~--------------------------------------------~------------------~------------------------- --- 8 September 6, J985 Museum exhibits weaving creations of former resident Featured guest artist at the Sylvia Winslow Gallery of the Maturango Museum from Sept. 8 through Oct. 3 will be weaver Jo Downing. Her exhibit is entitled "Fruit of the Loom." A reception honoring ber will be held on Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. at the gallery. All interested persons are invited to attend. Mrs. Downing began weaving when she was in high school in South Pasadena, and continued her craft when she and her hus- band, Bob, moved to the local area in 1954. She continued to improve her skills through many years of raising a family as well as being a Navy employee until her retire!"ent in 1975. Since that time she has been able to devote many more hours to her craft, including attending conferences and workshops where she has studied with noted weavers from England and South America as well as others. CONCENTRATION - Jo Downing works at her loom. Her weaving skills will be demonstrated by an exhibit at the Sylvia Winslow Gallery 01 the Maturango Museum Sept. 8 through Oct. 3. Mrs. Downing prefers to weave materials for clothing and other wearable ac- cessories. Her works on display include many of these such as stoles, coats, vests, dresses, bably blankets, table linens, and bedspreads. She will demonstrate weaving from 2 to 4 p.m. every Saturday and Sun- day during September. Commissions on the sale will benefit the Maturango Museum building fund. Legal Aid of IWV totally funded by United Way About 125 clients last year received help from Legal Aid of Indian Wells Valley, Inc., a member agency of the United Way of In- dian Wells Valley, and totally funded by the United Way. The all·volunteer board of directors of the agency meets with potential clients each Monday between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m., hears what the needs of those individuals might be, and then decides whether the help needed should be fWlded by Legal Aid. No advance appointments are required. In many instances, the agency will pay for an initial visit and consultation with one NWC streets get new seal, parking not recommended Street paving Is currenUy IUlderway in the Center housing area. Streets will be blocked off while a slurry seal is ap- plied. Please do not park on new seal for' a period of 30 days. You can drive on the street as soon as road blocks are removed. Only one side of street will be blocked at any given time. After first work is completed, a second and final seal will be applied intwo weeks. Painting of house trim will begin in the Site "A" Capehart area this week. Units in the Hill area and Site "B" Capeharts will also be painted. When a door knob notice is received from the contractor, please cooperate in having all personal property moved away from the area to be painted. The contractor will take necessary precautions not to harm shrubs and bushes; however, if residents want to cover or pull them ,way from wood trim, please do so. Contact Syble Cope at the Housing Of- ace for more information regarding 'ither of these projects at NWC ext. l4lI. extension 417. Shipwreck Party at CPO costs $9 per stranded castaway It's party time at the Chief Petty Of- ficers' Club tonight. The CPO offers a night of enjoyment at its CPOA Shipwreck Party. The dinner special for the party is top sirloin steak. Tickets for tonights' event are $9 per person with festivities beginning at 6 p.•n. The regular dinner special for the c' ening is prime rib, served from 6 - 9 p.m., at $9.75 per plate. of the five attorneys who work with the group, but having such an initial visit does not ensure that all legal costs for help will be covered by Legal Aid. "We have a very limited amount of money," says Henry Espinoza, who serves as president of the board of directors, "and there are an awful lot of people who need help, so we have to be very selective." Many of those seeking help are referred by the District Attorney, courts, Kern County Welfare and other United Way agencies. Cases deal with personal, civil matters, such as obtaining restraining orders, divorce actions, child abuse, deal- ings with landlords, among others. Sometimes, notes Espinoza, the Legal Aid board can refer the client to another agency that can help, such as the Women's Shelter, or the County's Child Protective Services. He emphasizes that the Legal Aid board members themselves are not at- torneys and are not able to provide any legal advice. " All we do," he says, "is to use our judgment to determine if sending the client to an attorney would be an ap- propriate use of the moneys we receive each year from the United Way." Red Cross has open house Tuesday The Indian Wells Valley Branch of Kern Chapter, American National Red Cross in- vites all local residents to attend an open house on Tuesday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Red Cross office, 1811 Lauritsen Road. Aim of the open house is to permit local residents to meet the new Red Cross staff person, Diane Grattaroti, and to see displays of services offered by Red Cross in this area. Mrs. Grattaroti will also discuss disaster preparedness plans, and present information about Red Cross classes of- fered. In addition, there will be demonstra- tions of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Anyone with questions about the open house or questions about Red Cross ser- vices is invited to telephone NWC ext. 32il8 between 12:30 and 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Monday Night Football Members and guests are invited to view Monday Night Football on the large screen in the Barefoot Bar at the Commissioned Officers' Mess. For the entire season, the bar will be open on Mondays from 4 to 10 p.m. " Interviewing Techniques for Winners" will be the topic at the next open meeting of the East Sierra Careerwomen's Network on Wednesday, Sept. 25. Speaker for the meeting to which all interested persons are invited is C. Karen Altieri, Professional Recruitment Coordinator for NWC. The meeting will be held at LeParc restaurant, Heritage Inn in Ridgecrest. Net- working begins at6 p.m., with a dinner of chicken a 1a creme served at 7o'clock. Ms. Altieri's discussion will include how to take control of an interview when apply- ing for a job, as well as how to best prepare for such an interview. For managers, she will discuss what to look for when interviewing and how to detennine any potential problems as well as how to avoid the "snow job." Prepaid reservations are required. The price of dinner, $8.50, includes the meal, dessert, coffee or tea, tax and tip. Reservations can be made by mailing a check to ESCN, 429'Tepatitlan Court, Ridgecrest, CA 93555. Tickels can also be purchased at the Chamber of Commerce office at 303 South China Lake Boulevard in Ridgecrest. +++ Even though school has started once again, the NEX still has some great hack to school fashion buys for children and adults, as well as school supplies for a reasonable price. Tomorrow is the Grand Opening for Toyland, and free balloons are available for all children who attend the event. Auto care can be painless when shopping at the auto service center for parts to have the car repaired. While over there, check out the gasoline prices and save a few pen- nies. FRIDAY. SATURDAY SEPT.S, 7 NMISSING IN ACTION" Starring Chuck Norris and M. Emmett Walsh (Actlon·Drama, Rated R. 102 min.) SUNDAY SEPT. ' ~ PETER PAN" Voices by Bobbie Driscoll and Kathryn Beaumont (Animated·Fantasy. RatedG, 77 min.) MONDAY SEPT.II "'GOTCHA" Stlming Anthony Edwards and Linda Fiorentino (Drama. Rated PG·13, 101 min.) WEDNESDAY SEPT. 11 FRIDAY N THEWARS" Starring Brent Carver and Martha Henry (War Orama, Rated R. 120 min.) MCODE OF SILENCE" Starring Chuck Norris and Henry SUva (Drama, Rated R, 101 min.) SEPT. 13 IGI ALL AGES ADMITTED IPG) All AGES ADMITTED P.~nl.1 Gu,dllnce SuoggHI...-1 (RI RESTRICTED - aMe ..'her "lei Gr" Peak Max. Min. wind Fri. 107 70 22 knots Sat. 106 65 25 knots Sun. 103 65 26 knots Mon. 94 73 37 knots Tues. 82 62 26 knots Wed. 78 50 18 knots Thurs. 83 57 14 knots All measurements are made at Annitage Airfield. :: u .s . Government Printinll Office; 1985 - No. 20021 FROM: TO: PLACE STAMP HERE Naval Wl!'apon.r Cl!'ntl!'r. China Lakl!', CalifornIa 93555·6001 Vol. Xl, No. 35 I September 6, 1985 Growth hasn't altered VX-5's mission or goals Since its formation in 1951, Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Five's (VX-5) mis- sion hasn't really changed. It has grown, but it still comes back to a mission to operationally test new air-lo-surface weapons systems and evaluate initial tac- tics for thoses systems. Capt. A. Martin Phillips, VX-5 Com- manding Officer, Cdr. G. M. Biery execu- tive officer and severartop chief petty of- ficers recently talked to the Rocketeer about the squadron, it's goals, it's people and it's mission. A prime goal of Capt. Phillips (who assumed command in April) for his tour as VX-5's skipper is to maintain the close working relationship and rapport with VX-5's host command, the Naval Weapons Center. Understanding a need for testing and evaluation independence for VX-5, Capt. Phillips has placed a high priority in maintaining the delicate halance between developmental testing, independent operational testing and the continuing re- quirement for technical interchange be- tween the Center and VX-5. Cdr. Biery said it was, "extremely im- portant that the close relationship...be maintained because the overall goal for both is ultimately the deployment of operationally ready weapons systems," "There is a common end objective of quality product to the Fleet," added Cdr. Biery. The Vampires have what Capt. Phillips sees as a three-pronged mission to: - give weapons systems headed for the Fleet their "graduation test" in an environment in which they will be used. - evaluate initial tactics for uses of air-to-surface weapons systems bound for the Fleet. - and, the most evolutionary part of the mission, support the Navy's " renaissance" of Strike Warfare development. The squadron assists in developing tactics and proper employ- ment of weapons systems along with the Strike Warfare Center at Fallon, Nevada and Marine Aviation and Tactics Squadron One at Yuma, Ariz. Capt. Phillips said the basic mISSion also includes follow-on test and evaluation of weapons systems, picking up hardware A j ( ON THE JOB - AOAN Bill Bennington's duties as an aviation ord- nanceman with VX-5 Includes lIap brushing an F/A-18 lor corrosion control purposes. - Photo by PH3 Greg Hogan from the Fleet some time after initial deployment and testing additional aspects of its employment. Cdr. Biery noted VX-5 ensures sailors from the Fleet can operate, load and maintain weapons systems as they are developed. That's one reason the squadron wants a high percentage of Fleet sailors doing the work. Because VX..s is a test and evaluation squadron, concerned with air-t~urface weapons systems, it needs a wide variety of aircraft to carry out the mission. With at least eight different types of aircraft assigned. a real challenge to maintenance and support personnel is keeping them all working and on line. "There are no specialists here," said AMCS Patrick Crocker. "We have people who transfer in from an A~ squadron and leave three years later as an expert on six, seven, eight different types of air- craft," be added. ATCS B. N. Keen, Command Senior Chief, recalled serving with A~ squadrons where the arrival of a pilot transfering from VX..s was anxiously awaited. "They wanted to pick his brain for knowledge on the latest develop- ments," said the Senior Chief. The Vampires seek highly motivated, highly successful, self-starting, Fleet- qualified officers and enlisted personnel. Because of the difficulty in keeping Fleet-qualified personnel at the level sougbt, quality leadership, all the way down to crew leaders, is a vital part of making VX-5 the successful operation it has been over the years. The chiefs, talking about training, said they were especially pleased to see the results of VX-5's training going to the Fleet. The experience gained during a tour of duty with VX-5 at China Lake is without parallel in the Navy. Cdr. Biery noted VX-5 is a fine oppor- tunity for junior officers (Navy lieute- nants and It. commanders and Marine captains and majors) as Operational Test Directors who are caUed on to assume a great deal of responsibility. "They're given multi-million dollar projects," said Cdr, Biery, and asked to write a test plan, prosecute testing, evaluate the results (Continued on Poge 7) Skipper commends EOD for earning their Battle 'E' COMMISSIONING - Newly sworn in CW02 Gary Burns, accompanied by his wife, Becky, accepts the congratulations of LCdr. A. N. Briggs (right) Ollicer in Charge of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group One China Lake Detachment. - Photo by Clare Grounds Commending personnel who work on the "outer edge of the envelope" Capt. K. A. Dickerson, NWC Commander, made a fonnal presentation of the Battle "E" to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group One Detachment, China Lake. "This group performs work in an en- vironment and under conditions that would weaken the knees of most of us," com- mented the Skipper. He said he was proud of the people who had brought the Battle Efficiency award to China Lake. He called their efforts a higher challenge in explosive ordnance disposal. China Lake's EOD Detachment has been actively involved in research, development and improvement efforts of weapons like Skipper, the Hellfire missile, Harpoon, Walleye, Rockeye and more. Capt. Dicker- son characterized them as a well orga- nized, highly trained and deeply dedicated group ofmeo. Capt. Dickerson also pointed out the China Lake EOD personnel had been caIled the best detachment ever seen by their in- specting officer during Battle E competi- tion. They had to beat out 15 other west coast EOD detachments in day-tlHlay per- fonnance, training readiness and actual inspections to capture this highly prized honor. Inspectors not only rated China Lake's detachment as best overall, but said they were clearly superior in each of the several phases of competition. China Lake's detachment is tasked with rendering safe and recovering explosive ordnance that has been fired, dropped or placed in a manner to pose ~ hazard to buildings, material or personael throughout the more than one million ·al.:res of Naval Weapons Center land. During the period ending Dec. 31, 1984, that the detachment was rated on, they also renovated new facilities and made a major move while maintaining the same level of detachment readiness. (Continued on Poge 5) I , OCR Text: ~--------------------------------------------~------------------~------------------------- --- 8 September 6, J985 Museum exhibits weaving creations of former resident Featured guest artist at the Sylvia Winslow Gallery of the Maturango Museum from Sept. 8 through Oct. 3 will be weaver Jo Downing. Her exhibit is entitled "Fruit of the Loom." A reception honoring ber will be held on Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. at the gallery. All interested persons are invited to attend. Mrs. Downing began weaving when she was in high school in South Pasadena, and continued her craft when she and her hus- band, Bob, moved to the local area in 1954. She continued to improve her skills through many years of raising a family as well as being a Navy employee until her retire!"ent in 1975. Since that time she has been able to devote many more hours to her craft, including attending conferences and workshops where she has studied with noted weavers from England and South America as well as others. CONCENTRATION - Jo Downing works at her loom. Her weaving skills will be demonstrated by an exhibit at the Sylvia Winslow Gallery 01 the Maturango Museum Sept. 8 through Oct. 3. Mrs. Downing prefers to weave materials for clothing and other wearable ac- cessories. Her works on display include many of these such as stoles, coats, vests, dresses, bably blankets, table linens, and bedspreads. She will demonstrate weaving from 2 to 4 p.m. every Saturday and Sun- day during September. Commissions on the sale will benefit the Maturango Museum building fund. Legal Aid of IWV totally funded by United Way About 125 clients last year received help from Legal Aid of Indian Wells Valley, Inc., a member agency of the United Way of In- dian Wells Valley, and totally funded by the United Way. The all·volunteer board of directors of the agency meets with potential clients each Monday between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m., hears what the needs of those individuals might be, and then decides whether the help needed should be fWlded by Legal Aid. No advance appointments are required. In many instances, the agency will pay for an initial visit and consultation with one NWC streets get new seal, parking not recommended Street paving Is currenUy IUlderway in the Center housing area. Streets will be blocked off while a slurry seal is ap- plied. Please do not park on new seal for' a period of 30 days. You can drive on the street as soon as road blocks are removed. Only one side of street will be blocked at any given time. After first work is completed, a second and final seal will be applied intwo weeks. Painting of house trim will begin in the Site "A" Capehart area this week. Units in the Hill area and Site "B" Capeharts will also be painted. When a door knob notice is received from the contractor, please cooperate in having all personal property moved away from the area to be painted. The contractor will take necessary precautions not to harm shrubs and bushes; however, if residents want to cover or pull them ,way from wood trim, please do so. Contact Syble Cope at the Housing Of- ace for more information regarding 'ither of these projects at NWC ext. l4lI. extension 417. Shipwreck Party at CPO costs $9 per stranded castaway It's party time at the Chief Petty Of- ficers' Club tonight. The CPO offers a night of enjoyment at its CPOA Shipwreck Party. The dinner special for the party is top sirloin steak. Tickets for tonights' event are $9 per person with festivities beginning at 6 p.•n. The regular dinner special for the c' ening is prime rib, served from 6 - 9 p.m., at $9.75 per plate. of the five attorneys who work with the group, but having such an initial visit does not ensure that all legal costs for help will be covered by Legal Aid. "We have a very limited amount of money," says Henry Espinoza, who serves as president of the board of directors, "and there are an awful lot of people who need help, so we have to be very selective." Many of those seeking help are referred by the District Attorney, courts, Kern County Welfare and other United Way agencies. Cases deal with personal, civil matters, such as obtaining restraining orders, divorce actions, child abuse, deal- ings with landlords, among others. Sometimes, notes Espinoza, the Legal Aid board can refer the client to another agency that can help, such as the Women's Shelter, or the County's Child Protective Services. He emphasizes that the Legal Aid board members themselves are not at- torneys and are not able to provide any legal advice. " All we do," he says, "is to use our judgment to determine if sending the client to an attorney would be an ap- propriate use of the moneys we receive each year from the United Way." Red Cross has open house Tuesday The Indian Wells Valley Branch of Kern Chapter, American National Red Cross in- vites all local residents to attend an open house on Tuesday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Red Cross office, 1811 Lauritsen Road. Aim of the open house is to permit local residents to meet the new Red Cross staff person, Diane Grattaroti, and to see displays of services offered by Red Cross in this area. Mrs. Grattaroti will also discuss disaster preparedness plans, and present information about Red Cross classes of- fered. In addition, there will be demonstra- tions of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Anyone with questions about the open house or questions about Red Cross ser- vices is invited to telephone NWC ext. 32il8 between 12:30 and 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Monday Night Football Members and guests are invited to view Monday Night Football on the large screen in the Barefoot Bar at the Commissioned Officers' Mess. For the entire season, the bar will be open on Mondays from 4 to 10 p.m. " Interviewing Techniques for Winners" will be the topic at the next open meeting of the East Sierra Careerwomen's Network on Wednesday, Sept. 25. Speaker for the meeting to which all interested persons are invited is C. Karen Altieri, Professional Recruitment Coordinator for NWC. The meeting will be held at LeParc restaurant, Heritage Inn in Ridgecrest. Net- working begins at6 p.m., with a dinner of chicken a 1a creme served at 7o'clock. Ms. Altieri's discussion will include how to take control of an interview when apply- ing for a job, as well as how to best prepare for such an interview. For managers, she will discuss what to look for when interviewing and how to detennine any potential problems as well as how to avoid the "snow job." Prepaid reservations are required. The price of dinner, $8.50, includes the meal, dessert, coffee or tea, tax and tip. Reservations can be made by mailing a check to ESCN, 429'Tepatitlan Court, Ridgecrest, CA 93555. Tickels can also be purchased at the Chamber of Commerce office at 303 South China Lake Boulevard in Ridgecrest. Even though school has started once again, the NEX still has some great hack to school fashion buys for children and adults, as well as school supplies for a reasonable price. Tomorrow is the Grand Opening for Toyland, and free balloons are available for all children who attend the event. Auto care can be painless when shopping at the auto service center for parts to have the car repaired. While over there, check out the gasoline prices and save a few pen- nies. FRIDAY. SATURDAY SEPT.S, 7 NMISSING IN ACTION" Starring Chuck Norris and M. Emmett Walsh (Actlon·Drama, Rated R. 102 min.) SUNDAY SEPT. ' ~ PETER PAN" Voices by Bobbie Driscoll and Kathryn Beaumont (Animated·Fantasy. RatedG, 77 min.) MONDAY SEPT.II "'GOTCHA" Stlming Anthony Edwards and Linda Fiorentino (Drama. Rated PG·13, 101 min.) WEDNESDAY SEPT. 11 FRIDAY N THEWARS" Starring Brent Carver and Martha Henry (War Orama, Rated R. 120 min.) MCODE OF SILENCE" Starring Chuck Norris and Henry SUva (Drama, Rated R, 101 min.) SEPT. 13 IGI ALL AGES ADMITTED IPG) All AGES ADMITTED P.~nl.1 Gu,dllnce SuoggHI...-1 (RI RESTRICTED - aMe ..'her "lei Gr" Peak Max. Min. wind Fri. 107 70 22 knots Sat. 106 65 25 knots Sun. 103 65 26 knots Mon. 94 73 37 knots Tues. 82 62 26 knots Wed. 78 50 18 knots Thurs. 83 57 14 knots All measurements are made at Annitage Airfield. :: u .s . Government Printinll Office; 1985 - No. 20021 FROM: TO: PLACE STAMP HERE Naval Wl!'apon.r Cl!'ntl!'r. China Lakl!', CalifornIa 93555·6001 Vol. Xl, No. 35 I September 6, 1985 Growth hasn't altered VX-5's mission or goals Since its formation in 1951, Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Five's (VX-5) mis- sion hasn't really changed. It has grown, but it still comes back to a mission to operationally test new air-lo-surface weapons systems and evaluate initial tac- tics for thoses systems. Capt. A. Martin Phillips, VX-5 Com- manding Officer, Cdr. G. M. Biery execu- tive officer and severartop chief petty of- ficers recently talked to the Rocketeer about the squadron, it's goals, it's people and it's mission. A prime goal of Capt. Phillips (who assumed command in April) for his tour as VX-5's skipper is to maintain the close working relationship and rapport with VX-5's host command, the Naval Weapons Center. Understanding a need for testing and evaluation independence for VX-5, Capt. Phillips has placed a high priority in maintaining the delicate halance between developmental testing, independent operational testing and the continuing re- quirement for technical interchange be- tween the Center and VX-5. Cdr. Biery said it was, "extremely im- portant that the close relationship...be maintained because the overall goal for both is ultimately the deployment of operationally ready weapons systems," "There is a common end objective of quality product to the Fleet," added Cdr. Biery. The Vampires have what Capt. Phillips sees as a three-pronged mission to: - give weapons systems headed for the Fleet their "graduation test" in an environment in which they will be used. - evaluate initial tactics for uses of air-to-surface weapons systems bound for the Fleet. - and, the most evolutionary part of the mission, support the Navy's " renaissance" of Strike Warfare development. The squadron assists in developing tactics and proper employ- ment of weapons systems along with the Strike Warfare Center at Fallon, Nevada and Marine Aviation and Tactics Squadron One at Yuma, Ariz. Capt. Phillips said the basic mISSion also includes follow-on test and evaluation of weapons systems, picking up hardware A j ( ON THE JOB - AOAN Bill Bennington's duties as an aviation ord- nanceman with VX-5 Includes lIap brushing an F/A-18 lor corrosion control purposes. - Photo by PH3 Greg Hogan from the Fleet some time after initial deployment and testing additional aspects of its employment. Cdr. Biery noted VX-5 ensures sailors from the Fleet can operate, load and maintain weapons systems as they are developed. That's one reason the squadron wants a high percentage of Fleet sailors doing the work. Because VX..s is a test and evaluation squadron, concerned with air-t~urface weapons systems, it needs a wide variety of aircraft to carry out the mission. With at least eight different types of aircraft assigned. a real challenge to maintenance and support personnel is keeping them all working and on line. "There are no specialists here," said AMCS Patrick Crocker. "We have people who transfer in from an A~ squadron and leave three years later as an expert on six, seven, eight different types of air- craft," be added. ATCS B. N. Keen, Command Senior Chief, recalled serving with A~ squadrons where the arrival of a pilot transfering from VX..s was anxiously awaited. "They wanted to pick his brain for knowledge on the latest develop- ments," said the Senior Chief. The Vampires seek highly motivated, highly successful, self-starting, Fleet- qualified officers and enlisted personnel. Because of the difficulty in keeping Fleet-qualified personnel at the level sougbt, quality leadership, all the way down to crew leaders, is a vital part of making VX-5 the successful operation it has been over the years. The chiefs, talking about training, said they were especially pleased to see the results of VX-5's training going to the Fleet. The experience gained during a tour of duty with VX-5 at China Lake is without parallel in the Navy. Cdr. Biery noted VX-5 is a fine oppor- tunity for junior officers (Navy lieute- nants and It. commanders and Marine captains and majors) as Operational Test Directors who are caUed on to assume a great deal of responsibility. "They're given multi-million dollar projects," said Cdr, Biery, and asked to write a test plan, prosecute testing, evaluate the results (Continued on Poge 7) Skipper commends EOD for earning their Battle 'E' COMMISSIONING - Newly sworn in CW02 Gary Burns, accompanied by his wife, Becky, accepts the congratulations of LCdr. A. N. Briggs (right) Ollicer in Charge of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group One China Lake Detachment. - Photo by Clare Grounds Commending personnel who work on the "outer edge of the envelope" Capt. K. A. Dickerson, NWC Commander, made a fonnal presentation of the Battle "E" to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group One Detachment, China Lake. "This group performs work in an en- vironment and under conditions that would weaken the knees of most of us," com- mented the Skipper. He said he was proud of the people who had brought the Battle Efficiency award to China Lake. He called their efforts a higher challenge in explosive ordnance disposal. China Lake's EOD Detachment has been actively involved in research, development and improvement efforts of weapons like Skipper, the Hellfire missile, Harpoon, Walleye, Rockeye and more. Capt. Dicker- son characterized them as a well orga- nized, highly trained and deeply dedicated group ofmeo. Capt. Dickerson also pointed out the China Lake EOD personnel had been caIled the best detachment ever seen by their in- specting officer during Battle E competi- tion. They had to beat out 15 other west coast EOD detachments in day-tlHlay per- fonnance, training readiness and actual inspections to capture this highly prized honor. Inspectors not only rated China Lake's detachment as best overall, but said they were clearly superior in each of the several phases of competition. China Lake's detachment is tasked with rendering safe and recovering explosive ordnance that has been fired, dropped or placed in a manner to pose ~ hazard to buildings, material or personael throughout the more than one million ·al.:res of Naval Weapons Center land. During the period ending Dec. 31, 1984, that the detachment was rated on, they also renovated new facilities and made a major move while maintaining the same level of detachment readiness. (Continued on Poge 5) I , China Lake Museum,Rocketeer Newspaper,Rocketeer 1980s,Rocketeer 1985,Rktr9.6.1985.pdf,Rktr9.6.1985.pdf Page 1, Rktr9.6.1985.pdf Page 1