Miss Illinois Blog
Trip To Mississippi!
March 17, 2010 | BLOG #9 | by Miss Illinois 2009 Erin O'Connor
On March 3rd I had the honor of traveling from Peoria, Illinois to Camp Shelby in Mississippi to visit the Illinois National Guard. I arrived at the 182nd Air Force Base around 7:30 in the morning for a safety briefing. About 50 visitors, civic leaders and media representatives flew on a C-130 to Camp Shelby. Among the visitors were Major General Dennis Celletti, US Army, Major Brad Leighton, US Army and Gold Star Father Phil Clarke-father of USMC Kevin Clarke KIA in Iraq.
As our bus approached the C-130 I became a little bit apprehensive, I had never seen such a huge aircraft! Luckily my friend Joe Cantafio (USO entertainer) was there to reassure me. While boarding the plane I was offered a seat in the cabin. I was buckled in and listened quietly while the two pilots, flight engineer and navigator ticked off items on their checklists. I have always loved flying, but I had never been in the front of a plane before, what a treat to see how everything works! After the plane took off the crew and I got to know each other. They answered all my questions about the plane, their time in the service, and I in turn answered all their burning pageant questions. Some of the crew even took pictures with the Miss Illinois crown! I was so excited about seeing the inner workings of the aircraft I elected to stand through the whole flight for a better view.
After landing at Bobby Chain Airfield we were transported to Camp Shelby were we observed a demonstration of the Shadow 200 Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle System operated by the soldiers of Delt, B-33BSTB. The Shadow 200 is an aircraft that flies at extremely high altitudes and provides brigade level commanders with real time intelligence of what is happening on the ground while being virtually undetectable. The Shadow 200 was launched from a hydraulic catapult at 70 knots. While the small aircraft was flying hundreds of feet over head, we could see the screen with high definition video feed. The TAUS crew is able to support conventional combat and raids, perform counter mortar operations, provide a secure communications relay over large distances and assist with search and rescue operations.
While on base, I also had the opportunity to thank the soldiers for their service. Major General Celletti gave special recognition to certain members of the TAUS crew, and asked me to help him award the honors. I was honored when he awarded me his coin. As we flew home that night, I could watch the sun set from the plane. Gratitude flooded my heart as I realized that I got to expedience something very few people have the opportunity to do. Thank you o everyone who made that day possible for me. As always, we thank our service men and women for their sacrifice and their willingness to risk their lives everyday for our freedom.
I am thrilled to announce that next week I will be flying to Washington D.C. to address congress about the dangers of inddoor tanning salon and my platform of Skin Cancer Prevention. Please continue to check the website as we post more information!
Erin O'Connor
Miss Illinois 2009