• NCOs, good fitness helped deployed captain

    As an officer deployed for the first time, I learned, relearned or simply verified many lessons in "The Desert." The very first lesson began as soon as I landed in Kuwait around 1 a.m. local with my Team Vance comrades MSgt Mike Jimenez, SSgt Todd Martin and SrA Bryan Williams. It had just dropped

  • Team Vance skies in good hands with RSUs

    In the pre-dawn darkness while much of Oklahoma still sleeps, instructors and students alike from the Team Vance flying training squadrons are already hard at work preparing for another day of training. Students prepare the morning's briefs while instructors see to administrative duties. On the

  • One person's blood, another's lifesaver

    Oklahoma Blood Institute has conducted base blood drives here since 1977. The last drive was Aug. 27 with a turn out of 93 people, 74 whom were able to donate a total of 122 units of blood, according to A1C Jeffery Wheeler, 71st Medical Group and base blood drive coordinator. The blood collected on

  • New aircraft replaces T-37B

    Vance AFB will soon begin to eliminate the T-37B "Tweet" from its inventory and replace it with the Air Force's newest training aircraft. The 71st Flying Training Wing Site Activation Task Force has been working in cooperation with multiple base agencies to ensure everything from aircrew life

  • Pararescueman experiences brother's occupation

    Usually the graduating student pilots at Vance AFB are the ones receiving special treatment in recognition of their accomplishments. This week a member of Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training Class 04-13 turned the tables and rewarded his brother who came to Oklahoma for the graduation

  • Exercise political rights within bounds of the law

    The rules regulating the political activities of military members and civilian employees can be confusing. The rules are derived from the Hatch Act (5 United States Code Sections 7321-7325) and the Joint Ethics Regulation, with additional guidance found in Department of Defense Directive 1344.10 and

  • Liberian deployment humbles 8th FTS major

    There are a number of things Americans take for granted. Americans are accustomed to flipping a light switch and the light comes on. We also take for granted being able to find food when we are hungry. We don't think twice when we are dirty or thirsty about how easy it is to find clean running

  • Team Vance doctor provides Arctic Care to villagers

    Above and beyond took on a new meaning last month for Maj (Dr.) Martin LaFrance of the 71st Medical Operations Squadron. Major LaFrance joined more than 150 other medical providers in going above the Arctic Circle and beyond the reach of traditional medical care facilities for Arctic Care 2004, a

  • Fund drive kicks off for Lackland Fisher House

    Until recently, SSgt Jeremy Epperly of Wewoka, Okla. wasn't very familiar with the Fisher House program. That changed last January in Ada, Okla. while he was home on leave after leaving Royal Air Force Base Alconbury, England for Osan AB, Korea, where he would be a F-16 mechanic. A head-on collision

  • Mississippi Kites more aggressive than child's toy

    Winter has passed, spring has sprung and school is almost out ... it's time to celebrate. Fun is in the air ... or is it? If what people see in the air is a Mississippi Kite, then fun can turn to fear in a hurry. For whatever reason, central Oklahoma is a great place for these birds to set up home