8 Broadcaster Press September 4, 2018 www.broadcasteronline.com SD Air, Army Pheasant Survey Indicates 47 Percent Increase National Guard For South Dakota's 100th Hunting Season Units Receive National Awards NEW ORLEANS - South Dakota Air and Army National Guard units continue to earn top honors for performance excellence as they brought home six awards from the 2018 National Guard Association of the United States annual conference in New Orleans, Aug. 27. For the fourth year in a row, the SD Air National Guard's 114th Fighter Wing of Sioux Falls was the recipient of a Distinguished Flying Unit Plaque, which recognizes the five most outstanding Air National Guard flying units in the nation. This is the eighth time the 114th has received the honor. The 114th also received the William W. Spruance Safety Award, presented annually to the National Guard unit that makes the most significant contribution to accident prevention, and the Maj. Gen. John J. Pesch Flight Safety Award, presented annually to two flying units judged to have demonstrated the highest standards of flight safety in the Air National Guard. SD Army National Guard units received awards in all three of the Army categories. The 152nd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion of Pierre received the Maj. Gen. Milton A. Reckord Trophy as the most outstanding Army National Guard battalion in the nation for achieving the highest standards in training and readiness. The Yankton-based B Battery, 1st Battalion, 147th Field Artillery, received the General John J. Pershing Plaque for weapons marksmanship. The unit attained the highest figure of merit (highest percentage of assigned members qualified) during annual weapons qualification firing with assigned individual weapons. The Watertown-based Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 147th Field Artillery, received the Certificate of Victory for having the highest overall figure of merit in the nation. "The state of readiness and overall quality of our units is unmatched by any other state as evidenced by the selection for these prestigious awards," said Maj. Gen. Tim Reisch, SDNG adjutant general. "I couldn't be more proud of the Soldiers and Airmen of the South Dakota National Guard!" More Bang for Your Buck! PIERRE, S.D. – According to the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks (GFP), this year’s pheasant brood survey shows a 47 percent increase over last year. The 2018 statewide pheasants-per-mile (PPM) index is 2.47, up from the 2017 index of 1.68. “A substantial increase in the pheasants-per-mile index is an exciting prospect for South Dakota’s 100th pheasant hunting season this fall,” stated Kelly Hepler, GFP Secretary. “Weather conditions continue to play a significant role when it comes to bird numbers and better weather helped this year with the average pheasant brood size increasing 22 percent over last year.” From late July through mid-August, GFP surveyed 110, thirty-mile routes across the state’s pheasant range to estimate pheasant production and calculate the PPM index. The survey is not a population estimate, but rather compares the number of pheasants observed on the routes and establishes trend information. Statewide, 85 of the 110 survey routes had a higher PPM than 2017. “We are pleased to see pheasant numbers improve across the state; particularly in the far eastern part of the state where hunters will have more opportunities to harvest birds than in recent years,” stated Hepler. “The full report provides an overview of upland habitat; which remains a concern for all wildlife across the state. Just as changes in landscape-level habitat conditions have produced peaks and valleys in the pheasant population for 100 years, habitat will again be the key to preserving pheasant hunting for another century." The Walk-in Area (WIA) program added 39,000 new acres in addition to 8,000 new acres last year. With 1.1 million acres of public hunting land within the heart of South Dakota’s pheasant range, great opportunities remain for public access to pheasant hunting. Hepler said hunters should notice far fewer disturbed CRP fields compared to last year when emergency haying and grazing was authorized in response to severe drought conditions. The annual hunting atlas and a web-based interactive map of public lands and private lands leased for public hunting can be found at https://gfp.sd.gov/hunting-areas/. In addition to printed and interactive maps, hunters can utilize GPS downloads and smartphone applications to locate public hunting lands throughout the state. Hunters are again asked to hunt safely and ethically, respect private landowners and those public hunting areas scattered across the state. “Challenges exist to maintain habitat, desirable pheasant population levels, and to recruit a new generation of hunters to preserve this truly special sport of pheasant hunting. Take time this fall to celebrate the hunt, the sense of community and comradery while appreciating how deeply rooted the tradition of pheasant hunting has been for the last 100 years,” concluded Hepler. South Dakota’s traditional statewide pheasant hunting season opens on Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018, and runs through Jan. 6, 2019. SD National Guard Commissions Five New Army Lieutenants By Sgt. Daniel Ward 129th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment RAPID CITY, S.D. - The South Dakota Army National Guard inducted five new second lieutenants during a commissioning ceremony at Camp Rapid, Aug. 17. The ceremony commemorated the five officers' completion of Officer Candidate School, which consisted of 16-18 months of drill weekends and two, two-week training periods. "A lot of time, effort and hard work has been put in by each one of these candidates to get to this stage to be commissioned," said Lt. Col. Troy Ness, commander of 1st Battalion, 196th Regiment (Regional Training Institute). "This is just the beginning of their careers and from this point, there's going to be many more challenges and leadership opportunities." The evening's ceremony included several traditions, including the pinning of rank on the officers' uniform, their first salute, and taking the Oath of Office led by Brig. Gen. Thomas Croymans, SDARNG assistant adjutant general. "It's an honor for me to be here - we're looking forward to their commissioning and seeing them move on to be great leaders in the South Dakota National Guard," said Croymans. "The RTI has done a fantastic job bringing theses candidates up, taking them through the course and getting them qualified; I think they're doing a fantastic job." The commissioning officers get to choose who pins on their rank and receives their first salute, and many selected family members and military friends that have had an impact on their lives and careers. Newly promoted 2nd Lt. Leslie Wangeman chose Sgt. Maj. Phil Lakner, G3 aviation operations sergeant major for Joint Force Headquarters, for her first salute. "Sgt. Maj. Lakner has been a huge influence for me - his actions speak louder than his words and that's the kind of leader I hope to be," said Wangeman. The second lieutenants of OCS Class 62, their hometowns, and South Dakota Army National Guard assigned units are: 2nd Lt. Kory Bromley, Yankton, 211th Engineer Company 2nd Lt. Nicholas Dumke, Volga, Bravo Battery, 1/147th Field Artillery Battalion 2nd Lt. Mackenzie Foss, Milbank, Alpha Company, 139th Brigade Support Battalion 2nd Lt. Joshua Wangeman, Spearfish, 200th Engineer Company 2nd Lt. Leslie Wangeman, Spearfish, 842nd Engineer Company SD National Guard Soldiers Strengthen Warfighter Skills By Staff Sgt. Austin Pearce 129th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment like sleep deprivation, the intense heat [average high temperature during the exercise was 108 degrees] and tough enemy combatants in the battlefield in an extreme environment," said FORT IRWIN, Calif. - A South Dakota Army National Guard Capt. Jason Kimura, plans officer for the 152nd. "This harsh unit set to deploy to the Middle East trained at the National training environment gives a lot of Soldiers the opportunity to Training Center at Fort Irwin, July 27-Aug. 22. see what it's like to perform a variety of different tasks in these The training is vital for improving logistics missions of conditions. 10,800 copies distributed with 27,000 moving supplies through tough, realistic joint and combined"With the Army changing how we view logistics and war, readers per issue and now in a arms scenarios in preparation for the 152nd Combat Sustainwe are now required to fulfill our job duties concurrent with larger, reader-friendly format! ment Support Battalion's deployment scheduled for July 2019. self-defense," said Kimura. "If we encounter an enemy that "We're focusing on our mission command process in order can fight back with a force similar to or better than ours, the Call 624-4429 to get your ad in! to get prepared for future missions and our upcoming deploywarfighters won't have the ability to give us protection any ment," said Lt. Col. Timothy Schlotterback, commander of the more - so every Soldier should know how to defend them152nd. "This NTC rotation has provided us with the opportuselves, which changes the mindset for those who are outside nity to train in an unforgiving environment against a near-peer of the warfighting field." enemy, allowing us to validate our tactical proficiency and Between the demanding climate, terrain and an unrelentFrom now thru September synchronize our capabilities to conduct sustainment operaing enemy, NTC replicates the conditions Soldiers may face come help stitch hats tions in very demanding conditions." overseas. NTC provides a decisive action training environment, "It's as similar here as you could possibly get to going to and scarves for our local which creates training scenarios in a setting that can't be war without leaving the United States, and there's a lot of elementary schools. replicated at a unit's home station and that simulates what places that troops are getting deployed to these days that Bring in a hat and/or scarf and units would potentially face on their hardest day of combat looks just like this," said Maj. James Neill, support operations get 10% OFF your purchase overseas. officer for the 152nd. 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