Batallion Gazette
Tinker Air Force Base
On 8 January 2010, the Let I's and Let III's of Alpha and Bravo companies went to Tinker Air Force Base to be briefed on Air Force equipment. It was also repeated for Charlie and Delta on 22 January. The first thing we were briefed on was the K-9 Police Unit. After the briefing, we were able to watch a demonstration of their training, and each cadet received a trading card of the dog we watched working. We were then marched to the building containing the security weapons used by the Air Force Security. We were briefed on each weapon and what it does, then we got to the best part: posing with the weapons for pictures! After the tour of the base, we broke for lunch, many seeking to match the challenge of our guide: eating more than $5 worth of food without getting full. When all our bellies were filled with yummy foods we boarded the AWACS and walked through the different stations as we learned what the aircraft did. At having some excess time, we looked at the decommissioned planes. I was not there for Charlie and Delta, but I know Alpha and Bravo behaved well and brought honor to our battalion.
- C/1ST LT Thomas Ball
Alpha's Let I Academic Bowl Win
On Saturday 6 February 2010 Bronco Battalion hosted our first Let I Academic Bowl. During the first round, Charlie prevailed over Delta, as did Alpha over Bravo. The last round was different, however. During the championship match, Charlie and Alpha went head to head. Throughout the round, it was neck to neck as both teams took turns taking the lead. As the round came to a close, Alpha finally took the lead. The buzzer rang and Alpha stood in triumph. One more victory for Alpha company. Alpha A team!
-C/1ST LT Chas Holbrook
First Aid
Curious about the things we cadets learn in JROTC? Well, if you get attacked by a bear or you fall off a ladder and rupture your spine, we know how to help you, and First Aid is the reason! We learn things about how to stop bleeding wounds, what type of bleeding it is, how serious the case may be, and how to stop it. We also learn how to do CPR (cardiopulminary resuscitation) as well as rescue breathing. To practice these techniques, we used very life-like, rubber dummies that weigh about 140 lbs. The culmination of this curriculum will be the Let I Land Navigation Exercise at the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge. Hopefully we won't use our first aid knowledge, but if we have too, we can.
-C/ PFC Alexis Pierce
Map Reading
The week SFC Brown was gone, the Let I's had our first map reading class. After learning how to read a map right and up, we learned everything from the major, minor, and supplementary land features to the marginal information found on the sides. We first started out learning how to read and map a 6 digit grid coordinate, but by the time we were through, we could read 8 digit grid coordinates. Using a protractor was difficult at first, but once you get the hang of it, it's a piece of cake. The best information on a map is the Legend because it tells you what almost everything on the map means. Reading contour intervals was the easiest thing we learned. I had no idea you could figure all this stuff out by just looking at a map!
-C/ PVT Lewis Tran
Middle School Recruitment
After weeks of pain staking practice, it has finally come and passed and it went rather smoothly, I believe. What I'm talking about is the middle schools "enrollment enhancement" or in all of our minds the "8th grade recruitment." To start off our show we had the Female Color Guard and Sabers team do a short revelation, with the Color Guard casing and uncasing the colors for the National Anthem. We took both Armed and Unarmed Exhibition teams and performed snip-it's of our Wichita, Kansas performances to "wow" the incoming freshmen. The Unarmed and Armed Regulation teams also came and performed a minute's worth of drill. All of the teams did well, so good job guys and gals!
-Your Outstanding Honor Guard Commander,
C/CPT Mathieu Bone
Company Intramural Marksmanship Competition
The Marksmanship competition on 20 February 2010 was a success. Out of the five people shooting for each company, only the top four scores were added to determine the company's total. Each cadet had to shoot three Olympic style positions- prone, kneeling, and standing- within a certain amound of time for each. After the first round, Charlie beat Bravo by five points, 770-775. Alpha swept Delta away during the second match with a score of 712 compared to 696. Charlie was given medallions for their accomplishment. Many also scored well enough to qualify for one of the three badges. For a Marksman badge you must shoot a 110 with the combined standing and prone scores, for Sharp Shooter you must shoot a score of 130, and to receive the Expert badge you must shoot a 230 with all three positions combined. I am very happy with how well the competition went and thankful for every cadet who participated.
-C/ CPT Kyle Slavik
