AFROTC DETACHMENT 825—THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
the LONGHORN AIRMAN
Longhorn Airmen Receive Appreciation &
Support in Houston
Gene Krantz and members of the John Payne chapter of Arnold Air
Society and Silver Wings
During Veterans Day weekend, members of Texas Silver Wings and
Arnold Air Society traveled to Houston, Texas to attend the annual Regional
Conclave. During this visit, the attending members had the opportunity to
listen and speak with the Apollo 13 Space Flight Director, Mr. Gene Kranz!
His experiences and story of how Apollo 13's mission was executed and
how all passengers arrived back on Earth was inspiring to all those who
heard it during the banquet on November 12, 2011.
Along with the honor of hearing Mr. Kranz speak, the Region IX
conclave, ASTROCON, was named "the best" conclave in the Nation!
Congratulations to Region and Area IX Silver Wings and Arnold-Air Society
for participating in such a great event! You represented the Longhorn
Airmen well.
~Andrea Collins
March
30 - 31 FTX at Ft Hood
April
4 -6
President’s Cup
13
Dining-Out at Alumni Center
14
Field Day at Baylor
19
CW/CC Board
21Paintball
24
PFA for POC; QFR for
Commissionees
28
Parade/Open House, Change of
Command
THUDs Isaac Ramirez, Sean Zarsky, Taylor Hale, Caribbean Wawrzyniak, and Eric Canales:
Best of the Best....again.
1
1
3
4
11
18
May
PFA for GMC
Awards Day (LLAB)
Corps Video (LLAB)
County Line on the Lake
Couch Stories
Senior Send-Off, CC’s house
1000 Commissioning @ Capitol
1500 Joint Commissioning
THUDs Do It Again at The DFW Mud Run!
The morning started out like any Saturday morning: a honey barbeque chicken strip sandwich, large fries and a Powerade at 8am.
For Sean Zarsky, though, it was a little bit healthier route: hot apple pie and chocolate milkshake—the breakfast of champions. This
was the start to a THUDs tradition: the Dallas Fort-Worth Mud Run. This is a 10k race through mud and obstacles that are designed by
members of the Marine Corps; no challenge for THUDs. The THUDs tradition is not only to go to the race and have fun, but to win.
Alongside Eric Canales, Isaac Ramirez, W+9 and Sean Zarsky, I stood ready to reclaim our title as the champions.
In spring 2011, we ran the race and lost by seconds to the Marine Recon team from A&M- a sad loss. However, the director of the
race told us that if we came back in the fall and defeated their team, he would come to Austin and throw a party at his expense for
Det 825. This motivated us even more to go back out there and kick butt. As we were warming up, getting ready to prove ourselves,
we realized and are told that the A&M Recon team did not show up…we were extremely disappointed and could only scoff at their
absence. But the challenge was not at all absent. Up ahead stood a team of a couple Navy SEALs and BUD/s candidates. Now we
were even more fired up; we had a chance to prove ourselves to men of comparable toughness.
The guns fired and the race began. Our deliciously healthy food fueled us to run our first mile in 6:00 flat—that’s with boots and
pants. We were in no way going to slide back. We stayed right on the heels of the SEALs and began picking them off, passing them,
one by one as the race progressed. As we neared the end of the race, we were nearly in a full-out sprint and only had two SEALs team
members to pass. Unfortunately, the two ahead of us reached the end before us, but upon crossing the finish line as a team with arms
interlocked, we realized we had just won. The only way your time can count is if you finish as a team (within 15 seconds of each
other). So the first two SEALs to reach the end had to wait another 5 minutes before the rest of their team reached the end. We talked
with them afterwards and they congratulated us on getting first place in our division, with a finishing time of 1:07:00. The only time
that was faster than ours was put in by a man from the single male competitor race. Reclaiming the trophy and taking home several
new medals, THUDs reminded Dallas-Fort Worth what it means to truly be a warrior.
~Taylor Hale
5 Longhorn Airman
AFROTC DETACHMENT 825—THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
the LONGHORN AIRMAN
Tri-Service Beatdown
It all started early on a Tuesday morning with the Warrior Mile--a one mile run
with buddy carries, jerry cans, litter carries, and ammo box presses that was a test of
strength, speed, and endurance for the seven participants. Obviously, Air Force won.
But we didn't just win, we dominated. We finished almost five minutes before Army or
Navy. This was a recurring theme throughout this Fall semester's Tri-Service Games.
In five out of six events, Det 825 was first place. We flew around the track on the
one and a half mile relay. We cranked out hundreds of pushups. We set, bumped, and
spiked like nobody's business in volleyball. And, of course, we didn't forget the 5 D's of
dodgeball.
On the final day of the games, all three services came together for a warrior run
chock full of jodies, camaraderie, and esprit de corps before the results were officially
announced. However, to achieve our ultimate goal of winning the Tri-Service Cup, the
Longhorn Airmen will have to repeat their unrelentingly dominant performance in the
Spring. This is no small task, but one that is certainly within our grasp. Air Power!
Longhorn Airmen model the new Detachment event
uniforms. Det 825 would like to thank Mr. Mike
Cooper for the donation from the Maj Chris Cooper
Excellence Fund.
~ Caribbean Wawrzyniak
Medal of Honor Recipient Army Staff Sgt. Salavatore “Sal”
Giunta
Detachment 825 had the honor of attending Army ROTC’s leadership class with
Medal of Honor recipient Staff Sergeant Salvadore “Sal” Giunta. Sergeant Giunta,
a very humble man who prefers to be addressed as Sal, received America’s highest
decoration for valor for his actions in the war in Afghanistan which included running
into enemy fire to retrieve a wounded comrade being dragged away by two insurgents.
Before becoming the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam
War, Sal was a Subway employee in Iowa with no intentions of joining the military until
he met with an Army recruiter. He was sold at the moment he realized he could make a
difference now, in the immediate future; he enlisted as an Airborne Infantryman.
With intense passion and the most dignified demeanor, Sal gave leadership advice
every cadet should adhere to. He started with how events will change your life. When
he received his medal, he knew his life changed. He accepted it for his comrades who
had “valiantly and selflessly signed a blank check, offering their most valuable assets
in order to protect our country – their lives.” Sal became the face of everyone he
represented and he knew he was going to be watched every day. As a leader, our every
move and impression will be under scrutiny whether we are in a professional setting or
not because the strongest thing we can lead with is our credibility.
A great leader leads from the front, but also has empathy for the well-being of her
troops and makes them her priority. He gains and maintains respect by giving his best
effort and more with a credibility one would never doubt.
Sal exemplifies all a great soldier and American should be; he is a wingman, leader,
and a warrior.
~Rebecca Kim
AIM HIGH! FLY! FIGHT! WIN!
Longhorn Airman 6
Cadet Wing CC Brandon Stout presents Det 825
goodies to Dr Hans Mark, former Secretary of the
Air Force
Longhorn Airman tradition: Presenting the colors
and singing the National Anthem at the Longhorn
Baseball season opener
AFROTC DETACHMENT 825—THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
the LONGHORN AIRMAN
Kevin Stout points at the hole in the ozone
Brandon “Guns” Stout intimidates the competition
Maj Mary Jennings Hegar addresses the corps.
My First Combat Dining-In
So, there I was, a new cadet at my first combat dining-in. It was social hour and everywhere you looked cadets were
playing soccer, frisbee, and football. The Stout Cup volleyball tournament was also going on. The GMC flights, POC
flights, cadre, and a two-man underdog team of AS700s were all competing for the coveted Stout Cup trophy. It was
an exciting series of games to watch. The underdogs absolutely crushed the competition and made their way to the
finals. However, despite the underdogs' fierce efforts, they still lost to the cadre who claimed victory in the tournament.
Tired and hungry after an action-packed social hour, we cadets began to look for something to fill our stomachs with. Mouthwatering barbecue
had been provided for dinner. We gracefully toasted and gave thanks to the powers above us and quickly began to indulge in what was on our
plates. While we ate, there were a number of unfortunate folks who were called to sip the grog. No one was safe. The cadre, cadets, and even
our guest speaker had to drink from that vile concoction. Luckily I did not, but I imagine it must have tasted something like Satan's bath water.
After dinner, our guest speaker, Major Mary Jennings Hegar, shared her experience as a CSAR helicopter pilot with us. In her
presentation she played footage of a real
combat experience while flying a mission.
She finished her presentation with a moral
lesson concerning integrity. She stressed
that in any job, even if you are not the
ranking person, it is imperative you have
the confidence and integrity to call out any
safety transgression; it could mean the
difference between saving or losing lives.
Weeks before combat dining-in I had
doubts about my choice to be in ROTC,
but after dining-in I felt content with
my decision. Major Hegar's inspiring
presentation and the evening's camaraderie
were encouraging. After having attended
combat dining-in I look forward to the
rest of my time with Detachment 825.
~ Michael Campos
Team Cadre gloat over their Stout cup win.
Just wait till next year....
Fall 2011 Cadet Wing CC Amela Kamencic, Col
Staha, Maj Hegar and Cadet Victoria Carrillo
7 Longhorn Airman
AFROTC DETACHMENT 825—THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
the LONGHORN AIRMAN
Warrior Week
Warrior week is nonstop competition among the flights of Detachment 825. The fall 2011 flights were Alpha, Bravo, Foxtrot, and
Mike. These friendly competitions occurred during Physical Training (PT) in the morning and Leadership Laboratory (LLAB) in the
afternoon. The competitions included games of all sorts, such as sprints, relays, ultimate frisbee, soccer, tug of war, and many more.
Alpha Flight jumped out to an early lead, winning the sprint challenges in back-to-back, close races. That lead was quickly diminished
by all the other flights, led by Mike flight in the succeeding competitions. Alpha Flight held the lead late into the games, and things got
really intense as we rounded the corner to the home stretch.
The two final competitions were soccer and the flight shield competition. It came down to the wire, soccer was a close one with
Alpha Flight edging out the win in PKs for maximum points. It was so close after the entire week that the flight shields ended up being
the deciding contest. After some intense deliberation amongst the POC, Mike Flight’s impressive shield was named the champion.
After the week was all said and done Mike Flight came out victorious followed closely by Alpha, Foxtrot and Bravo respectively. It
was a hard fought week full of determination, each cadet doing their part to elevate their flight to the top of the podium. Mike Flight
might have won this semester, but the good news is, next semester we get to do it all over again!
~ Ryan Sutten
B-29 in Austin!
Cadre and cadets manned the Physical
Challenge stations at UT’s Explore UT
On Saturday 22 Oct and Sunday 23 Oct, Longhorn Airmen cadets were lucky enough
to have a unique experience volunteering with “Fifi,” the last flying B-29 operated by
the Commemorative Air Force. It was a great experience to be able to see, hear, and
even feel the vintage B-29, a still living and flying piece of history. Although most
of the day was spent helping to direct riders and visitors as well as selling souvenirs
such as authentic Fifi skin and spark plugs, one very lucky cadet, Stephanie O’Harris,
managed to secure a seat on the B-29. Though it was a bumpy ride, she came out of it
with an inspired sense of having been part of a historical moment.
Overall, the Commemorative Air Force staff truly appreciated our work and even
promised to save seats for Detachment 825 cadets the next time Fifi rolled around
Austin!
~Rufei Wang
Name that aircraft.
□ F-101 Voodoo
□ F-86 Sabre
□ F-5 Freedom Fighter
Where’s Mort?
The Longhorn Airman is published four times a year; it is not an official publication of the USAF, AFROTC or The University of Texas at Austin; the opinions expressed in this publication do not represent any of these entities. No state or federal funds were used to print this newsletter. The Longhorn Airman was created with
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~Nan Bradford-Reid, Editor
Longhorn Airman 8