WENDOVER, Utah -- A noncommissioned officer assigned to Hill Air Force Base, Utah, served as commandant of cadets during the Utah Wing of the Civil Air Patrol's Desert Hawk 15 encampment at Wendover Historic Airfield here, June 17-24.
The CAP is congressionally chartered and is the official civilian auxiliary of the Air Force. Serving as a strategic partner, CAP is a member of the Air Force's total force and conducts 90 percent of inland search-and-rescue missions in the United States as tasked by the Air Force Rescue and Coordination Center under the 1st Air Force.
Air Force Staff Sgt. Tim Everhard, a weather forecaster assigned to the 75th Operations Support Squadron, has been associated with the CAP for nine years.
"I am involved in CAP because I like to teach and train future leaders," he said. "As an NCO, I have an obligation to train younger airmen, and with the total force initiative, I look at my cadets as young airmen I can mentor and teach."
Everhard was responsible for the health, welfare and training schedule of more than 100 cadets ranging in age from 12 to 18. Most of the trainees were from Utah, and 25 were from Montana.
Encampment Highlights
Cadets bunked in SEA huts -- basic wooden shelters -- and began every day with physical training. They ate meals in the original airfield chow hall decorated with historic Army Air Corps and Air Force unit crests painted on the walls.
Graduation from the week-long training program is required of cadets as they progress in CAP, and many cadets likely will choose Air Force service later on -- on average, 10 percent of each U.S. Air Force Academy class is made up of Civil Air Patrol cadets.
Training included orientation flights in Cessna aircraft, marksmanship qualification with .22-caliber rifles, drill and ceremony, and team leadership scenarios.
Cadets also had the opportunity to marshal an F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jet, which was flown to Wendover from Hill Air Force Base.
CAP training allows cadets to participate in other programs, such as the International Air Cadet Exchange, and can also increase an enlistee's entry rank in the Air Force.
Civil Air Patrol cadets review their “smart books” while standing in line during the Desert Hawk XV encampment, Historic Wendover Airfield, Utah. Air Force photo by R. Nial Bradshaw