesof eligibility and will assume theirroles as second lieutenants withintwo years.

From left to right, back row- Tony Steinhoff, Chad Simandl, Thomas Hay, Matthew Cronin, Jeremy O’Leary, MichaelFuchsel, Keith Curran, Courtney Boehme, Alice Holmes, LeaAnn Kavalauskas, Rhonda Klink, Nathaniel Bailey, JasonLeistiko, Henry Blust, Will Myers, Douglas Denson, Andre Cieslicki, Scott Kulla. Front row- Paul Mitchell, Brian Lund,Daniel Albaugh, James Cavanaugh, Mark Bailey, Steven O’Keefe, Jared Shryock, Douglas Kolb, Daniel Pipgras, DonPorschien, Andrew Weiler, Charles Crowley, Paul Gellerup. Missing from photo: Angela Oconnell. Photo courtesy ofDistinctive Images.

Bosses visit AT

By Master Sgt. WayneRodriguez

128th Air Refueling Wing

Security personnel of the128th Air Refueling Wing aretrained to respond to any threatto the wing and its resources. OnWednesday, July 18, that threatcame from thousands of gallonsof water when a water line brokeright under the weapons armory.

When the line broke, waterbegan to come through theconcrete floor of the armory. AsMaster Sgt. Jim Larson, a flightsergeant with the Security ForcesSquadron, was walking past thearmory at around 1:00 p.m., heheard the sound of running water.Opening the door to investigate,he saw the armory floor wasalready covered with 3 to 4 inchesof dirty brown water. Larsonimmediately notified the wing’scivil engineers, who in turnnotified the base fire department.

Master Sgt. Joe Parlato,assistant installation chief,security forces, credited the quickresponse by Security Forcestroops with preventing thousandsof dollars in equipment losses and,most importantly, the loss ofmission capabilities.

“The outstanding combinedefforts of many people andorganizations on base led to aquick solution to the emergency,”Parlato said.

128th security troopsarrest water damage

Master Sgt. Joe Parlato uses a snow shovel to scoop waterout of the 128th Security Forces Squadron armory.Wisconsin Air National Guard photo.

Fighter Wing commanderlogs 6,000 hours aloft

Brig. Gen. Sloan

1157th picks upafter Mother Nature

Story and photo byLarry Sommers

At Ease Staff

Fifty members of the 1157thTransportation Company helpedOshkosh and surrounding commu-nities recover after severe thunder-storms ravaged the area June 11with 90-mph winds, heavy rains,large hail and lightning.

The strong winds felled manytrees and downed power lines,leaving more than 43,000 residentswithout electricity for several days,

about half of them in the city ofOshkosh. Heavy rains also causedlocalized flooding.

The Wisconsin Army Na-tional Guard quickly provided wa-ter trailers to Portage, Winnebagoand Wood counties to providewater to those affected by electri-cal outages.

Gov. Scott McCallum declareda state of emergency and, as piled-up debris began to pose health andsafety hazards, called in the Guardto assist with the cleanup.

Fifty soldiers and 18 trucks

Spcs. Dan Lipinski, left, and Jon Butzlaff, of the 1157th Transportation Company, WisconsinArmy National Guard, use a web strap to tie down tons of brush and timber on an Army 5-ton cargo truck. The two were among 50 members of the unit activated June 15-17, 2001,to clear debris from the streets of Oshkosh after a windstorm ravaged the city.

from the 1157th TransportationCompany, Oshkosh, were called tostate active duty for three days.

Soldiers, working by hand,loaded tons of tree limbs ontotrucks and carted them away to city-approved landfills. Spirits werehigh among Guard members as theyhelped local citizens recover fromthe effects of the storm.

“This is our mission — it’swhat we do,” said Cpl. RobLinberg, New London. “We’rehere and we’re happy to be help-ing out.”

By Master Sgt. Larry Rush115th Fighter Wing

When Brig. Gen. Fred R.Sloan, commander of the 115thFighter Wing, taxiedback to the ramp inhis F-16 FightingFalcon after a train-ing flight July 25, hefound a crowd wait-ing for him.

Wisconsin Na-tional Guard stateheadquarters per-sonnel joined mem-bers of the 115th towelcome the generalback to earth aftercompletion of his 6,000th flyinghour.

Accumulating 6,000 hours offlying time as a pilot getspeople’s attention. Few aviatorsaccumulate that much experienceand training in the air, especiallyin jet fighters, where Sloan haslogged most of his time.

“Although many would lookat this as a personal achieve-ment, I think it speaks more tothe tremendous quality ofpeople who have served, and are

serving today main-taining and flyingour aircraft.” Sloansaid.

“The standardsfor excellence I wastaught early in mycareer by the peoplewho built this orga-nization into what itis today, and thepeople who con-tinue that tradition,make flying for this

unit a privilege.”Sloan is a command pilot.

Since receiving his wings in Au-gust 1972, he has flown the T-33, T-37, T-38, F-102, O-2A, A-37, A-10, and C-131 aircraft, andhe is combat-ready in the F-16C.He has been commander of the115th Fighter Wing since 1989.

Changes...

Sgt. Carl Abendroth, of Battery B, 1st Battalion, 120thField Artillery, briefs civilian employers during anEmployer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR)Boss Lift to Fort McCoy Aug. 18. More than 100employers from across Wisconsin spent a day with thesoldiers to learn first hand what they do during weekenddrills and annual training. Photo by Keith Fenske.

Wisconsin Air National GuardLt. Col. Gunther Neumann is thenew commander of Volk Field Com-bat Readiness Training Center.

Neumann assumed commandat Volk in October, succeeding Col.Jim McMurry. McMurry, who hadcommanded Volk Field since 1994,retired after nearly 30 years of mili-tary service in the U.S. Air Forceand the Air National Guard.

One of the Wisconsin ArmyGuard’s major commands is alsounder new leadership.

Col. David Gapinski took com-mand of the Milwaukee-based 57thField Artillery Brigade in Septem-ber. Gapinski succeeded Col. JamesSchiller, who is now assigned to

the Army Guard’s state headquar-ters in Madison.

The Wisconsin Army Guard’snewest battalion commander is Lt.Col. Paul Russell.

Russell took command of 2ndBattalion, 128th Infantry when itwas established in Madison in Sep-tember as part of the 32nd Brigade’sconversion from mechanized tolight infantry.

Lt. Col. Todd Nehls, com-mander of 2nd Battalion, 127th In-fantry in Appleton, was named tohead Task Force Noble Badger —the Wisconsin Guard’s airport se-curity operation.

Nehls will continue to com-mand the infantry battalion.

Live ammo adds z-z-zing! to trainingBy Jim Wagner

At Ease Staff

Practicing infantry skills inthe back woods of Fort McCoyis one thing, but using live am-munition is another.

Soldiers of Company B, 1stBattalion, 128th Infantry, NewRichmond, found out what live-fire movement is all about dur-ing this summer’s annual trainingAugust 11-25. For many, it wasthe first time they carried theirloaded weapons outside of aqualification range.

It’s more daunting than youmight think.

“Oh, yeah, I was very con-scious of carrying a loadedweapon,” said Spec. MickRaymis.

Raymis, a Turtle Lake nativeand student at the University ofWisconsin-Stout, says a loadedweapon makes a soldier muchmore aware of moving through aheavily-wooded lane, with all itssnags and potholes. All it takesis one misstep for an accidentaldischarge — something thatcould seriously injure, even kill,a fellow soldier.

“Actually, I was more nervousabout the guy behind me,”Raymis said, only half-jokingly.

That added edge of danger,they say, is what made this year’straining at the Fort McCoy rangeseven better than before.

Multiple Integrated Laser En-gagement System (MILES) gear,the laser tag-like gear used forsimulated battles, doesn’t givetroops that added situationalawareness that is a critical part ofany military operation. In fact,the gear could reinforce bad hab-its like not treating the weapon se-riously, something that can en-danger soldiers in the field.

Company B was only the 16thunit to use the live-fire lanes atRange 6, a forested and hillyrange that lends itself well totraining exercises like ambushes,bunker removal and anti-tankmovements.

Starting from a locationroughly a half-mile away, BravoCompany set out to remove abunker manned by an undeter-mined number of enemies, ac-cording to the script. Once con-tact was initiated by the “enemy,”represented in this case by loud-speakers blaring out gunfiresounds, the company broke downinto a support fire group andflanking fire team.

While the support fire teamlaid down a suppressing streamof fire into the bunker areas, theflanking team’s wedge circled tothe right. A quickly-thrownsmoke grenade was the signal tothe support fire team to divert fireaway from the bunker so theflanking team could advance. Atwo-soldier crew from the flank-ing team moved up to the bunkerand lobbed a grenade.

So a bunch of soldiers are justchewing up the landscape and abunker with live rounds, you say.Where’s the training in that, out-side of making people nervousabout carrying their weapon?

The real value of live-firetraining comes with the big-bud-get pop-up targets scatteredthroughout the range. These tar-gets simulate the enemy, whichneed to be taken out by squadsbefore advancing.

There are even moving pop-up targets for added realism, in-cluding a moving tank for anti-armor missions. If you lookclosely at one of the bunkers,you’ll see a pristine target that’snever been hit by round, a glar-

ing challenge to any infantryman.Staff Sgt. Mark Ball, a Bravo

Company squad leader who livesin New Richmond and works atFrontier Communications as atelephone and cable technician,thinks the new lane is a good startbut still needs some work.

“It’s realistic, but a lot morefiltered than what regular lanestraining has been like,” Ball said.“The feedback we give on thislane, though, will be used by therange control guys who I’m surewill make improvements.”

Another feature of the exer-cise, the strict structure of thelanes training, has many infantry-men itching for more original in-put into the script. Using “hot”weapons for lanes training, rangeofficials said, is too new to allowsuch ad lib movements. Officialsexpect that to change as soldiersget more experience.

“We realize we’re spoon feed-ing the mission to the guys,” saidStaff Sgt. Charles Anderson ofCompany C, 2nd Battalion, 128thInfantry. Anderson, a foreman atAmsco in Birchwood and one ofthe observer/controllers in theexercise, said the live fire is a mixof challenging training and ob-serving safety precautions.

“We want to make it challeng-ing but give them a chance to hitthe target,” Anderson said. “Ofcourse, there’s a lot of changesthat will need to be made, butthat’s why the range control folkslet us on the range in the firstplace – to proof it and come upwith suggestions.

“Overall, this range is a fan-tastic idea,” Anderson continued.“(Range control) has obviouslyput a lot of time and finances intomaking this range such a success.Eventually, this will be a beauti-ful lane.”

By Lisa MunsonAt Ease Staff

After almost two weeks of bust-ing their humps in hot, humidweather, all the soldiers participat-ing in annual training had a chanceto have a go at the fun stuff. Any-one who wanted to could rappel offa 55-foot tower and go on an ori-entation flight in a UH-60 BlackHawk or UH-1 Huey helicopter.

‘Fun stuff’ dominates final training day“This is definitely one of the

coolest things I’ve done in theGuard,” said Pfc. Danny Keck ofCompany A, 1st Battalion, 128thInfantry, after his flight. “The ex-perience has been very memo-rable.”

“After working hard, it’s niceto be able to relax and do some-thing fun,” said Spc. AdamSchneider, also of Company A.“It’s a good reward, and I would

tell people interested in the Guardthe benefits such as these.”

“After these soldiers work fortwo weeks straight, they deservesomething for a job well done,”said Chief Warrant Officer 5 PaulGill of 2nd Battalion, 128th Infan-try. “I would say these are thethings that convince their friendsto join the Guard.”

The rappelling and helicopterrides lasted all day so anybody who

wanted to could participate.“We got about 600 soldiers to

get up on these flights,” said Gill.“I’d say about 90 percent of themhave never flown before.”

Company D, 1st Battalion,632nd Armor was in charge ofteaching soldiers how to rappel.After a ten-minute class on how totie a “seat,” soldiers practicedrappelling off a 30-foot building.Then it was on to the 55-footer.

“The most terrifying aspect ofrappelling is that initial step ontothe wall. It feels like you’re throw-ing yourself to your death,” saidPfc. Brian Lambert of Company D.

“Days like these are impor-tant,” said Capt. John Meier, Com-pany D commander, “because itgives soldiers a chance to dosomething like rappelling, whichis fun but also a good soldier skillto know.”

Every step is measured as soldiers from Company B, 1stBattalion, 128th Infantry move through the woods withlive ammunition at Fort McCoy.

The intensity level skyrockets when moving throughinfantry lanes with live ammunition. A Bravo Companysoldier clears a bunker using grenade simulators andlive ammunition.

For many soldiers, loading live rounds into their riflesonly happens at the rifle range. The live-fire trainingprovided Bravo Company a chance to get the feel ofmoving tactically while using real bullets.

Soldiers from Bravo company also acted as an opposing force (OPFOR) for other 1stBattalion, 128th Infantry units.

106th Quarry Team ‘rocks on’Story and photos by Steve Olson

At Ease Staff

If your knowledge of quarry operationsconsists of old cartoons depicting FredFlintstone at work, you’d certainly beamazed by a new engineer unit’s ability toturn big rocks into little ones.

The mission of the 106th EngineerTeam (Quarry) of Ashland is to meet thealmost insatiable demand for gravel byArmy road-building units. And since theArmy does not always build roads in ar-eas where this precious commodity isreadily available from civilian sources,quarry units are needed.

The 106th came into existence in Sep-tember 2000. In June, the unit deployedfor annual training for the first time.

For their initial AT, the engineers set uptheir quarry site in the Chequamegon Na-tional Forest near Iron River, Wis., about half-way between Ashland and Superior. In ex-change for use of the site, the Forest Servicereceived the gravel produced by the 106th.

The centerpiece of the unit’s quarry op-eration is the crusher. Consisting of a pri-mary jaw crusher combined with a second-ary roll crusher, the apparatus producesabout 75 tons of gravel per hour. When it’soperating at maximum capacity, the crushercan produce twice that amount. Althoughwell maintained, the 106th’s crusher wasmanufactured in 1968, so it is much olderthan most of the unit’s members.

Young soldiers in a brand-new unit canpresent some interesting challenges. Butthe enthusiasm of soldiers who are learn-ing new skills is tremendously rewardingfor the leadership, says Staff Sgt. JulieOppelt, a quarry supervisor and the unit’sfull-time training NCO.

“There’s so much to learn because thisis new for almost everyone. But workingwith young soldiers and learning new

things right along with them is certainlythe best part of the job,” says Oppelt,who’s been in the Guard 15 years.

Because he’s the only soldier withample experience operating a crusher, Sgt.Duane Garz, a construction worker fromWashburn, has been a valuable mentor tothe other soldiers. “This crusher is prettymuch the same as the ones I use in my ci-vilian job. So I get asked a lot of ques-tions, which I enjoy. Everyone in the unitis picking things up very fast.”

One of the first, and most important,lessons in crushing rock is avoiding acci-dents and injuries. “We always stresssafety,” Oppelt explains.” We make surethere’s no loose clothing that can getcaught in the crusher. We always wearsafety equipment, including respirators sowe don’t breathe dust, while working onthe machine. One of our biggest safetypoints is to stay alert and aware of whereyou are at all times. There are trucks andother heavy equipment moving around thesite. And because of the noise from thecrusher, you can’t always hear somethingcoming at you. So you have to be awareof what’s going on around you.”

The 106th is striving to expand on thesuccess of its first annual training. Onsome future projects, the quarry team mayoperate jointly with the 829th EngineerCompany of Richland Center, which spe-cializes in carpentry, masonry and otherbuilding trades.

When it tackles future assignments, the106th might have the benefit of even morerock-pulverizing muscle. Next June, theunit is scheduled to get a new crusher ap-proximately three times the size of the cur-rent one.

And with a bigger and better crusher,the old 1968 model will finally be a relicof the past, just like the dinosaurs in FredFlintstone’s quarry.

Pfc. Deanna Hughes, Barnes, Wis., guides a dump truck through the quarrysite while other members of the 106th Quarry Team operate the crusher.

Pfc. Abby Hiser, Park Falls, Wis., operates the generator for the crusher.The 106th Quarry Team’s crusher is the backbone of the operation duringthe unit’s annual training at the Chequamegon National Forest in June.

Off-duty F-16 crew chief pulls driver from blazing carBy Larry Sommers

At Ease Staff

An off-duty Wisconsin Air NationalGuard member was hailedas a hero for reaching intoa burning automobile tosave its elderly driver fromcertain death.

Tech. Sgt. KeithAtkins, an F-16 crew chiefwith the 115th FighterWing, was working in hisgarage in Stoughton, Wis.,on a Sunday afternoon,July 15, when he heard aneighbor shouting, “Getout of there! Get out ofthere!”

Emerging into thestreet, Atkins saw a car onfire, the passenger com-partment almost fully engulfed in flamesand the driver still in his seat.

Without hesitating, Atkins ran to as-sist the driver, whose upper body was al-

Tech. Sgt. Keith Atkins, an F-16 maintenance crew chief with the 115thFighter Wing, pulled a driver out of this car, which was ablaze nearAtkin’s house in Stoughton, Wis. Though Atkins and his wife quickly putout the flames enveloping his body, 88-year-old Claire Vesterdahl diedthe next day at the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison. Photoby Larry Sommers.

ready in flames. Pulling the burning manout by his legs, he dragged him to thegrass nearby, which itself caught fire. Hiswife, Jean Atkins, brought a garden hose

and they sprayed the manand the lawn with water toextinguish the fire.

Medics transported thedriver, 88-year-old ClaireVesterdahl, by helicopterto the University of Wis-consin Hospital in Madi-son, where he died of hisinjuries the next day.

The car was completelygutted by fire before policeand fire personnel arrivedat the scene. “By the timewe got here, he would havebeen dead,” said StoughtonPolice Sgt. Brian Gowan.

Atkins expressed thehope that he would not be confrontedagain with a similar situation. “This wastoo much excitement for a Sunday,” hetold a local news reporter.

Keith Atkins

Story and photos ByAdam BradleyAt Ease Staff

Combat-ready, mission ca-pable and equipped to blast highexplosives miles into the targetedlocation, ground-trembling how-itzers make a great combination.

Although the 1st Battalion,120th Field Artillery is losing itsM-109A5 self-propelled howit-zers, it’s also gaining the moremobile M-102 howitzer to con-tinue the legacy of one ofWisconsin’s proud field artilleryunits.

It takes more than 320 skilledsoldiers to perform the 120th’sjob. The job? Blow up stuff — ajob almost every soldier wouldlove. Even with the battalion’schange to light field artillery, the120th still will fire powerful how-itzers in the same fashion with thesame experienced soldiers.

“You wish you could stay with(the M-109), because we know italready — but we are looking for-ward to the new guns and thechange of pace,” said Spc. AllenRosenow, ammunition team chieffor Battery B.

“It will be a challenge,” saidSpc. Scott Vehrenkam, a cannon-eer from Battery C. “People getattached to their guns, but in theend everyone will like it better.”

Firing long-range weaponstoward a target miles away isn’tas easy as “point and shoot,” re-gardless of which earth-shakinggun is fired.

“There are a lot of things totake into consideration, such aswind, heat, weight and even therotation of the earth,” said StaffSgt. Ed McKenna, fire directioncenter chief from the Headquar-ters and Headquarters Battery. Ittakes a lot of practice.

Throughout the battalion’sfive batteries, there are many dif-ferent jobs that must be com-pleted for a successful mission.Whether it’s the M-109 or M-102, a lot of skill is required. Di-rections for when and where tomove each battery come from theTactical Operations Center. Com-manders also decide whether tobombard the target by coordinat-ing the batteries to fire at the sametime or to pass the mission to in-dividual batteries, said McKenna.

Each battery must then figureout, with help from the fire direc-tion center and forward observ-ers, the exact map coordinates

Artillery unit slims down, still packs mean whallopwhere the rounds should land.

“With an accurate gun loca-tion, target location, observationpoint location, weather data andammunition data, we can put around into a garbage can from anypractical distance,” said Capt.Mark Kukulka, commander ofBattery C.

After a gun fires its shell, ateam of forward observers, whoare hidden but can see the targetarea, record the position of theshell’s impact and its distancefrom the targeted location. By us-ing simple geometry, the batterythen can dial in the correction andpinpoint the target for more shell-ing.

“It’s great being up on the hilllooking over the impact area andbasically controlling the guns,”said Pfc. Jim Goodenough, a for-ward observer for Battery C.

Spc. Steven Koth, fire direc-tion control support specialistwith headquarters battery, whohelps to plot the grid coordinates,said, “It’s a lot of work, but thework’s a lot of fun.”

One of the greatest advan-tages that comes along with the18 new howitzers is the chanceto blow up more stuff, or whatthe 120th calls “training oppor-tunities.” The M-102 howit-zers, which are towed onwheels, require less mainte-nance than a self-propelledhowitzer on tracks, whichequates to more time and moneyfor training. The new guns canbe used for year-round training,said Sgt. Jodi Young, Battery Bhowitzer section chief, whereasthe battalion usually fired itsself-propelled howitzers onlyabout four months out of theyear.

“It will put more guns on thefield,” said Young. “Change isgood, we’re always willing tolearn new things.”

Overall, spirits are still highin the unit. Soldiers agree thethunderous power of these newweapons will continue the thrilland pride of being in the 1stBattalion, 120th Field Artillery.

“It’s a great unit. They takegood care of you, and give yougreat help when needed,” saidPfc. Chou Vang, a medic fromheadquarters battery.

Spc. Kevin Wall, fire direc-tion specialist from Battery B,said, “I love it. It’s a good timeand a great chance to get awayfrom everything.”

Sgt. 1st Class Duane Beyer, left, of Shawano goes over maintenance paperwork withSpc. Chris Walport, Stevens Point.

An M-109 self-propelled 155-mm howitzer fires a round into the impact area at Fort McCoyduring annual training for Battery A, 1st Battalion, 120th Field Artillery.

Cannoneers from Battery A, 1st Battalion, 120th Field Artillery, load an M-109 self-propelled howitzer during annual training at Fort McCoy.

LEFT: Members of BatteryA, 1st Battalion, 120th FieldArtillery place antennasatop their command andcontrol center duringannual training at FortMcCoy in August.

National News Briefs

Tricare for Life bill passed

127th infantry moves out

Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry, secure an LZ(landing zone) at Fort McCoy, as a UH-60 Black Hawkhelicopter descends to pick them up.

A squad of 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry, moves along a street at Fort McCoy duringannual training.

Servicemember’s Group Lifeplan now includes family

The Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance plan will alsocover troops’ spouses and eligible children beginning Nov. 1,2001.

The Veterans’ Opportunities Act of 2001, signed by Presi-dent Bush last spring, allows for up to $100,000 coverage formilitary spouses and $10,000 coverage for each child.

If the service member has SGLI coverage of $100,000 ormore, maximum coverage for the spouse will be automatic, andpremiums will be deducted along with the member’s premiumfrom each month’s pay. If the service member carries less than$100,000 coverage , however, the spouse’s coverage can be nohigher than the member’s, Navy Capt. Chris Kopang explained.

“For instance, if the member only had $50,000 in coverageon himself, he can only get $50,000 for his spouse,” saidKopang, Department of Defense director of compensation.

He added that spouse coverage must be elected in $10,000increments. Premiums will be based on amount of coverageelected and the spouse’s age.

Spouse’s AgeRate per $1,000 Max Monthly PremiumsUnder 35 $.09 $9.0035-44 $.13 $13.0045-49 $.20 $20.0050-54 $.32 $32.0055+ $.55 $55.00

Coverage for children up to age 18, or 23 if a fulltime stu-dent, is free and automatic, so long as the member is partici-pating in SGLI, Kopang said. Eligible Reserve component mem-bers will receive the same family-member coverage with premi-ums being deducted from their drill pay, he said.

Service members will be able to decline or reduce spousalcoverage, but officials are still working out the details. “Optout” procedures and updates will be posted to the SGLI website at www.insurance.va.gov/sglivgli/sglifam.htm.

Kopang cautioned service members to think carefully be-fore opting out. “Members may sometimes feel they don’t needlife insurance for a spouse, especially if the spouse doesn’twork outside the home,” he said. “However, look at the cost ofproviding childcare, a nanny perhaps, or other things that con-tribute to maintaining the home. These are costs service mem-bers don’t always realize they’ll have.”

Eligibility for spouse and children’s coverage would end ifthe member terminates coverage, separates, retires, dies, or ifthe couple divorces. However, spouse coverage will extend120 days past the date eligibility ends.

“That will give the spouse the opportunity to convert theirpolicy to a commercial policy.” Kopang said.

Spouse coverage can be converted to commercial policieswhen the service member separates from the military, but can-not be converted to the Veterans’ Group Life Insurance plan.

Congress recently passed and the President signed a billthat fulfills the promise of lifetime medical care that was madeto all servicemembers upon enlistment. The program is calledTRICARE for Life and became effective Oct. 1, 2001.

A companion program called TRICARE Senior PharmacyProgram (TSSP) covers prescription drugs and was effectiveApril 1, 2001.

There are no enrollment fees or registration procedures foreither; while there are some co-pays and deductions for thepharmacy program, the TRICARE for Life program does notappear to have any additional costs. These programs will beessentially cost free for some people and may cost less thanthe present health care programs for others.

Under the old rules, TRICARE, which replaced CHAMPUSaround 1998, was not available to anyone after they reachedthe age of 65. The Fiscal Year 2001 National Defense Authori-zation Act eliminated that restriction and TRICARE now cov-ers retirees from age 60 to 65 and then becomes secondary toMedicare, Parts A and B for the rest of your life. It pays thedeductibles and additional charges that Medicare does notpay. With TRICARE you do not need a Medicare supplement.

Maj. Gen. James new AirNational Guard director

President George W. Bush has nominated Maj. Gen. DanielJames III to become the 11th director of the Air National Guard.

James, 56, has been the adjutant general of Texas sinceNov. 1995. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be promotedto lieutenant general and would succeed Maj. Gen. Paul WeaverJr. who has been the Air Guard’s director since Jan. 1998.

James is a command pilot with more than 4,000 hours infighter and trainer aircraft. He flew over 300 combat missionsin Vietnam, and he completed two tours of active duty in South-west Asia where he served as a forward air controller and F-4Phantom aircraft commander.

By Jim WagnerAt Ease Staff

It was getting late, and eventsseemed to be getting ahead of thebest efforts of mission plannersfrom 2nd Battalion, 127th Infan-try.

In less than 15 hours, battal-ion troops would be air-insertedinto a simulated combat zone, no-tionally an area somewhere inKuwait.

With seemingly thousands oflast-minute details to address,there was no guarantee of a suc-cessful deployment.

In the stifling environs of thebattalion’s Tactical OperationsCenter (TOC), without even a fanto move the thick August air, thebattalion’s leaders gathered to re-view the details and to make de-cisions that would mean successor failure. At stake were the repu-tation of the Appleton-based bat-talion as a battle-ready unit andthe safety of hundreds of soldiers.

In addition, the soldiers weretraining for the first time as a lightinfantry unit, one battalion of the32nd Infantry Brigade’s new con-figuration as light — no longermechanized — infantry. The con-version is intended to make the32nd more relevant in the lighterArmy of the 21st century.

For members of the 127th, theconversion required giving uptheir M-113 armored personnelcarriers in favor of “leather per-sonnel carriers” — infantry lingofor “boots.” For mission planners,the conversion changed the waythey’ve done business: UH-60Black Hawk helicopters replacedground transport as a means to getsoldiers to the fight.

Conditions this year were theexact opposite of last year’s an-nual training, said 32nd Brigadeofficials, making for a challeng-ing training environment. Lastyear, the battalion was sloggingthrough rain-drenched fields,humvees bogging down in thefields and on the roads. This year,soldiers hoped for even a hint ofrain to cool the stifling heat.

It was so dry that headlightswere needed to see through thethick clouds of dust on the ranges.Engineers felled trees around thenorth impact area, building a fire-break in case of flying sparks fromincoming rounds. Fire fighters

probably could not have reachedthe scene of a forest fire in timeto prevent an outbreak.

Battling the summer heat, thetroops packed their rucks anddonned their helmets, an en-semble that weighs close to 100pounds.

Given the conditions, thechanges and the new mission,questions and concerns flewabout the TOC. The conversa-tions may have sounded like in-tense confusion, but rapid ex-change of information always iscritical in conducting a missionsafely and on time.

Lt. Col. Todd Nehls, the bat-talion commander, addressedhis staff: “It seems that everyyear before we start an exercise,it doesn’t look like (the deploy-ment) is going to work out.

Somehow, we manage to pull itout. I don’t know how it hap-pens, but every time we get thetroops out and the exercise is asuccess.”

As the time for deploymentneared, the sun shone and the tem-perature dropped into the low 70s.Soldiers started arriving at thehelipad for their air-insertion mis-sion.

The airlift, as Nehls predicted,went off without a hitch.

“I was pretty happy with thedeployment,” said Maj. TimLawson, the battalion’s executiveofficer. “We don’t get togetheras a battalion too often. Manytimes, we’ll come as separatecompanies to Fort McCoy totrain. Despite that fact, every-body pulled together well and gotthe job done.”

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