A gathering of key stories and photos that capture some of the action at the U.S. Army's manufacturing center at Watervliet, N.Y., for the month of August 2017. This is a low resolution edition and so, if you wish a higher resolution copy please send a note to: usarmy.watervliet.tacom.list.wvapublicaffairs@mail.mil

1. SALVO
U.S. Army Watervliet Arsenal - Since 1813
August 2017
Story on Page 3Story on Page 3
We made it right the first time
Now ... we will make it better
Delivering Future Readiness

2. Page 2 Salvo August 31, 2017
The Arsenal Salvo is an authorized monthly publication for members
of the Department of Defense. Contents of the Salvo are not necessar-
ily the official views of, or an endorsement by the U.S. Government, the
Department of Defense, the Department of the Army, or the Watervliet
Arsenal.
News may be submitted for publication by sending articles to Public
Affairs Officer, 1 Buffington Street, Bldg. 10, Watervliet, NY 12189, or
stop by office #102, Bldg. 10, Watervliet Arsenal. The editor may also
be reached at (518) 266-5055 or by e-mail: john.b.snyder.civ@mail.mil.
The editor reserves the right to edit all information submitted for pub-
lication.
Commander, Col. Joseph R. Morrow
Public Affairs Officer, John B. Snyder
Editor, John B. Snyder
Photographer: John B. Snyder
Arsenal Facebook Page @
https://www.facebook.com/WatervlietArsenal?ref=hl
Cover Photo: USMC photo of M777A2 being airlifted
in Afghanistan.
Colonel Joseph R. Morrow
Commander’s Corner
A former Arsenal commander said right after he took
command in 2010 that the Arsenal workforce is too good to
be ignored. I have often thought about that statement and
have tried to put it into today’s context to get a better un-
derstanding as to why after 197 years of continuous opera-
tion would a commander make such a statement.
Although it has been seven years since that statement
was made, we must look back to that time period to under-
stand the comment’s genesis and to assess as to whether or
not we have made improvements in not being ignored on
the national and international stages.
When Col. Mark Migaleddi made the statement it was
in the midst of the United States ending its major combat
operations in Iraq. At about the same time, Congress was
leading a groundswell of discussion about how best to re-
direct defense dollars to domestic priorities. After all, with
brigade combat teams coming home, the funding that was
required to sustain those brigades overseas was no longer
needed in the defense budget, or so, some thought.
This Congressional effort eventually became the Budget
Control Act of 2011, to what many here know as Sequestra-
tion. For those of you who have been here more than 25
years, you may recall that this type of discussion occurred
right after the First Gulf War when many elected officials
wanted to invest a “Peace Dividend” back toward domestic
requirements. That Peace Dividend translated into about
eight reductions in force conducted here over a nine-year
period.
And so, it may just be that Col. Migaleddi well under-
stood the Arsenal’s history and he was concerned that his-
tory might repeat itself — in regards to the consequences of
a declining defense budget — unless we changed the way
we engaged those outside of our fence line.
During the seven years after Col. Migaleddi took com-
mand, we did experience a significant decline in workload
and with a decline in workload came a decline in the num-
bers of employees here.
But your efforts not to be ignored have paid off. Al-
though we are still operating in an uncertain defense budget
environment, new contracts, in significant numbers, are
flowing in for us to support U.S. and allied armies.
With one month to go before the end of the fiscal year,
we have already locked in more than $100 million in new
contracts over last year’s amount. Additionally, in those
new orders are nearly $60 million in new foreign military
sales contracts, as compared to only $1.7 million in FMS
contracts last year.
Whether inspired by Col. Migaleddi’s statement or
through the patience, determination, and professionalism
that the Arsenal workforce has shown for more than 200
years, we haven’t been ignored nor will we be in the near
future.
Nevertheless, although these are different times, we
cannot lose momentum now. From machinist to contract
specialist, each of you has some impact on the long-term
viability of the Arsenal. Please understand that what you
do today, will affect the future generations of workers here.
I agree with Col. Migaleddi, you are too good to be ignored
and so, we should never allow that to happen ever again.

3. Page 3 Salvo August 31, 2017
Story continues on page 4, “Readiness”
By John B. Snyder
Airborne Artillerymen assigned to 3rd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division Artillery conduct live fire
missions as the sun was rising over Sicily Drop Zone, on Fort Bragg, N.C. Feb. 8, 2016, after their M777A2 155mm towed howitzer was air
dropped in the dark of night from a C-17 aircraft . (Capt. Joe Bush, 82nd Airborne Division Artillery/ Released.)
Watervliet receives
$28M to leverage
new process that
will enhance
Soldier, Marine
readiness
The Watervliet Arsenal’s efforts to leverage a newly
tested manufacturing process that will improve Soldier
and Marine readiness has led to the award of two con-
tracts valued in excess of $28 million.
The Army contract, which is valued at nearly $15
million, requires the Arsenal to manufacture more than
100 M776 Full-Bore Chrome Tubes for the lightweight
155mm towed-howitzer system, the M777A2. The Ma-
rine contract, which is valued at more than $13 million,
is very similar to the Army order in that the Arsenal will
manufacture more than 100 M776 Full-Bore Chrome
Tubes for the same howitzer system.
Given the long lead time to procure raw stock mate-
riel, the Arsenal will begin delivery of the chrome tubes
for the Army and the Marine Corps in 2019 and will
complete both orders by 2020.
These barrels will greatly improve Soldier and Marine
readiness as the chrome plating may provide a nearly 50
percent increase in the life of the howitzer tubes, while
making it easier for artillery troops to perform mainte-
nance. The M777 155mm howitzer is a relatively new
weapon system having only gone into full-rate produc-
tion in 2005 at the Arsenal. The currently fielded howit-
zer system’s steel barrel does not have a chrome bore.
“This is great news for the Arsenal in that these multi-
million-dollar orders will require more than 51,000 hours
of direct labor and thousands of more hours of indirect la-
bor,” said Tom Pond, the Arsenal’s director of operations.
“Given the many years of reduced defense budgets due to
sequestration, these contracts are the type of orders that
we have been waiting for given that they will exercise

4. Page 4 Salvo August 31, 2017
Readiness Cont.
Sgt. Brendan Marrocco's (retired)
brother, Mike Marrocco, fires
155mm howitzer rounds from an
M777 with Task Force Blackjack,
Bravo battery, 4-25 FA on Forward
Operating Base Shank, Afghani-
stan. The gentlemen are part of
Feherty's Troops First Foundations'
Operation Proper Exit. Operation
Proper Exit is for troops that have
been injured in battle and provides
them the opportunity to make a
"proper exit" on their own terms.
(Photo by Staff Sgt. Nelia Chappell)
most of the Arsenal’s critical manufacturing skills, while
providing our manufacturing center consistent workload
for many years.”
George Roach, the product manager for these orders,
said the significance of these orders far exceeds that of
simply providing thousands of hours of direct labor. The
orders also represent an approval by the Defense Depart-
ment to adopt a relatively new manufacturing process for
the 155mm towed system that was developed here by Ar-
senal manufacturing experts and by research and design
experts from the Army’s Benét Laboratories.
“Although chrome plating on weapon systems is not
new, what is new is that full-bore chrome barrels for the
M777 gun only began testing in 2013,” Roach said. “To
date, we have only manufactured 15 full-bore chrome
barrels and with these orders, we will now be able to go
from prototype development and limited production into
full-rate production.”
The Marines began testing the chrome tubes in 2016
at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twenty-
nine Palms, California, and the results were stunning.
According to a May 2016 press report by Lance Cpl.
Levi Schultz, 11th
Marine Regiment, Marine artillerymen
found the chrome tubes easier to clean than steel tubes
because the chrome lining tended to shed off residue a
lot easier. And, that Marines could fire thousands and
thousands of rounds before the tubes would start to show
wear. Results exactly what the Arsenal leadership was
hoping for.
Additionally, Roach said that this year represents the
highest dollar volume of contracts for the M777 gun
system than he has seen in the 11 years that he has been
managing this program for the arsenal.
“So far this year, and we still have one month to go,
the Arsenal has received more than $80 million in new
orders just for the towed 155mm system from the Army’s
Program Manager Towed Artillery Systems,” Roach
said. “Given that there are more than 1,000 of these gun
systems in the Army and Marine inventory, there is po-
tential for the Arsenal to receive more orders for full-bore
chrome barrels as these orders only reflect about 20 per-
cent of the inventory.”
The Watervliet Arsenal is an Army-owned-and-operat-
ed manufacturing facility and is the oldest, continuously
active arsenal in the United States having begun opera-
tions during the War of 1812. The arsenal is a subordinate
command to TACOM Life Cycle Management Command
and the Army Materiel Command.
According to the Army:
The Lightweight 155mm Howitzer System provides
direct, reinforcing and general artillery fire support
to maneuver forces. The M777A2 is a towed 155mm
howitzer jointly developed by the Army and Marine
Corps to replace the M198 Howitzer. The extensive
use of titanium in all its major structures makes it
7,000 pounds lighter than the M198 with no sacri-
fice in range, stability, accuracy or durability. The
M777A2’s maximum range is 30 km (rocket assisted
round) or up to 40 km with the Excalibur precision-
guided munition.

5. Page 5 Salvo August 31, 2017
By John B. Snyder
Story continues on page 6, “MPF”
Collage provided by Program Executive Office, Ground Combat Systems
Historic arsenal taps its history to
enhance future Soldier readiness
For more than 200 years, the Arsenal’s workforce has
prided itself on its ability to rapidly design, develop, and
field the latest weapon technologies in support of the na-
tion’s troops. To many, this might imply that the Arsenal is
always looking forward for new capability. But they may
be wrong.
Due to the Arsenal’s depth of personal machining ex-
perience and extensive collection of historical weapons
records, sometimes the Arsenal’s planners look backward
or in today’s example, back at least 25 years in an effort
to enhance the future lethality and survivability of U.S.
troops.
Today, Arsenal production planners and general fore-
men are working hard to start a prototype production line
for what the Army now calls the Mobile Protected Fire-
power, or MPF, gun system. The key, or let’s say the lethal
part of this system is the 105mm cannon with complete
breech mechanism.
And that is where the Arsenal comes in.
In 1992, the Arsenal was visited by a Navy team that
was searching to identify the best practices in the defense
manufacturing industry. One of the highlights and a best
practice identified in the Navy’s report is the XM35 cannon
or what today is known as the 105mm gun for the MPF.
The Army and Arsenal goals for the XM35 gun in the
1990s were to improve on the M68 gun’s performance on a
proposed Armored Gun System by reducing the weight and
recoil impulse; improve front gun installation for easier
maintenance; and to accommodate an autoloading system
that was then under development. Additionally, all modi-
fications must ensure that accuracy was not degraded and
that all then current 105mm ammunition could be used.
The M68 gun system was used on the Army’s M60

6. Page 6 Salvo August 31, 2017
MPF Cont.
tanks and an updated version can be found today on the
Stryker’s Mobile Gun System.
But according to a 1993 Army War College paper titled,
“The Armored Gun System – An Acquisition Streamlin-
ing Model for the Army?,” by then Lt. Col. James Wank,
the concept for a new armored gun system with the XM35
tube actually dates back to the 1970s.
Wank said the Armored Gun System, or AGS, can trace
its roots to the development of a Mission Needs Statement
in 1981 for a Mobile Protected Gun System or MPGS. Af-
ter years of disenchantment with the Army’s 105mm Sheri-
dan Gun System in Vietnam, the MPGS was believed to
be the right system to replace the Sheridan for infantry and
airborne roles. The Sheridan was the only rapidly deploy-
able, air-droppable armored combat vehicle in the Army
inventory.
But, according to Wank, the Sheridan’s performance
during the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989 was dubious
at best, and that created the energy to quickly field the
AGS. Due to this urgent need to put the AGS into Sol-
diers’ hands, the Army Acquisition Executive approved the
acquisition strategy proposed by the program manager that
would have an initial fielding of the system in 1997.
Nevertheless, the Pentagon’s leadership killed the AGS
program in 1996 and redirected the funding to other pri-
orities. In that same year, the Army retired the Sheridan
system. And so, what was once one of the Army’s and the
Arsenal’s Best Practices was moved off of the Arsenal’s
production line and into historical files.
The ending of the MPGS and the AGS systems may
be due to the consequences of the “tyranny of time.” In
essence, the longer a proposed future weapon system
languishes between the points for a request for proposal
to source selection to low-rate production, the more chal-
lenges — such as other funding priorities and loss of po-
litical pressure — have time to build that may eventually
overcome the program.
Fast forward to today, and one would find that Arsenal’s
manufacturing leaders well understand that the essence of
time is not a friend when it comes to new weapons devel-
opment and therefore, are exerting significant energy to
rapidly support the proposed MPF gun system.
“With the exception of the development of the Bunker
Buster Bomb in 1991, there has been no other new weapon
system since Vietnam that we have moved toward proto-
type development as fast as we are planning for the Mobile
Protected Firepower gun system,” said John Zayhowski,
the Arsenal’s chief of manufacturing. “Not only do we
know the MPF system is an Army priority today, we also
know from our history that time is not on our side.”
Zayhowski said that to move the MPF program quickly
to prototype development, he tapped into the experiences
of well-tenured machinists who are still active on the
production floors, as well as to Arsenal retirees who once
worked on the AGS program in the 1980s and 1990s.
Ryan Scrum, who is the Arsenal’s general foreman for
tube production, said that what has been a big help in shav-
ing time off of a proposed prototype production schedule
is that the 105mm tube is nearly identical to the tube the
Arsenal machined for the AGS program in the 1990s.
“We pulled the technical data package for the 1990-era
AGS program and gathered a team of machining experts
here to determine the degree of difficulty in developing the
MPF gun,” Scrum said. “What we discovered is that we
currently have in production 105mm tubes for the Stryker
gun system that are very similar to the proposed MPF gun
tube. And so, we already have the processes and the pro-
cedures fairly proven out before we begin prototype devel-
opment.”
In addition to the development of the 105mm tube,
there is significant work required in the manufacturing of
the breech mechanism that is made up of such parts as the
breech block and breech ring. The Arsenal’s part of the
MPF gun system involves about 165 unique parts, said
Scott Huber, the Arsenal’s general foreman for minor and
major components.
“What most people may not know that in every gun
system there are hundreds of parts that must meet tight ma-
chining tolerances that are measured in the hundredths and
thousandths of an inch,” Huber said. “But where we (the
Arsenal) have a significant advantage in the quick produc-
tion of a MPF prototype is that we have extensive experi-
ence on our production floors machining similar parts, such
as breech rings and blocks, for other weapons programs.“
Another advantage the Arsenal has in the rapid design
and production of a prototype for the MPF gun system is
that it has retained many of the special tools and fixtures
required for this gun system, Huber said. Not only will
having these special tools on hand save money, they will
also shave time off of prototype development.
“One of the great advantages of the Army coming to our
Army-owned and operated manufacturing center is that we
retain all of the technical data and special tooling for every
production line and prototype program that we have had
since the Korean War,” Huber said. “We have learned that
sometimes our future is tied to our past.”
The Arsenal leadership believe they will have the first
prototype gun ready for testing within the next 18 months.

7. Page 7 Salvo August 31, 2017
Story continues on page 8, "Shutdown”
By John B. Snyder
Photo by John B. Snyder
Checking many of the magnetic lifting devices during the Arsenal's an-
nual shutdown were Matthew Briscoe, left; Jordan Selin, center front;
and Robert Dobbs. The magnetic devices ranged from palm-size to
the size of a small car engine.
I recently checked out the Arsenal during its an-
nual shutdown period expecting the doors to be
locked and all activity ceased. After all, the Arse-
nal’s leadership proclaimed one year ago that the
Arsenal would shut down for one week to allow the
workforce to take leave during a time that would not
impact production.
As I started to wander through the production
bays during the shutdown, I began to think that I
should have taken vacation time, too, as I was cer-
tain there would be no stories to be told. Here is
what I found in the first building…
Production machines quiet…Check.
Lights turned down…Check.
Rotary forge cooled…Check.
And, just when I had thought that the entire work-
force was obeying the commander’s directive to shut
down manufacturing, I found selective disobedience.
In the Arsenal’s Historic Big Gun Shop, I discov-
ered “rare earth."
Jason Miller, who is a former machinist and who
now is a maintenance machine mechanic, was work-
ing with a shutdown team whose main mission that
Some Arsenal
activities did not
shut down
during the
annual
shutdown
Selective Disobedience?

8. Page 8 Salvo August 31, 2017
Shutdown Cont.
Left: Jason Miller, who is a former machinist and who now is a maintenance machine mechanic, was working with a shutdown team whose
main mission during shutdown week was to inspect and certify magnetic lifting devices on the production floors.
Right: Kathleen Seeloff performing a quality control inspection on a howitzer tube that had just been chrome plated.
Photos by John B. Snyder
week was to inspect and certify magnetic lifting de-
vices on the production floors. These lifting devices,
which many are made of a material called rare earth,
may range from the size of something that can fit
into one’s palm to the size of a car engine.
“What is great about the shutdown is that it gives
us time to do required annual maintenance and
checks,” Miller said. “Additionally, because most
of the operations have been shut down, our mainte-
nance efforts are plus upped with extra personnel,
which gives us an opportunity to achieve all of our
maintenance objectives for the week.”
In another production building, Steve Koza, who
is the crane maintenance supervisor, was directing
the heavy maintenance and replacement of crane
rails above the production floors. The rails, accord-
ing to Koza, wear out after about 25 years of daily
use and when they do, the rails can become a safety
hazard. The only time to do this type of mainte-
nance and complete replacement is when the Arsenal
shuts down its manufacturing operations.
In another building, lifting slings were being
inspected by Jesus Guerra and his team and fluids
being replaced in quality control inspection area by
Eric Beeles. I also found action in the box shop as
Michael Dworakowski, the senior wood worker, and
coworker Patrick O’Brien, were rearranging material
to get ready for a surge of new orders.
In two other production buildings, I found Kath-
leen Seeloff performing a quality control inspection
on a howitzer tube that had just been chrome plated
and machinist Ken Chirpka and machine tool opera-
tor Mike Dorman working on 60mm mortar base-
plates.
What were they thinking?
“Although I love conducting maintenance during
the Arsenal’s annual shutdown, I love supporting our
troops more,” said Seeloff.
And with that, once again the Arsenal workforce
proves that it never truly shuts down given its awe-
some responsibility of providing the equipment that
will help the nation’s troops to safely come home
from battle. A responsibility that has been continu-
ously honored here for more than 204 years.
The annual shutdown, which takes months in
planning, allows the Arsenal to perform critical
maintenance services and Occupational Safety and
Health Administration or OSHA required inspec-
tions. Not too many years ago, the Arsenal shudown
period lasted two weeks.
More photos on page 12

9. Most people probably believe that Army weapons re-
search and design experts would have a command of the
sciences and technologies that may make future weapons
systems more lethal on tomorrow’s battlefields. But a me-
chanical engineer at the Army’s research and design facility
here has a different type of command of the
forces that will also impact future battle-
fields.
Brian Van De Wal, a supervisory
engineer with the Army’s Benét Labora-
tories, has for more than 20 years helped
improve the accuracy and fatigue life of
current large caliber weapon systems,
from Paladin howitzers to Abrams
tanks. Although he leads Benét
Laboratories' fatigue and fracture
analysis branch, he recently took
on an entirely new mission and
one that will help shape the Army
for generations.
“When I enlisted in the U.S.
Army Reserves in 1992, my goal was
to become a sergeant,” Van De Wal
said. “I was caught up in the spirit of
the First Gulf War and simply wanted
to be part of something great. Never
in my wildest dreams did I think that
one day I would attain the rank of
lieutenant colonel, let alone take com-
mand of a battalion.”
On the historic grounds of the
United States Military Academy at West
Point on July 31, 2017, with the sounds of
the West Point Band, Van De Wal assumed
command of the 3rd
Battalion, 304th
Infantry
Regiment. In a way, this command brings
Van De Wall full circle back to the day he began his career
in 1992.
“My battalion has the responsibility to provide initial
registration support and select basic weapons training to
cadets at the United States Military Academy,” Van De Wal
said. “My battalion is responsible for a lot of military skills
training that occurs in the summer between the academic
years for all class years.”
Van De Wal’s battalion works with rising senior cadets
in their leadership roles with respect to training events the
3-304th
battalion conducts. This training consists of orienta-
tion to range execution and the programs of instruction of
range operations. Once the senior cadets have mastered
the operation of the ranges, they are then placed in charge
of cycling the incoming cadets through the ranges, with
Van De Wal’s battalion overseeing the range operations.
“Many of the basic soldier training tasks here are
v e r y similar to what I went through in 1992,”
Van De Wal said. “The biggest differ-
ence today is the tremendous respon-
sibility placed on me to ensure that
all of our training is to standard and
conducted safely for more than a
thousand cadets a year. It takes
approximately six weeks to cycle
the entire incoming freshman
class of cadets through our por-
tion of the training.”
Van De Wal, who has deployed
to Iraq and to Afghanistan during
his military career, said he believes
this type of battalion command will
make great use of the leadership
skills he has attained through a variety
of opportunities the Army Reserves
have afforded him throughout his career.
“I have been very fortunate to have
had great opportunities to lead; from be-
ing a Company Commander in Iraq, Bri-
gade G-4 officer in Afghanistan, Brigade
S-3 Operations officer in peacetime, and
now as a Battalion Commander,” Van De
Wal said.
Van De Wal added that trying to balance
his military career with that of his career at Benét Labo-
ratories has had its challenges. But in the end, leadership
in both organizations (Reserves and Benét Labs) have ac-
commodated his balancing act and because they did, he is
able to command a battalion while leading a great group of
research engineers at Benét.
Van De Wal said he expects to command for the next 24
to 36 months.
Page 9 Salvo August 31, 2017
By John B. Snyder
Research expert takes
command of sciences, troops
Brian Van De Wal with son, Brian
Jr., and girlfriend Danielle Hilt at the
change of command. Photo provided
by Brian Van De Wal.

10. Page 10 Salvo August 31, 2017
Risks are uncertain events that, if they occur, have an impact on project objectives, such as scope,
schedule and cost. Uncertainty is present in all projects. It can be managed, but cannot be completely
eliminated. Risks are classified as either positive (opportunities) or negative (threats). The below Figure
includes the available response strategies for positive and negative risks.
Known risks are the risks that can be identified, analyzed and planned for. Unknown risks are the
risks that went unanticipated until they’ve occurred. When a negative unknown risk occurs, it is no longer
uncertain. It becomes a threat- a present and very real event that has the potential to drastically alter project
performance. Most risk can be linked to project requirements, assumptions, constraints or environmental
conditions that create the possibility for uncertain outcomes over the life of a project.
Project risk management accounts for all processes used by the project team to conduct risk planning,
identification, analysis, response and controlling:
Planning: Describes how risk management activities will be performed. The team shouldn’t move
forward until all project stakeholders have agreed to how risk will be managed within the project.
Identification: Reviews project documentation and analytic tools to anticipate and document which
risks may occur. Identified risks are added to the project risk register- a repository of risk information.
Analysis: Prioritizes risks by their probability of occurrence and impact on objectives or by comparing
the effect of risks on overall project objectives. Analysis data is added to the risk register.
Response: Develops specific and individual actions to enhance opportunities or reduce threats to
project objectives. Response plans are added to the risk register.
Controlling: Tracks identified risks, identifies new risks, implements response plans and evaluates risk
management effectiveness. An issue register is used to track ongoing issue progress and record resolved
issues.
There are varying degrees of risk an organization and its stakeholders are willing to accept, which is
referred to as “risk attitude.” Driven by perception, bias and tolerances, the attitude towards risk an individual
or group adopts will influence how they respond to risk. Risk responses reflect an organization’s balance
between risk taking and risk avoidance.
Risk can exist at any point within a project. The most successful organizations conduct risk
management activities proactively and regularly throughout the lifecycle of the project. A risk management
plan ensures your best chance of avoiding and mitigating project risk.
Lean Corner by Josh O'Leary
Project Risk Management

11. Page 11 Salvo August 31, 2017
Nothing holds
down some of our
Arsenal youth
From time to time, we like to hear from
our family members. Here is a column
written for this month's Salvo by Micah
Moore, son of Laurie Vroman.
My mom served in the U.S. Air Force and she has al-
ways instilled in me the pride of the military. I knew that
when I grew up, that I too wanted to serve my country.
My mom’s friend, Ronald Ascher, told my mom about the
Civil Air Patrol (CAP), and that I should sit in on a meet-
ing.
You are supposed to sit in on at least three meetings
before you join because it is a minimum one-year com-
mitment to the program. I didn’t need three meetings.
Even though I am just 12-years-old, I knew this is what
I wanted to do because I will be doing something for a
greater cause than myself.
CAP is a volunteer organization that is considered to
be the Air Force Auxiliary. It is for kids ages 12-19 in-
terested in aerospace education, emergency search and
rescue, and community service (my favorite). As a CAP
member, I get to fly in a CAP Cessna airplane, as well as
to learn how to fly. After attaining five powered-flights
and five glider-flights, I then can apply for a CAP scholar-
ship so that I can get my pilot’s license for free.
I already went on my first powered-flight, at which
time I flew from Scotia to the Glens Falls area. I had
the chance to talk to the pilot, see him handle the plane,
use the radio, monitor the gauges, and I even had the
chance to fly the plane myself for about 45 minutes, which
was the highlight of my day. I have also participated in
Honor Guard/Color Guard training so that if there are
any change of commands or other important events, I can
carry or guard the American Flag.
This month, I spent two days at Scotia Air National
Guard base and participated in their mass causality ex-
ercise. I also had the opportunity to fly on the back of a
C130 all the way to Massachusetts on a litter as part of
the exercise.
More recently, I attended an Emergency Services
Bivouac, where I spent three days living in the woods
training to be a part of ground search team. A ground
team consists of qualified cadets who conduct searches
for missing people. I learned land navigation, electronic
direction finding, basic survival and field craft, and basic
radio techniques. I have additional tests to complete on-
line and then I will be part of the ground team as soon as
my commander signs off.
CAP is more than flying, it also teaches about rocket
building, remote controlled airplanes, and space flight.
There are unlimited opportunities for anyone who choos-
es to join. CAP has a rank structure like the Air Force
and my goal is to earn the Mitchell Award (rank of Sec-
ond Lieutenant) and continue on to earn the Spaatz Award
(rank of Colonel) prior to joining the Air Force. Only 15
percent of cadets earn the Mitchell Award and 1.5 percent
earn the Spaatz Award. As long as I accomplish my goals
and stick with the program, I can actually start out at a
higher rank in the Air Force for completing the program.

12. Page 12 Salvo August 31, 2017
Annual Shutdown Week
Yes, a time when we don't shut down
Photos by John B. Snyder