Cadets train on Blackhawks

  Wednesday, March 13, 2013 2:00 AM
  News

Pittsburg, KS

Some people complain about parking on the Pittsburg State University campus, but Josh Urban didn’t have any problems finding a spot Thursday. Of course it helps if your vehicle weighs eight tons and is Army green.

Cpt. Urban, a 2004 PSU grad, was one of the pilots for three UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from the Kansas Army National Guard's 108th Aviation Battalion that were part of a cadet training exercise.

The helicopters came from Topeka and landed in the practice field at Ford and Homer streets, where cadets trained on how to board and disembark from a running helicopter. From campus, they were taken to the Plagens Conservation Area where they battled an enemy force composed of senior cadets.

Urban said he has participated in numerous training missions at PSU and always enjoys coming back to his alma mater.

“It is always enjoyable to come back and work with the young cadets,” Urban said. “I remember what it’s like.”

After receiving his commission and graduating in 2004, Urban said, he attended flight school in Alabama. He was deployed to Iraq in 2006-2007 and to Kuwait in 2011-2012. Today, he works full-time for the Kansas Army National Guard.

Urban said the Blackhawks used for the PSU training are versatile workhorses for the Army. They are used not only in combat and for transportation, but also in domestic disaster situations to which the National Guard may be called to respond.

Cpt. Josh Urban