Arengo attends Army Airborne School

U.S. Army Corporal Jericho L. Arengo, a 2017 Custer High School graduate, recently traveled to Ft. Benning, Ga., from his post at Ft. Bragg, N.C. to attend the U.S. Army’s Airborne School.
The school, also known as “Jump School,” consists of three weeks of intense training beginning with “Ground Week,” where prospective paratroopers learn the basics of the US Army’s T-10D and T-11 parachutes, how to land properly and general jump procedures.
The second week of the school, known as Tower Week, consists of training on 34-ft and 250-ft towers and learning the different phases of parachute flight from aircraft exit through landing. A critical skill learned during Tower Week is also how to identify a parachute malfunction and how to properly manage the malfunction.
The school culminates in the third week known as Jump Week where students complete a series of five jumps from C-130 and C-17 aircraft, including at least one night jump.
Soldiers who complete the school then wear the United States Army Parachutist Badge, commonly referred to as “Jump Wings.”
Arengo and his German Shepherd military working dog “Shariff” are a certified U.S. Army K-9 Explosive Detection Team assigned to the 550th Military Police Detachment at Ft. Bragg.
Arengo and his brother, Sgt. Justin Arengo, also a U.S. Army soldier and stationed at Ft. Lewis, Wash., are originally from the Philippines and became naturalized U.S. citizens when their mother, Ruth Eiring of Custer, became a U.S. citizen in 2009.  Justin is a 2013 Custer High School graduate. Both brothers decided early-on to join the military to show their gratitude for the opportunities offered to them and their family by their adopted country.
Prior to his assignment to Ft. Bragg Arengo and his previous military working dog “Vito” were stationed in Japan and from there had deployed to Iraq as a K-9 Explosive Detection Team in 2019-20. Vito has since been retired from the army and now lives the easy life with Corporal Arengo’s stepdad in Custer County.