California Wing - May 2005

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Official Publication of the California Wing Civil Air Patrol P.O. Box 7688 Van Nuys, CA 91409

May2005

SEE STORY PAGE . . . 11

FFFFForororororgotten Hergotten Hergotten Hergotten Hergotten Hero Honoro Honoro Honoro Honoro Honored in the Deserted in the Deserted in the Deserted in the Deserted in the Desert

2nd Edition2005


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Eagle Call is an authorizedpublication, published inthe interest of the membersof the California Wing ofthe Civil Air Patrol. It ispublished by a private firmin no way connected withthe Department of the AirForce or the Civil Air PatrolCorporation. The appear-ance of advertisements in

this publication, includingsupplements and inserts,does not constitute an en-dorsement by the Civil AirPatrol Corporation or theDepartment of the AirForce of the products andservices advertised.

Materials for publicationshould be mailed to:

[email protected]

or California Wing, C.A.P.Eagle Call

P. O. Box 341Sunland, CA 91041

Col Virginia Nelson,Wing Commander

1st Lt Frank Geraty,Editor

For information onadvertising rates and space,

please call1-800-635-6036

COVER PHOTO Major Michael J. Adams, USAF, in 1966.

Colonel Virginia Nelson

Commanders

Corner

Tothe Members of

California Wing

Greetings to all of you. Iverecently returned from our CAPWinter meetings and feel com-pelled to use this opportunity toshare an important message withyou.

Our national commander,Major General Dwight Wheless,admonished the National Boardmembers that safety needs to be atop priority in the coming year.He outlined his multi step SafetyProgram to us. Please log on andread the Generals 12 step pro-gram and pledge linked directlyfrom our California WingWebsite Home Page. Major Gen-eral Wheless wants all CAP mem-bers to be proactive in developing

a climate of safety. Mishaps arediscussed further in this issuesSafety Corner by Major AlexKay. We need to think safety sothat we, and those around us, re-main safe.

I want to emphasize to allCalifornia Wing members thehigh level of importance that Ialso place on safety. It is a basicresponsibility of unit command-ers and individual members, se-

niors and cadets, to make safety apart of everything we do. Every-one who participates in an activitymust accept responsibility forsafety, no matter what capacity heor she may function in. Any onewho sees a potential hazard orsomething unsafe must speak up. Continued on page 3 . . .

Hazards must be accurately iden-tified, assessed and then elimi-nated or reduced to an acceptablelevel.

Safe practices must be a partof all operations. No job or task isso urgent that safe practices canbe ignored. Commanders mustprovide personal leadership andguidance as necessary to ensure aTotal Safety philosophy at alllevels of the chain-of-command.

Ensure that everyone complieswith established safety rules. Thismeans pilots are adhering to crosswind landing procedures, vandrivers following speed limits, ca-dets avoiding roughhouse behav-ior and everyone making sure that

Col Virginia Nelson

Commander, California Wing

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Commanders CornerContinued . . .

the steps to the squadron buildingare well lit.

Commanders must see thatpeople problems do not becomesafety problems. All membersneed to be qualified, proficientand have the right attitude whileperforming their assigned tasks.Attitude plays a big role in deter-

mining safety. Just because some-one got by once doing somethingunsafe does not mean that an acci-dent will not result the next time.We must deal with equipment de-ficiencies and attitude problemsinstead of looking the other way.

All commanders must makesure that they and their membersare familiar with the procedures

bers.

I have asked the CAWG Di-rector of Safety, Lt Col BillCumming, to seek out additionalBest Safety Practices and publi-cize them. We can learn fromwhat others are doing to promotesafety. The wing safety section isworking on a newsletter, similarto The Sentinel, for distributionwithin CAWG. The director andhis staff welcome suggestions andare available to provide guidance

and assistance to the CAP SafetyProgram.

The bottom line is that wemust continue to manage our risksto protect our members and ourassets. Every activity has risks sowe must identify and mitigate therisk factors. By doing this we willremain an efficient and effectiveorganization. THINK SAFETY!

of CAPR 62-2, Safety Accident

Report and Investigation. In addi-tion, all members need to be fa-miliar with the current CAWGSupplement 1. Group and squad-ron commanders need to haveunit supplements for this regula-tion. The CAWG Supplement 1needs to be posted on the unitsSafety Bulletin Board and in allaircraft and vehicle logbooks.

Hats off to Safety Officer 1stLt Greg Williams. For over a year

he has routinely emailed what hecalls the 60-Second Safety Advi-sor to all Sq 121 members. Theseare brief messages on varioussafety topics ranging from ORMto driving at night to snake bites.They are educational but alsomake one pause and think aboutsafety. He also sends month air-crew briefings to Group 6 mem-

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There is a lot of confusionthese days as to what is an AFAMand who can fly them and get in-surance/liability coverage(FECA/FTCA). Here are someexamples of potential AFAMs:

Air/Ground Search and Res-cue (SAR) Operations. CAP, asthe USAF Auxiliary, performsSAR missions to search for, lo-cate, and relieve a distress situa-tion including overdue aircraft,emergency locator transmitters(ELTs), and persons in distress.Normally CAWG would be acti-vated for the activities above by a

coordinated effort of the USAFRescue Coordination Center(AFRCC) and the State Office ofEmergency Service (OES).1. Mercy Missions: Mercy mis-sions refer to the transport ofblood, organs, serum, and medi-cal equipment necessary to re-lieve a specific time critical, lifethreatening situation where com-mercial transportation is unavail-able. AFRCC and OES are the co-

ordination agencies on these mis-sions also.2. Disaster mitigation and Relief(DR) operations. DR missions re-late to assistance needed for ma-jor disaster or emergencies (in-cluding all natural and man-madedisaster such as hurricanes,floods, tornados, major storms,earthquakes, oil spills, or other

environmental disaster). CAPwould normally receive DR task-ing by 1st Air Force after the re-lief effort has been elevated out oflocal agency control.3. SAR/DR training. Train crewsto respond to situations above.4. Homeland Security (HLS).DOD and USAF policy on HLSmission that CAP may be taskedto perform is still evolving. USAFand the CAP National OperationsCenter (NOC) will be the coordi-nation agencies to task CAP.AFAM status usually canONLY be given when support-

ing a federal agency.CAP ca n get AFAM status

supporting a local agency, but itrequires advanced coordination.An example would be that of a lo-cal sheriff wanting CAP to do aCD type mission for them.CAWG would first contact theNOC and immediately start work-ing a request for assistance(RFA). This coordination couldtake a week to accomplish. If a

state/local agency wants CAP tosupport a mission which couldfall under the non-combat mis-sion aspect of the AF, CAWGmust complete the same processabove but itll take at least 2-3weeks because itll have to go tothe Pentagon for coordination andapproval.WHO CAN FLY AIR FORC E

ASSIGNED MISSIONS?

You must show up on MIMSas a SAR/DR pilot to act as pilotin command for any of these mis-sions. This will afford you FECA/FTCA coverage and reimburse-ment for applicable missions.Other crew positions receive thesame coverage only if the PIC is aSAR/DR pilot in MIMS. MissionTransport Pilots that do not have acommercial rating and a class IImedical are not eligible forAFAM status unless they are en-rolled in SAR/DR mission pilot,mission observer, and mission

scanner training as prescribed byCAPR 60-3.

Lt Col Mike Prusak CA Wing Liaison Officer

LOs CornerLOs Corner

The Who, What, When and Where of AirForce Assigned Missions (AFAM)

Support the

Cadet

Programs

Our Youthare the

future of

C.A.P.!

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California Wing, Civil AirPatrol has had mishaps which var-ied from very minor to those thatinvolved thousands of dollars indamage. Procedures were not fol-lowed to report many of the mis-haps. The purpose of this article isto insure our membership isaware of some of the basic proce-dures for reporting mishaps andthat they can find all the details inCivil Air Patrol regulationsCAPR 62-2 and the CAWG 62-2Supplement.Policy: The overall purpose of

mishap reporting and investiga-tion is mishap prevention .

Prompt notification and re-porting of all CAP mishaps to theappropriate officials is manda-tory. When serious injury or deathis involved, there will be no for-mal or informal investigation con-ducted by CAP unless directed byNational Headquarters.What is a Mishap: An unplannedor unsought event, or series of

events, that result in death, injury,or damage to or loss of equipmentor property?The Mishap Classification:

a. Bodily Injury. These arepersonal injury mishaps resultingfrom aircraft or vehicle accidentsor incidents, falls, slips, beingstruck by an object, sport injuries,etc. Non-traumatic illnesses (i.e.,

By Major Alex Kay, Deputy Directorof Safety, California Wing

MISHAP REPORTINGtrend for mishap prevention de-spite the fact they do not meetmishap-reporting criteria. Reportthe following events:- Loss of thrust sufficient to pre-vent level flight at a safe alti-tude.- Emergency or precautionarylanding.- Unintentional departure froma runway or taxiway.- Unintentional departure fromcontrolled flight.- In-flight loss of all pitot-staticinstrument indications.

- In-flight loss of all attitude in-strument indications.- Any physiological episodethat affects the pilots ability tosafely complete the flight.

2) Vehicles. Ground mis-haps involving corporate or mem-ber-owned vehicles during CAPactivities, including damage tostructures such as buildings,fences, etc.

3) Other . Damage to or loss

of equipment not resulting in per-sonal injury will be reported andaccounted for in accordance withCAPR 67-1, Civil Air Patrol Sup-ply Regulation.CAP Mishap Notification Pro-cedures:

The unit or activity com-mander will immediately notify

SAFETY CORNER

poisoning, inhalation, or absorp-tion of hazardous materials, etc.)that occur as a result of CAP ac-tivities will be reported as bodilyinjuries. (See attachment 1 for alist of mishaps that are reportableon a CAPF 78, Mishap ReportForm.)

b. Proper ty Damage. A mis-hap associated with:

1) Aircrafta) Flight. Mishaps involv-

ing the operation of corporate ormember-furnished aircraft duringCAP activities, which take place

between the times any person,boards the aircraft with the inten-tion of flight until such time as allpersons have disembarked. Thesemishaps are classified as acci-dents or incidents, depending onthe severity. The definition of anaircraft accident is found in Na-tional Traffic Safety Board(NTSB) regulation, part 830 (at-tachment 2). Mishaps whereflight is intended, which are not

classified as accidents by theNTSB, are recorded as incidents.

b) Ground. Accidents in-volving aircraft with no intent offlight, for example, tie-downs failand aircraft is blown over bywind, aircraft is run into by a tugwhile parked, etc.

c) Other . Certain eventsare deemed important enough to Continued on page 9 . . .

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the wing commander and wingsafety officer in accordance withthe procedures outlined in the

wings accident reporting proce-dures when any mishap occursduring a CAP activity.

The CAWG Supplement 62-2is as follows (The followingshould already be posted at yourunit. If you get voice mail leave amessage at all any number youcall and then move on.):4.f. (Added) CAWG Mishap No-tification. HQ CAWG must benotified at once in the event ofany mishap involving CAWGpersonnel or equipment. Anyonehaving knowledge of such anevent should immediately notifythe unit or activity commander,and then call the following indi-viduals, IN THE ORDERLISTED, until one person isreached. That person will notifythe remainder of the list.Lt Col William R. Cumming,

CAWG/SE, (P) 310-301-9242,(C) 310-463-0303, (F) 310-827-3316Col Virginia Nelson, CAWG/CC,(H) 714-990-5148, (C) 714-745-5148Maj James C. Porter, CAWG/CV,(H) 818-882-9960, (W) 818-366-2188, (C) 323-823-3300Lt Col Steve Asche, CAWG/DO,(H) 661-399-0579, (W) 661-391-1397, (C) 661-747-7466

4.g. (Added) The above noticedoes not replace the notificationby the unit or activity commanderrequired under paragraph 4.a.4.h. (Added) Notification method.The above notification is to bemade by telephone ONLY. Donot use the radio or other means,as it may seriously compromisesubsequent activities.

5.f. (Added) Reporting Proce-dures. Following the immediatenotification above, the unit or ac-

tivity commander must completeCAPF 78, Mishap Report Form,and forward to CAWG/SE within48 hours of the mishap. Specificguidelines for completing theform, as described in CAPR 62-2will be followed.6.c. (Added) Mishap Investiga-tion. No investigation of the mis-hap cause will be undertaken untilso ordered by the wing com-mander. Then, the investigationwill be conducted expeditiouslyin accordance with CAPR 62-2procedures, and the completedCAPF 79, CAP Mishap Investiga-tion Form, will be submitted so asto arrive at National HQ within 35days of the mishap. STRICT AD-HERENCE TO THIS PARA-GRAPH MUST BE OB-SERVED.

MISHAPS. Unit or activity

commanders are responsible forcompleting and submitting aCAPF 78, within 48 hours of themishap. The CAPF 78 is an im-portant legal document, whichmust be completed correctly andcopies submitted to the wingcommander, state directors of-fice, CAP-USAF liaison regionand CAP region commander,NHQ CAP Chief of Safety andGeneral Counsel, and CAP-

USAF Director of Safety. Failureto send the CAPF 78 could resultin the member being held person-ally responsible for damages ormedical expenses incurred andwithdrawal of Air Force assignedmission status.

Member-Owned/Furnished

Vehicles. Civil Air Patrol mem-

ber-owned/furnished vehicles

may not be used in CAP activities

unless the unit commander gives

specific written approval. Trans-

portation to and from CAP meet-ings, encampments, and other

activities in member-owned/fur-

nished vehicles is deemed per-

sonal transportation and not

CAPs responsibility. CAPF 78

should not be completed in such

cases un less previously coordi-

nated with NHQ CAP/GC.

Preparation of CAPF 78. All

sections should be completed.

The Account of the Mishap

section should contain the basic

information of the event without

any reference to cause, fault, or

blame. Be sure to verify the per-

son authorizing the activity or

movement of the aircraft, ve-

hicle, etc. Telephone numbers of

that person and the individual

completing the report should be

included.

Can a Mishap always be

avoided? No. We must learn fromany and all Mishaps. We are in-suring that everyone that needs toknow is informed and will followthe procedures in a timely man-ner. Furthermore, any repairs(claims) can be made in a timelymanner by following the aboveprocedures.

Safety CornerContinued . . .

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It is with both great pride andregret, that I acknowledge BrianStover, former editor of EagleCall magazine, who officially an-nounced his editorial retirementprior to the formation of this is-sue. He has passed the baton after

5 years of selfless volunteerismand accomplishment. With yourhelp, Brian has brought us CAPnews approximately 15 timesthese past years, and we appreci-ate his high quality efforts. Thelast publication, featuring hisoxygen masked face on the cover,helped sum up his contributionsas Eagle Call editor when we usehis own phrase and say that he hasgiven us all the ultimate E Ticket

ride every four months withnews and pictures of the Califor-nia Wing of the Civil Air Patrol!I am proud of his dedicated workas a volunteer, and regret to loosehis unique and gifted contribu-tions. Thanks Brian.

As we look to the future, Icant begin to tell you the numberof folks Ive met who hate the ex-pression CAP is the best kept se-cret in California! I dont know

if they hate it because theyretired of hearing it so much, or ifthey just dont feel they can per-sonally do anything about it. Ei-

ther way, Ill bet none of themwould argue the truth in that mostannoying line.

Eagle Call, like so much inthe CAWG Public Affairs initia-tive is in the state of change. Wejust dont need to change the way

we communicate here in the Cali-fornia Wing, we need to explodeit! As you thumb through thepages of your Eagle Call, pleaseremember it is your magazine.You provide the content, you in-form your fellow volunteers aboutyour missions, training, promo-tions, and awards. We at Wingstaff only compile it.

Our three-a-year Eagle Callmagazines are published gener-

ally in February, June, and No-vember. The deadlines for articlesfrom you are generally twomonths prior to each publishingdate! That can be a long time towait to see your articles. We aredoing something to increase thespeed we get your material intoprint. We are also gearing up forthree additional E magazinesthat will come out to fill the gapsbetween the main publications.

The colorful hardcopy magazinewill continue to be our centerpiece, and the new electronic onlynewsletters will help PAOs to

both practice their art, and offereven more timely praise, informa-tion, and news.

One way to pick up our speedis to create a new CAP writers bu-reau staffed by cadets and anotherby seniors to help generate stories

at the Region, Group, and Squad-ron levels. PAOs can lead the ef-forts, but anyone can participate.With a computer and email, youcould be a member of a virtualstate wide information chain thatactively informs us from the topof the state, to the bottom. Ournews will be fresher and moremeaningful to more members andget to you far more quickly if weare successful.

OK, I wont talk about secretsor how well they are kept any-more. If youd like to drop us anote on something that is impor-tant to you, or is happening thatyoud like others to know about,concerning the CAP-official busi-ness only- please tell us- wepromise not to keep it a secret forlong!

New email for article submis-sions and communication with the

Eagle Call Editor:[email protected]

1st Lt Frank Geraty, Editor, Eagle CallCalifornia Wing Director of Public Affairs and Marketing

TOO MANY MAGAZINES AT YOUR HOUSE?

Leave this one in a public place as a recruiting tool!

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Mojave Desert, CA One springmorning, in a remote wildernesslocation in the Mojave Desert, asmall yet dignified ceremony tookplace. Nearly one hundred peoplegathered under and around a col-orful tent-like structure erectedfor the event. A velvet cloakedobject stood near the center of thegathering. Folks from around thecountry talked with each otherand explored the area respect-fully. At 11:00 am, everyone fo-cused on the mysterious object.The media fixed their cameras onthe scene as all became quiet. Aunique event in aerospace historywas about to take place. The firstAmerican astronaut lost during aspace flight was about to be me-morialized at the place where he

lost his life.Early in the morning on 15November 1967, Major MichaelJ. Adams approached his ship foryet another flight. He must have

Major Greg Frazier, Squadron 68

One Spring Morning: X15 Pilot,Major Michael J. Adams,Monument Remembrance

Continued on page 13 . . .

been feeling a bit different thistime out however, for there wassomething special about this day!Today he would pilot the X-15into space! At this point most ofthe worlds attention was directedat the Apollo Program and the re-cent, tragic loss of the Apollo Icrew in a ground fire. The X-15was old news to most, but not toMike Adams. He was about tomake his first space flight! Andhe was going to do it before thefirst manned Apollo capsule everleft the ground.

Mikes flight went smoothlyfor the first minute or so. Withoutwarning, one of his experimentsbegan to malfunction. Thisquickly led to control instrumentand control input sluggishness.

More problems followed. Mike,no stranger to in-flight emergen-cies, began to handle them one ata time. During the space flightportion of his mission however,

pitched up (down) forty degrees.No problem for the X-15 and agood pilot. Simply roll her up-right then pitch her up so you canslow down and get things squaredaway. This would have workednicely if the early and somewhatrudimentary computer assistedguidance system had not beentweaked during the spin. MajorAdams control inputs were not

accurately relayed to the controlsurfaces and thrusters. He enteredanother spin. The aerodynamicforces at this point tore the solidship to shreds. America had suf-fered its first reentry accident.Mike Adams was dead.

Manned Space Flight historyfor the most part had forgottenabout Major Adams and the manycontributions he made. In 1991,he had his name added to the As-

tronaut Memorial at KennedySpace Center in Florida. Just afew small letters on a giant stoneslab, on the other side of the coun-try from where he lived andworked and flew and died. Thedirt road to the rod & gun club atEdwards Air Force Base alsobears his name. Not much of a

things got worse.The ships head-ing slipped and itreentered the at-mosphere at anu n d e s i r a b l eangle. Adams

was entering his-tories first andonly hypersonicspin! He recov-ered! Granted hewas traveling inexcess of machfour at this time.He was also in-verted and

C/SMSgt John Bodylski (left) and Major Greg Frazier (right)

serve in Squadron 68. They wanted to build a monument

(center).

Major Michael J. Adams, USAF, in

1966.

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tribute compared to those madefor the astronauts lost in Apollothe Space Shuttle accidents. Allthis would change whenSaddleback Composite Squadron68 would join forces with BoyScout Troop 323 to create amonument to Adams and his stel-lar work in the aviation and spacefields.

Major Greg Frazier and C/SMSgt John Bodylski haveserved in Squadron 68 togetherfor years. They wanted to build anappropriate monument to Adams.Both had similar beliefs in awell-rounded CAP program.This is to say that they split theirtime and talents three ways intoeach of CAPs three missions.Without a doubt, this was to be anAerospace Education event ofsome proportion! And it was for a

good cause. What Frazier andBodylski were thinking went be-yond all this however. To them,each and every new Aerospace Edopportunity presents them withthe additional opportunities of uti-lizing Cadet and Emergency Ser-vices resources. Well, not just us-ing them, using them in a tactical,professional and historic manner.

When your Cadet Com-mander is also a Boy Scout, you

can count on some organizationalintermingling. This can be good.When both organizations gain asmuch as they did in the develop-ment, construction and dedicationof this monument, this is great!John Bodylski needed an EagleScout service project. GregFrazier needed a closing event forhis multi-year research project.

Mike Adamsneeded a monu-ment at the siteof the historicspace flight. At o p - n o t c hSquadron andTroop can, whenthey want to,build a top-notch master-piece. And thats just what theydid.

The projectof the few who ever earned astro-naut wings outside of the Hous-ton astronaut corps. Mikesbrother George and his son Brentthanked all for their efforts on be-half of the family. The U.S. Bu-reau of Land Management thenpresented Bodylski with a letter

of commendation for bringingsuch a wonderful thing to the pub-lic lands. In closing, taps wasplayed by a bugler as a beautifulred, white and blue CAP Corpo-rate aircraft made a flyover. Theparticipants slowly left the area,leaving the silent marker for allwho wish to see. It is off thebeaten path, but in the past fewmonths, many have traveled fromaround the country and around the

world to visit the site. Private me-morials have been left. Americanflags blow in the desert breeze.

Major Adams,you will not beforgotten..

needed a leader. Without a doubt,that leader was John Bodylski. Hedid the designing, figuring, pro-curing, supplying, scheduling, su-pervising, begging, toiling andthanking for the entire project.Major Frazier, an avid aerospacearchaeologist, provided the idea,

crash location, historical records,family contacts, media assistanceand tactical support in the dedica-tion phase. Many members ofTroop 323 worked long days tobuild the two-ton monolith. Manymembers of Squadron 68 sup-ported the dedication ceremony,giving it that Air Force flare forthe Fallen Air Force maverick,Michael Adams.

The dedication took place in

the wilderness as planned at 1100hours sharp. A color guardbrought the participants to theirfeet and the flag was saluted.

Frazier discussed the life ofMike Adams. Bodylski thankedthe many who had contributed tothe project. X-15 pilot and astro-naut Mr. Bill Dana rememberedMike and the fact that he was one

The Squadron 68 color guard performing its first wilderness

posting at the memorial.

One Spring Morning:

X15 Pilot Major Adams,

Monument RemembranceContinued . . .

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Mojave Spaceport, CA It hastaken five months for all the ex-citement to calm down at Scaled

Composites, the home ofSpaceShipOne. But as soon asthere was break in the action, KayLeFebvre, corporate secretary toBurt Rutan, created a Certificateof Appreciation for each Califor-nia Wing member who assistedwith the launches.

The three launches offeredthose attending a chance to expe-rience what we locales are veryfamiliar with, the wind! The night

before the Mike Melvills flightinto history, ferocious winds sandblasted everyone. Thousands ofcars poured through the gates ofthe rural airport. CAP cadets andseniors worked a systematic planto get everybody parked andsafely onto the ramp adjacent tothe runway. There was concernthe launch would be scrubbed.

CAP Members Receive RecognitionFrom Scaled Composites

Capt Maureen Pride

way and operational areas. This iswhere their training paid off. SaidCadet Master Sergeant Kenneth

Fitzgerald, (Cadet Commander ofEdwards AFB Composite Squad-ron) Being there was a life-changing experience for me andfor aviation. I plan to join the AirForce as soon as I can. I soloed onmy 16th birthday and Im work-ing on getting my pilots license.Im going to remember this expe-rience for the rest of my life.

The flight line CAP crew wasable to follow the historic space

probe as they stood with two-wayradios glued to their ears. Beforetakeoff on the final leg of the XPrize flight, one young womanmade personal contact with theastronaut. Cadet Senior AirmanAnastana Freeman of VoyagerComposite Squadron 120 talkedabout it later: I was so excited to

But as the skies began to lightenat dawn, the winds stopped, al-lowing for a beautiful sunrise to

launch into history.California Wing AerospaceEducation officer, Captain MaliseScholefield lauded the experi-ence: It is an exciting time as wewitnessed the launch. We havenot done a lunar landing in solong; and I thought that was allbehind us. This opens the door tothe possibility of going back tothe moon. For me it brings backmemories of landmark space

launches like Apollo. I still re-member watching it on television.That excitement is back. And thisshows that with the freedom wehave in the U.S. nothing is impos-sible.

Other cadets and seniors werecalled upon to assist Los AngelesCounty Sheriffs deputies in pre-serving the integrity of the run-

At dawn the record setting flight rolls on the newly renamed Mojave Space Port taxiway.


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be there. As SpaceShipOne taxiedpast us while getting ready fortakeoff I waved at the pilot, BrianBinnie, and he waved back at me.

I had watched the first launch onTV and SpaceShipOne looked sosmall. But as it passed me I wassurprised to see how big it wasup close and personal. Beingthere was awesome.

As they watched and listenedto Binnie reach for the stars, manyCAP members of the flight linecontingent shared what was hap-pening with members of the me-dia, briefing reporters in a sec-ond-by-second commentary onwhat the astronaut was experienc-ing. In the words of Cadet MasterSergeant Esqueda of Chino CadetSquadron 20: It was so cool. Iwas working in the media areaand had my radio tuned so I couldhear what was going on with thepilot. The press could also hearand started asking me questionsabout whats happening. I believe

todays experience proves that wecivilians can go into space and itisnt just the government any-more. It was all very exciting andIm proud to be in CAP.

As SpaceShipOne was return-ing safely to home base, CAPmembers Greg Felton, Randy

Severino and Nate Cook wereworking with deputies to keepback the excited throng. Feltondescribes a moment during theclimax of the flight: The fun wasonly beginning. During the hourthat WhiteKnight (the launch ve-hicle) was climbing, we were in

front of the VIP area. During ourcrowd control efforts Burt Rutan,Paul Allen (Rutans financialbacker) and Sir Richard Branson(Virgin Atlantic Airwaysfounder), moved out of the crowdtoward the runway. Rutan askedme for permission to move outonto the runway so they could geta better view, and, of course, wegave them carte blancheafterall, they were the stars of the

show.Chaplain (Major) James

Riihimaki of the Pancho BarnesComposite Squadron put theevent into worldwide perspective:I was impressed by the numberof people from other nations whowere here . . . that they had trav-eled from around the world toKay LeFebvre, corporate secretary to Burt Rutan, created a Certificate of Apprecia-

tion for each California Wing member who assisted with the launches.

White Knight and SpaceShipOne being prepared to make history.


CAP Members Receive Recognition . . .Continued . . .

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come to our small town. It wasvery inspiring to think what thiscould mean for our future. Work-ing together on reaching spacecould be a bridge between nationsfor better understanding andpeace. It was a thrilling experi-ence.

Though CAP served a smallroll in this historic event; to those

at the Sept 29th launch, we hold avery different view. As the WhiteKnight began making its way outof the hangar a problem arose thatcould have scrubbed the flightand ended the competition beforeever leaving the ground. CalTrans decided a section of roadthey had already marked withflairs and orange cones also

Capt Maureen Pride stated. Ihave often been asked why, since

my son is no longer a cadet, do Istay active in cadet programs? Itell people that CAP offers youngpeople opportunities theywouldnt get anywhere else. Thathas never been truer then now.Im thrilled to have been therewhen history was made. Butwhen I stop and think what beinga part of this has meant, not onlyto our cadets, but also all our se-nior members, Im pleased and

proud to have been able to makethis happen for CAP. And thiswas the last opportunity for myson, 1st Lt Matthew Pride, AKAPFC Pride, to participate withCAP before deploying to Iraq.

Twenty-seven CaliforniaWing units participated in thethree-mission event.

needed to be manned. Mary Ham-mock, one of the coordinators

headed straight for CAP. She ap-proached Capt Pride sayingPlease tell me you have fiveadults available for road duty. CalTrans is going to scrub theflight! Maj Carl Gerhricke (46),Lt David Lang (1986), Capt KateRoland-Braden (103), and CaptJames McMurray (49) were im-mediately dispatched. With theCalifornia Highway Patrol lead-ing the way with flashing lights,

CAP members were close behind.Capt McMurray stated later, Wedidnt miss a thing. I think we hadthe best place of all to view theflight. While everyone else waslooking in the sun, it was at ourbacks. They flew right over use asthey came back in. It was great.

This was a lot of hard work,but Id do it again in a heart beat,

CAP Members Receive

Recognition . . .Continued . . .

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Palm Springs, CA Lights Cam-era, Action! This was the attitudeof the two news crews who ar-rived at the Civil Air Patrol(CAP) Thermal Night SAREX atJacqueline Cochran Regional Air-port on April 2, 2005; 20 milessoutheast of Palm Springs, Cali-fornia.

The first TV crew arrivedfrom KMIR Ch. 6 (NBC affiliatein Palm Springs, CA). Ian Reitz,the reporter, along with his pho-tographer, Sean Elliot, made theirway to the aircraft for their safetybriefing and pre-flight instruction.

The reporter was anxious to takepart in the CAP flight and learnabout what the Civil Air Patrol isdoing to protect the homeland,and on this specific day, howtraining sharpens their skills.

Before the briefing, Reitz in-terviewed cadet, C/CMSgt JohnBodylski, about his experience inCAP and why it is so important toget our youth on board with thecadet program. Capt Frank Tullo,

the CAP Pilot for this flight,walked the media crew throughthe scenario of the day and in-cluded a safety briefing to ensureeveryone on board was fully pre-pared and ready to go. Tullo gavea short pre-flight interview for thecamera crew and then off theywent, wheels up right on time.Shortly after they took off the sec-

2d Lt C. Tiffany Kolosick

Squadron 68

Lights...Camera...Action!

ond media crew arrived.The new TV crew was from

KESQ Ch. 3 (ABC affiliate inPalm Springs, CA). RobMcMillan, the reporter and hiscameraman Rob Beard dove rightin and attended some pre-scannertraining before their flight. Later,

just before their safety briefing,they interviewed our newest CAPspokesman, cadet C/CMSgt JohnBodylski. He spoke about why hejoined CAP and about the oppor-tunities for young people in thisorganization. 2d Lt Tiffany

From left Rob McMillan-reporter-Ch. 3 (KESQ), Rob Beard-cameraman, Lt Tiffany

Kolosick, and C/CMSgt John Bodylski.

Media crew members begin training Ch. 3 (KESQ) on what they are about to expect

during their practice mission at Thermal Airport as they begin their coverage on the

Thermal Night SAREX.


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Kolosick, PAO for the event, wasalso interviewed for additionalCivil Air Patrol background in-

formation and about the reasonshe chose to volunteer for theCAP.

Maj Ken Gonzalez and CaptMichael DeVoogdt demonstratedsuperb skills in dealing with ourmedia guests. They took a specialinterest in teaching them aboutthe responsibilities of a CAPscanner and prepared them for thekind flight experience that ourCAP aircrews have on a truesearch mission.

As part of our media event ex-ercise, news reporter McMillansmission was to spot an aircraftwreckage at an old crash site in aspecific grid while up in our cor-porate CAP aircraft. McMillanwas unable to find the crash sitefor a long while and began to getfrustrated. As Maj Gonzalez, thepilot, prepared to return to base,

McMillan finally found the crashsite and was overwhelmed withjoy that he actually spotted histarget. Upon landing Kolosickwent out to greet the crew and re-ceived a big high five from the re-porter as he raised his voice in ex-citement thanking her for invitinghim out to participate in such anevent. A sense of confidenceoverwhelmed him as he smiledand realized that he had the poten-

tial to be a CAP member himself.Only time will tell if he does.

I couldnt believe how hardit was to find that crash site. I un-derstand how difficult it must befor CAP to do this on a regularbasis and often for hours on end.This gives me a new appreciationfor what CAP is capable of andfor their dedication to communi-

ties all over the United States ofAmerica, McMillan said.

Maj Ken Gonzalez consid-ered the media demonstrationflight a success too. I was verypleased with the way that

McMillan stepped into the role ofbeing an aircrew member and stilldid his reporter job. All along theway, he asked great questions andmaintained his focus outside ofthe aircraft, as any Mission Scan-ner would, just as he was briefedto do. When it came time tosearch for the objective, he reallydid the work. As such, without meoverly manipulating the circum-stances to make it easy, he located

a suspicious object, which endedup being the search objective, allon his own. The whole experiencefor me was a practical demonstra-tion of effective Crew ResourceManagement, said MajGonzalez.

The professionalism and con-fidence the two aircrews who par-ticipated in this simulated mission

exhibit, was in due large part tothe advanced preparation done byall parties involved. The numer-ous e-mails, phone calls, andstrategy meetings with everyonein this process truly paid off.

Planning is essential when werepresent ourselves to the mediaand it is amazing at how wellthings worked out as a result ofour team effort.

Both news crews were givenCAP press kits that included thenew DVD from CAP NationalHeadquarters, the updated factsheets, lap boards and pens fortheir flight and some CAP squad-ron visitor information. The com-

bination of community interestand support and the team attitudeof all CAP members involved,helped make this a model experi-ence. All media coverage aired asplanned and will soon be avail-able for CAP viewing on ourWing website and on a checkedout basis through Lt TiffanyKolosick.

From Left C/CMSgt John Bodylski, Sean Elliot-photographer, Ian Reitz-Ch. 6

(KMIR) reporter, Capt Frank Tullo, and Lt Tiffany Kolosick.

Lights, Camera, ActionContinued . . .

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Fifty-three members from theCalifornia Wing graduated fromthe first Squadron LeadershipSchool and Corporate learningCourse of 2005, held at the AirNational Guard 222nd CombatCommunications Squadron inCosta Mesa over the weekend ofFeb. 26 and 27.

The members came from theall over California, some from

over 200 miles away, to attend theweekend long courses taught byofficers of the California Wing.They shared their knowledge andexpertise in many areas of howthe Civil Air Patrol performs itsthree primary missions of Aero-space Education, Cadet Pro-grams, and Emergency Services.

Part of the cadet promotion

process is academic, and likewisethe Senior Members attendclasses to advance their educationand training, said Col VirginiaNelson, the California WingCommander. Schools like theSLS and the CLC are not just re-quired for promotion, they helpmake better CAP Senior Mem-bers, Nelson said.

The Squadron Leadership

School focuses on how the threemissions of the Civil Air Patrolare accomplished at the squadronlevel, while the Corporate Learn-ing Course addressed how thosemissions are performed at theWing level. Both courses showhow the individual member, theSquadron, and the Wing interactat every level to accomplish all

CALIFORNIA WING CONDUCTSFIRST SQUADRON LEADERSHIPSCHOOL AND CORPORATE

LEARNING COURSE OF 20051st Lt Chris R. Storey, Composite Squadron 56

Thirty-three students graduated from the weekend long Civil Air Patrol Squadron Leadership School in Costa Mesa Feb. 26 and

27, 2005, seen here with Col Virginia Nelson, the California Wing Commander. This is the first Squadron Leadership School of

2005 for the California Wing of the Civil Air Patrol. (CAP Photo/Chris Storey, 1st Lt, CAP)


three missions. These schoolsalso help prepare the member toserve on the staff at either thesquadron or the wing level.

These schools are not just forSenior Members. Cadets havingearned the Gen. Billy Mitchellaward, like Cadet 2d Lt BlancaContreras of the Los Angeles Ca-det Squadron 138, are eligible toattend the Squadron Leadership

School too.I was not sure what to expect

at first, said Contreras, who hasattended and served on the staff ofall the Integrated Leadership Pro-gram schools up to the SeniorNon Commissioned OfficerAcademy. The SLS was a verydifferent point of view from what

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I have experienced as a cadet, Iwas able to finally see both sidesof CAP, Contreras said. It wasvery motivating and is somethingI will take back to my cadets tohelp motivate them to learn howthe cadet program is run from aSenior Member point of view,

Twenty students graduated from the weekend long Civil Air Patrol Corporate Learning Course in Costa Mesa Feb. 26 and 27,

2005, seen here with Col Virginia Nelson, the California Wing Commander. This is the first Corporate Learning Course of 2005for the California Wing of the Civil Air Patrol. (Photo Chris Storey, 1st Lt, CAP)

she said.The members who graduated

from the SLS and CLC haveproven they are willing to take thenext step in their Civil Air Patrolcareers and to help make Califor-nia Wing the best.

I was really encouraged to

CAWG Conducts First Sq. Leadership School and

Corporate Learning Course of 2005Continued . . .

see 53 people at the SLS and CLCwho cared enough about theirsquadrons and about the Civil AirPatrol that they dedicated an en-tire weekend to attending thesevaluable classes, Nelson said.

LAST

SALUTE

Captain John W. Ferrara, Sr., former member and formerCommander of Santa Cruz Composite Squadron 13. John passed

away on 03 December 2004 after a short battle with cancer.The family asks that remembrances be made to St. Jude

Childrens Hospital, P.O. Box 50, Memphis, TN 38101-9929.

/ / /

Dick Vincent died at home of an apparent heart attackSaturday, February 26, 2005.

Individual cards or flowers may be sent to: The VincentFamily, 959 West Rosewood Court, Ontario, CA 91762

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During WWII, the Civil AirPatrol was called to duty in de-fense of the homeland skies andshores. They served on submarinepatrols and search and rescue mis-sions. CAP flew border patrolslooking for enemy agents andsmugglers as well as medical dutyflights.

Perhaps the most bizarre dutyof all was flown by the Civil AirPatrol members of the California

Wing. They were called to protectthe rice crops in the San JoaquinValley. The mission was en-hanced to include the protectionagainst the depredation of wildducks and geese, all in the fall of1943 and 1944.

Farmers had over 230,000rice acres planted that year, and asfood was a rationed item, anylosses could effect life at homeand the war effort in general.

Large numbers of ducks andgeese had moved into the valleyrice fields just as the crop wascoming to head. These manythousands of birds could havedevastated as many as 40 acres ofrice crops in one night.

Farmers first tried usingflares, smoke bombs and other

2d Lt Frank Galati, Cadet Squadron 153

Strange But True:Civil Air Patrol California Wing During WWII

ground tactics, but only suc-ceeded in chasing the birds fromone field to another.

In desperation, the farmersturned to the Civil Air Patrol.They called for a specializedaerial attack.

The California Wing was allbut grounded along the sea coastdue to the west coast defense re-strictions. All civilian aircraftwere grounded for the duration of

the war including agriculture agflights. Many Civil Air Patrolunits moved their operations in-land, so they could continue tofly.

Civil Air Patrol units from theSacramento area were given spe-cial permission by the military au-thorities to assist the CaliforniaFish and Wildlife Service on thisproject.

Early morning and twilight

flights by the small planes of theCivil Air Patrol, often at grassskipping heights, produced thedesired results. Using just theirplanes, and sometimes shotgunsand practice hand grenades, theduck cowboys, as they weresoon to be nicknamed, succeededin routing thousands of the birds

to safety.The Duck Cowboys flew be-

hind the flocks of wild birds, driv-ing them ahead of their planes.They drove the game into thewildlife refuges the Fish andWildlife Service previously pre-pared with tons of bird feed to at-tract and keep them out of thefields. The mission suited theCAP aircraft perfectly. Ducks andgeese fly at about 60 miles and

hour, as did the small puddlejumper planes of the CAP in theearly forties.

The cost of these successfuloperations was $1600.00. Thiswas considered a bargain by thefarmers, who stood to lose at lease$1,000,000.00 had the water fouland geese been allowed to eattheir fill.

Strange but true, showing thatthe Civil Air Patrol can, and does,

help our nation not only in sup-port of the defense of our skies,search and rescue, and the train-ing of future leaders with cadetprograms, we can do almost any-thing, even become Duck Cow-boys.

Name _____________________________________________________________________________

Address ___________________________________________________________________________

City ________________________________________ State _______________ Zip _____________

If you desire more information on the

CALIFORNIA CIVIL AIR PATROL,please complete this form and mail to:

P.O. Box 7688, Van Nuys, CA 91409

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Cadet Officers Basic Courseis the culmination of CaliforniaWings Integrated LeadershipProgram (ILP). But is it worth it?Many cadets ask themselves thatvery question before they apply.But before we find out why ev-eryone should attend COBC, wemust look into the minds of thecadets. Some just want theMitchell Award, some dont, andsome want the Spaatz Award.California has the best Cadet Pro-gram in Civil Air Patrol, in myhumble opinion, and the ILP isbuilt to make better cadets andcreate more prepared individualsto be of service to their commu-nity, state and nation.

At the start of the ILP, BasicCadet School covers the basics of

CAP leadership and followership.Encampment is the king of allILPs, in the sense that it is oftenthe most memorable and invigo-rating experience most cadetshave. Airman Training School isa new addition to ILP and a newbeginning to cadets; instead offollowing, leadership is thecourse of study.

Next in the program is Non-commissioned Officers School, a

vital school in CAP. It preparesthe new NCOs to lead cadets intothe future.

Senior NCO Academy is alarge, almost forgotten part of theILP; SNCOA prepares cadets forofficership, instead of left rightleft, they begin to plan things, totrain other NCOs and to offervalid points of view to each

school they attend. Monkey See,Monkey Do is the motto forSNCOA (created by SNCOAclass 04 at Lemoore).

The climax of ILP is COBC.Every cadet should go to all of theILP programs, but COBC is oneof the most importantonesperiod. COBC brings lead-ers from all around the region andputs them together in a learningenvironment, much the same ascollege. Cadets are expected to beindependent, just as real officerswould be in the field, they have topay for their own food, and makesure they attend each class. Bring-ing leaders from all around the re-gion brings many types of leadersand views on leadership, and bythe end of the school each cadet

leaves with an improved under-standing of leadership, and theability to train others.

Cadet Officer Basic Coursehad no flights, no regulated drill,and limited regulation on part ofthe school staff. There is a sched-ule of course, and regulated timesfor leadership activities, just likethose at NCOS. But cadets choosewhich classes they wish to attend;they choose when they want to

get up and when they want to eat.This, of course, builds one indis-pensable trait: responsibility. Ev-eryone has a sense of responsibil-ity, but COBC tries to perfect it.Classes on moral leadership,communication, Civil Air Patrol,the works; they all lead up tobuilding an officer. The responsi-bility of NCOs is to their flight

commanders. Cadet officers havea responsibility to their superiorsand subordinates, Senior Mem-bers and cadets alike. COBC pre-pares you to face challenges thatNCOs and cadets do not face.COBC multiplies a cadets oppor-tunity to build lasting friendships.

In California Wing, as in anyother, cadet officers are a smallfraction of the cadet ranks. Thatmeans that officers must behighly trained, just to be able tohelp all these cadets move alongin their careers.

I titled this Monkey See,Monkey Do 2. I did this for asimple reason. In the ILP schools(SNCOA, COBC, ACSS, theSNCOA), the motto is MonkeySee, Monkey Do because its the

truth. Cadets look up to us offic-ers and see themselves in us, andconversely we should imaginethree diamonds on the shouldersof each cadet, for that is what weall should strive for. Going tothese schools sets a standard forcadets and gives them hope.

For me, COBC meant hope,skill, and achievement. Hope thatI can advance and spread theknowledge learned there. Skill,

imparted by COBC gave meenough skills to help the ILP pro-gram as a whole, and achieve-ment. Graduating COBC is notaccomplished for a ribbon, grade,or a graduation certificate: It is foryourself, and the cadets that youwill influence: Monkey see, mon-key do.

Monkey See, Monkey Do 2Cadet Officer Basic Course

C/2d Lt Samuel Tellez, Los Angeles Cadet Squadron 138

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SAN DIEGO, CA Sgt Christo-pher VanGorder and Dr. JenniferHendry with her trailing dogFoley from the San DiegoCounty Sheriff SAR VolunteerUnit recently visited San DiegoCadet Squadron 144. Both arespecialists in tracking and findinglost people when called upon byvarious law enforcement agen-cies.

Sgt Chris VanGorder is aCivil Air Patrol major in thesquadron and also has served asits previous commander. He ex-plained how the Sheriff SAR Unittracks people by the training theyreceive, past experience, and theequipment they use. SgtVanGorder presented aPowerPoint lecture concerning arecent fatal plane crash of aLearjet 35A in the mountains to

the south of San Diego. He ex-plained the procedures in ap-proaching a crash site, renderingfirst aid, and securing the site un-til relieved by another law en-forcement agency.

VanGorder also talked abouthow they were recently taskedwith assisting the San BernardinoSheriffs SAR Unit in the Mt.Baldy area. The unit also assistedduring the terrible fires in South-

ern California last October whenthe Sheriffs Department neededevery person they could enlist.

Dr. Jennifer Hendry and hertrailing dog Foley, a Germanshort hair, conducted the secondportion of this emergency ser-

San Diego County Sheriff Department SARVolunteers Visit Cadet Squadron 144

Capt Dennis Ammann, Cadet Sq. 144

vices presentation. She explainedhow a dogs nose is extremelysensitive to smell and can track/

find all sorts of objects likebombs, drugs, people, etc. Foleyis specialized in finding people asDr. Hendry demonstrated. Shehad Cadet Daniel Roy remove hishat and place it in a plastic bag.She then instructed Cadet Roy toexit the building and walk a trailthat he thought the dog might notbe able to track. After giving hima 10-minute head start, Dr.Hendry placed Cadet Roys hat

next to Foleys nose. It only tooka half second to smell and Foleywas barking and pulling at hisleash! Once outside, Dr. Hendryallowed Cadet Roys olderbrother Cadet Joseph Roy to takethe leash while the rest of the

squadron ran behind trying tokeep up the pace. Cadet DanielRoy gave Foley a run for his

money but only once did Foleylose the scent momentarily, froma concrete slab to an asphalt road.Within about five minutes the ex-ercise was over when Foley foundthe missing cadet.

The outstanding presentationwas recognized as dovetailingwith one of CAPs primary mis-sions, Emergency Services. Thesquadron was left with a greaterappreciation of what the San Di-

ego County Sheriffs DepartmentVolunteer SAR Unit does andthanked these outstanding citi-zens who donate their time andresources to the people of notonly San Diego County but alsothe surrounding counties.

Sgt Christopher VanGorder and Dr. Jennifer Hendry with her trailing dog Foley

from the San Diego County Sheriff SAR Volunteer Unit visited San Diego Cadet

Squadron 144.

WE SERVWE SERVWE SERVWE SERVWE SERVE . . .E . . .E . . .E . . .E . . . THATHATHATHATHAT OTHERS MIGHT LIVT OTHERS MIGHT LIVT OTHERS MIGHT LIVT OTHERS MIGHT LIVT OTHERS MIGHT LIVE!E!E!E!E! !

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Lt Robin Easton, aircraft op-erations officer of San Jose Senior

Squadron 80, has been recom-mended for a CommandersCommendation having success-fully saved a corporate aircraft(and his own life) after a poten-tially disastrous in-flight systemsfailure. It was dark and stormynight in central California, asbright red, white, and blue Cessna182 N6183E flew from southernCalifornia to a Disaster Responseexercise at home base in San Jose.

Nearing home, Lt Easton ex-perienced an emergency whereonly his experience, expert air-manship, and cool-headed flightmanagement prevented a disasterthat in other hands might havecost Civil Air Patrol an aircraftand the pilots life.

In Lt. Eastons own words,here is his report:

CAWG Pilot Saves Plane AfterIn-flight System Failure

Lt Col Donald Towse, Sr. Squadron 80 PAO

(It was an) uneventful flightto Avenal although I kept an eye

out for icing on the airframe andmonitored the carb temperature.Around Avenal, requested de-scent to 8,000 feet to remain clearof any icing which started at6,000 ft in the San Francisco Bayarea and sloped up to 12,000 inthe LA Basin. ATC advised theycould clear me in 10 or 15 min-utes, at which time I entered IMCaround 8,800 ft, so elected to re-turn to 10,000. At Priest (VOR)

requested 8,000 as there was adusting of frost on the leadingedge of wing, and was cleared todescend. Tops were around8,000 so I was in and out ofclouds but not solid IMC.

It was then that thingswent from OK to potentially di-sastrous

Somewhere in the vicinity of

Hollister an annoying red light il-luminated, informing me of a lowvoltage situation.

The diagnosis: Cross check-ing with the ammeter confirmed adischarge situation. Checked cir-cuit breaker and cycled alternatorwith no effect.

Emergency action: AdvisedATC I wanted to climb 500 clearof clear tops while I checked myimmediate actions against thechecklist and POH. Nothing elsecould be done, so I:

(1) Turned off internal and ex-ternal lights, CAP radio wasoff already, ADF, DME, No. 2radio.(2) Retrieved and powered uphandheld GPS and powereddown a/c GPS and everything Icould, other than No. 1 radio

and transponder, in order toconserve volts.(3) Told ATC Norcal approachI was diverting to Salinas(SNS) due to alternator failureas I had seen lights beforecrossing the overcast and heardanother aircraft that had de-parted earlier. (ATC) gaveme a steer and advised descentno lower than 4,500 for ter-rain.

Norcal wanted to know num-ber on board, fuel on board andaircraft color for future referenceso they know how many limbs tolook for and how big a fireball toexpect or what to look for later.

(I then) descended in solidIMC in a left turn to go back towhere I had seen lights, planning

Lt Robin Easton and 83E safe at home at Reid Hillview Airport.


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to fly down the valley reciprocalto Runway 31 until I broke out ofthe clouds, had visual with the

ground, and could either fly underthe cloud base or continue southto Paso Robles which was clear.

I pulled Salinas Instrumentplates for ILS approach to 31, butat this time contact with (ATCs)Norcal was starting to breakingup and soon after, the radios died.Broke out of IMC south east ofSalinas, where I could see I wasclear of clouds and terrain somade a descending turn back to-wards SNS under the overcast atabout 2,000 with handheld GPSfor reference and flashlight toread the instruments. Once underthe overcast I was in rain butmanaged to pick out the airportbeacon so steered towards it hop-ing the runway lights were still onfrom the departing aircraft or thatthe FAA had activated them.Thankfully they were and I hoped

they wouldnt time out as I ap-proached. I could make out run-way lights and rabbit for thecross runway and used myhandheld GPS which has an HSIto line up for 31. Stayed just be-low bases until sure of makingrunway then slipped in (flaps areelectric) and made one of my bet-ter night landings.

In any event, it would havebeen bad form to scratch the air-

craft on its maiden flight after thepaint job.

Rolling down the runwaylooking for the taxiway I noticedvarious vehicles lit up like Christ-mas trees over by the terminal.When I parked over by the termi-nal I was greeted by the local po-lice and, fire crew and airportmanager who hadnt seen me land

but new I was down as the FAAhad notified them as they wouldhave been tracking me on primaryradar. After identifying myselfand showing ID, Sgt. Andy Millerof the Salinas police asked if Iwanted to talk to the press whowanted to talk to me but I de-clined. As I told Andy and Co.,the irony is we are the guys whogo looking for aircraft that makeforced landings and anyway theoutcome was of no interest as Ilanded safely with no drama.

Turns out it wasnt a figmentof my imagination; a lead to theexcitation field on the alternatorwas broken.

In conclusion, it seems that allthis training and currency flyingwe do is all worthwhile and itworks. Lessons learned perhapsare that flying single engine IFR(in IMC) is a risky business butwith our high standard of trainingand emphasis on safety, the risk is

mitigated. Other than taking thisrisk I cant think I did anythingwrong other than not carry ahandheld air radio which I keep inmy survival kit but find arentvery effective at any distance. Onthe contrary, fortunately I did afew things right. Not panickingand flying the airplane being thefirst and most important andkeeping situational awarenesseven when under positive radar

control on an instrument flightplan. Fortunately I stay instru-ment current and had a flashlightand my handheld GPS to reassureme I was heading for the correctairfield.

As we say, any landing youwalk away from is a good land-ing, and if you can use the aircraftagain, its a great landing.

Pilot Saves Plane After In-Flight System FailureContinued . . .

This is the transcript of theACTUAL radioconversation of a US Navalship with Canadianauthorities off the coast ofNewfoundland in October1995. Radio conversationreleased by the Chief ofNaval Operations 10-10-95.

Canadians: Please divert yourcourse 15 degrees the Southto avoid a collision.

Americans: Recommend you

divert your course 15degrees the North to avoid acollision.

Canadians: Negative. You willhave to divert your course15 degrees to the South toavoid a collision.

Americans: This is the Captainof a US Navy ship. I sayagain, divert YOUR course.

Canadians: No. I say again, youdivert YOUR course.

Americans: This is the AircraftCarrier USS Lincoln, the2nd largest ship in theUnited States AtlanticFleet. We are accompaniedby three destroyers, threecruisers and numeroussupport vessels. I demandthat you change your course

15 degrees north; I sayagain, thats one fivedegrees north, or counter-measures will be undertakento ensure the safety of thisship!

Canadians: This is a lighthouse.Your call!

Your Call!

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SAR Missions . . . . . . . .Airplane Crashes in a GrapefruitGrove, Two Survivors

Pauma Valley, CA Members of the United StatesAir Force Auxiliary, the Civil Air Patrol, started offthe year 2005 with spectacular find. A certainCessna 150 airplane, with its tail torn to one side andwings destroyed, lay crumpled in a North San DiegoCounty citrus grove, wasnt quite so lucky. The twofortunate survivors, one student and one instructor,

were found to be in fair condition, but dazed after themishap. The flight originated from Gillespie Field onroute to Hemet when the small craft encountered en-gine trouble and crashed approximately one quartermile north of the Pauma Valley private air strip innorthern San Diego County. A civilian pilot reportedwitnessing the crash.

USAF Search mission 05M0091 was initiated at3:55pm Sunday with an all call for volunteersearch team members in the Southern Californiaarea. Searches are started when the Air Force RescueCoordination Center (AFRCC), located in the state

of Virginia, determine that their satellites have foundan emergency transmitter signal turned on some-where in the United States and Puerto Rico, and theycan estimate an approximate search area. The CivilAir Patrol is then contacted to locate the source of theemergency signal and provide the appropriate ser-vices on site. Most emergency transmissions (over95%) are false alarms. All alarms must be searchedfor by the civilian volunteers 24 hours a day as ifthey are all real emergencies, and silenced as quickly

as possible. The search for Sundays signal startedjust as routinely as so many had in the past. This sig-nal, the first lost aircraft search in California for2005, was handled no differently.

Within one hour of the alert, a Cessna 150, on alocal training flight was located crashed in a grape-fruit orchard near SR76 and Cole Grade Road in

Pauma Valley. The pilot sustained minor injuries andwas later treated at a local hospital. The aircraft ap-pears to have been a total loss. The pilot, dazed, re-mained with the aircraft until local rescuers wereable to locate the crash with the assistance of a civil-ian pilot that was in the area.

The mission was completed, and volunteer mem-bers went back home safely, by 6:45 PM in theevening, barely three hours after they were firstcalled to help.

Pilot and student walk away from training flight mishap.

TEJON RANCH The FAA Flight ControlCenter in Palmdale lost radio and radar contactwith a pilot of a Cessna 210, propeller driven,six seat aircraft around 8:30 p.m. The pilot hadbeen reporting turbulence in the area. The plane

was on a charter flight from Fresno to SantaMonica. The United States Air Force Civil AirPatrol was notified of the missing aircraft andlaunched its search efforts soon there after.Weather in the search area included significantsnow and prevented the use of any airborne re-sources. Civil Air Patrol ground units assistedthe Kern County Sheriffs deputies in locatingthe wreckage as the weather broke early Satur-day morning. It was found very close to theplanes final FAA radar track data recording.CAP Mission number 05M0209A was closed

36 hours after the small plane was lost from ra-dar. There were no survivors.

Businessman and His PilotCrash Near Grapevine onStormy Night -February 14, 2005

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It seemed like a normal Fri-day night when Cadet 1st Lt SeanCloughens pastors son got mar-ried. But then, at the wedding re-ception, an elderly woman startedto choke on a piece of steak. Ca-det Cloughen successfully per-formed the Heimlich maneuveron her and successfully dislodgedthe food. The very same weekend,Sunday morning after church, Ca-det Cloughen witnessed a car ac-cident while he was drivinghome. Five teenage boys in aChevy Venture hit a youngwoman in a Dodge Neon, flipping

the boys car. The woman lostcontrol of her vehicle and hit alight pole. Glass and oil wassprayed all over the area.Cloughen pulled one of the teen-agers out of the Chevy and pro-ceeded to help treat a second teen-age boy whod been thrown fromthe car and suffered a brokenneck. Recognizing the danger ofmoving him in his condition, ca-det Cloughen immobilized the

boys neck with a blanket andthen got someone to watch thevictim while he went to help theyoung woman. She was uncon-scious when Cloughen reachedher. He checked to see that shewas still breathing and examinedher for other injuries. The para-medics arrived shortly afterward.Cadet Cloughen briefed the para-

Cadet Saves Lives as a Result ofCAP Training

2d Lt C. Tiffany Kolosick

Squadron 68

C/1st Lt Cloughen honored at the Group 3 banquet. Col Virginia Nelson presents a

life saving award.

medics properly before leavingthe scene

Cadet 1st Lt Sean Cloughens

resourcefulness was honored atthe last Group 3 banquet. Califor-nia Wing Commander Col Vir-ginia Nelson presented him with alife saving award. Col Nelsonsaid, Cloughen is a fine Civil AirPatrol cadet officer and I appreci-ate what he brings to the program.It was a pleasure working withhim in the recruiting booth at the

AOPA conference last year andseeing him in action there, too.Cloughen has been a member of

the Civil Air Patrol for threeyears. He received his CPR train-ing and certification from thecommander of Hawker Squadron128. Cloughen stated, A bigthank you to Capt DeniseEdwards for her superior training,which led to the opportunity forme to assist in the saving of theseyoung peoples lives.

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Corona, CA Service, Commit-ment, Dedication, these are thewords that Corona Airport Man-ager, Rich Brodeur, used to de-scribe the USAF Auxiliary CivilAir Patrol (CAP). CAP membersCapt John Binder and his wife,Capt Andrea Binder who havebeen instrumental in puttingstorm damaged Corona Airportback together.

This was the worst flood inthe history of the airport. ThePrado Dam officials notified theairport of impending floodingwhen the dam reached 505 feet.At that point there were alreadytwo feet of water entering thehangars on the west end. The air-port starts at 516 feet. There wasapproximately 30,000 cubic feetof water per second entering the

area, with only 4,800 cubic feetper second exiting.There are many aircraft kept

at Corona by owners who live outof town and even out of state.Many could not get to Corona intime to move their aircraft. Manyof the aircraft owners are elderlyand physically could not movequickly enough to get their air-craft out through the water bythemselves.

One of the worst situationswas a WWI TT22. The 72 yearold pilot/owner, known to every-one as Bernie, had recently com-pleted years of pains taking work,restoring the aircraft to originalcondition. There were only tenhours on the engine before theflood came. He felt that everyonehad too much to do and did not

Capt Andrea Binder, Chino Cadet Squadron 20

Chino Cadet Squadron 20Evacuates Corona Airport

ask for any assistance evacuatingthe aircraft. As the ten foot deep

floodwater filled his hangar, theaircraft floated off its jacks in-stead of becoming submerged,and as the water receded, the air-craft was gently deposited backon the jacks in its original posi-tion. The damage sustained thusfar is to the motor, the propeller,and the canvas removed.

Once the water receded, whatwas left behind was incredible.There were refrigerators,

branches, couches, beds, furni-ture, sheds, oil bottles and amyriad of other trash, not to men-tion 12 inches of the slipperiestmud cadets have ever seen. Cleanup could not begin until localHazardous Materials crews hadcleared the airport and declared itsafe.

Nestled on 100 acres of U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers land(leased to the City of Corona), be-

hind a willow forest in the PradoBasin, lies the small, communityoriented, Corona Municipal Air-port. This airport is home to al-most 400 privately owned aircraftand is used strictly as a generalaviation airport, with no commer-cial passenger flights. The Coronaairport is extremely active, withover 60,000 annual landings andtakeoffs. All funds to operate andmaintain the airport are generated

through their local user rental feesas well as state and federal airportgrants.

A major priority for airportmanagement and staff is that theairport always be self-sustaining.That is why Chino Cadet Squad-ron 20, and the other squadrons ofCivil Air Patrol who helped us,

Local news reports stated that the west end of the Corona airport was flooded under

at least five feet of water. The runway is at the top of the photo.

Continued on next page . . .

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Cadet Andre Bodine pushes plane to safety.

were so very much appreciated inour clean up after our huge flood.There was no money for the extramanpower required to do all thisemergency work, according toCoronas Rich Brodeur. This isthe cleanest I have ever seen thisrunway, I didnt know cadetscould work so hard. CAP CaptJohn Binder added: We had tostop sweeping, because we werestarting to sweep up the runwayasphalt,

Capt. Andrea Binder ar-ranged for safety equipment to bedonated. The local business own-ers of Cal-Olympic Safety gavegloves, goggles, masks, squee-gees, safety vests and more.Binder was also instrumental inorganizing the food for the volun-teers. Everything from Chick-Fil-A, Round Table Pizza, Red

Robin, Carls Jr., and Chipotle,said Airport Administrator, SusanLangham. She, and those neigh-borhood restaurants were a Godsend to feed the all of the volun-teers who worked so hard.

Cadets were tasked with se-curing areas of the airport thatwere unsafe or that had not beencleared for reentry. Many helpedwith squeegees, sweeping, clear-ing hangars and placing aircraft in

safer areas. Cadets and seniorsswept and cleared debris from therunway. Civil Air Patrol volun-teers worked for two weekends,including the Martin Luther KingHoliday, to help with the clean upat Corona Airport. Volunteersranged in ages from 12-50. Manyof the Civil Air Patrol cadetscame from the neighboring com-

munities of Anza, Norco, Corona,Chino, Chino Hills, Ontario,Hemet, Murrieta, Fullerton and

Riverside.We want to do somethingspecial for the cadets that volun-teered so many hours and workedso hard, said Fred Peters, a Mas-ter Lease Holder and one of theoriginal builders of Corona Air-port. We dont know exactlywhat yet, but we will do some-thing after the mud settles. Oneidea is to have the pilots that arecertified ground instructors teach

and certify the cadets that partici-pated.

We would do it all overagain, rain or shine. When CoronaAirport needs us, we want to bethere, stated CAP cadet BrendanDougherty. Civil Air Patrol is atthe top of my list for notification.I wish I had called them sooner.They came to me in my hour of

need and we are so grateful. saidCorona Airport Manager RichBrodeur. Irma and George

Bougeokles, owners of Paint byGeorge, offered their hangars tomany people that could not puttheir planes on tie-downs. Paintby George paints many CAP air-craft and even had Squadron 40saircraft onsite primed and waitingfor paint. This is the secondweek the airport has been closed,but this is the soonest I can re-member that we have been able tobe partially open, its amazing to

see everyone coming together towork as a community. The CivilAir Patrol has been a factor in get-ting the airport back to normal,Irma Bougeokles stated. TheCivil Air Patrol is a very wellknown entity in Corona now, andhas earned the respect of those as-sociated with the airport.

Chino Cadet Sq. 20

Evacuates Corona

AirportContinued . . .

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Costa Mesa, California Cadet 1st Sgt AaronMackie of Composite Squadron 68 received the callof his life in February. U.S. Congressman DanaRohrabacher called to inform him that he had beenaccepted into the U.S. Air Force Academy. CadetMackie arrived at his squadron meeting the very nextnight to share the good news.

His squadron commander Lt John Foote latercommented, Mackie has excelled and achievedgreatness and I congratulate him. I am sad to see himgo. He has been our first Sergeant for quite sometime and I am at a loss as to how to replace him whilehe is away. He has done an outstanding job and hewill be missed. I wish him well and look forward tohis return.

Since joining Civil Air Patrol three years ago,Mackie participated in many CAP activities includ-ing encampment, various air shows, and Race for theCure. He completed his General Emergency Servicestraining and an Advanced Communications UserTraining card (ACUT).

Mackies advice to other cadets is Dont ever

loose focus, study hard, and always reach for thestars. Never settle for less than the bestMackie 18 is currently a student at Golden West

College and a lifeguard for the city of HuntingtonBeach. A 2004 graduate of Huntington Beach HighSchool, Mackie represented the school on the waterpolo team all four years, and competed on the swim-ming and the track and field teams.

The skills he learned in the Civil Air Patrol,along with a good letter of recommendation fromMajor Alan Dow, secured a full semester scholarshipfrom the Falcon Foundation to attend North Western

Preparatory School in Crestline, California. The pur-pose of this preparatory school is to prepare prospec-tive cadets for an appointment to the Academy. TheFalcon Foundation, a private, non-profit foundation,provides scholarships to private preparatory schoolsseeking admission to the U.S. Air Force Academy.

Cadet Mackie had to meet stringent requirements inorder to be selected as 1 of 100 individuals awardedthis scholarship each year. For those of you inter-ested in the requirements for this scholarship, see theweb-site link for additional details. http://www.usafa.af.mil/pa/factsheets/falconfo.htm

Incidentally, Mackie has a younger brother,

Scott, who is Cadet Airman First Class and also is inhis squadron. Mackie said, It has been great to havea brother in CAP. While one of us shines shoes, theother presses the uniforms. We have both learned towork together as a team. The Civil Air Patrol has alsotaught me how to take responsibility for my actions.

Aaron Mackie of Composite Squadron 68.

Cadet Receives the Call

of His Life

WE SERVE . . . THAT OTHERS MIGHT LIVE!

2d Lt C. Tiffany Kolosick, Squadron 68

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C/CMSgt Marie Barrett, an 18-year-old DesertHigh School senior who has served with Civil Air

Patrol since 2003, is certainly deserving of the honorof being selected as Squadron 84s Cadet Of TheYear 2004.

With her immediate sights set on a college edu-cation in the United States Air Force Academy inColorado starting in the fall of 2005, C/CMSgtBarrett recently received a prestigious nominationfor entry into the Academy following a meeting withU.S. Congressman Bill Thomas.

A native of Pennsylvania, C/CMSgt Barrett didnot exactly decide on a military career by accident.Her mother, a USAF Major, was relocated toEdwards in July 2004 to continue a career in bioenvi-ronmental engineering. It was one of her motherswork colleagues, ironically, who introduced C/CMSgt Barrett to CAP as one way of beginning thecareer path that she hopes to follow as a lifelong en-deavor.

While many of her high school peers spend muchof their free time shopping at the local mall or takingin a movie after classes have ended for the day, C/CMSgt Barrett, the 2004 Squadron 84 Cadet of theYear, is often found taking an important step toward

a career as a fighter pilot. With regular activities thatinclude CAP meetings every Tuesday evening, ColorGuard practice drills on select weekends, or partici-pating in educational field trips at EAFB. C/CMSgtBarrett accepts each of her responsibilities as impor-tant stepping stones towards serving my country, ei-ther in this war, or during some other conflict that ournation may be involved in at some point in the fu-ture.

A soccer aficionado who also runs in cross-coun-try competitions (she competed in the state finals inColorado in 2002, where she finished the 5K with a

time of 23:08my best in that event was actually21:00"), C/CMSgt Barrett recognizes that she maynot be the best at everything I do, but I think that I tryhard to accomplish my goals, and that is why I be-lieve I will be successful at whatever I attempt.

The East Bay Cadet Squadron is proud to an-nounce that Cadet Staff Sergeant Samantha Nicoll

received an early appointment to the U.S. MilitaryAcademy, West Point.

Cadet Has Eyes, Mind, Toward theSky

Joel L. Mehler, Squadron 84/PAO

Squadron 18 Cadet AcceptsAppointment to West Point

Stephen M. Dolgin, Lt Col, CAP

Samantha Nicoll received an early ap-

pointment to the U.S. Military Academy,

West Point.

S a m a n t h asays she is veryexcited andlooking forwardto attending. Shesays she isstrongly com-mitted to a ca-reer in the U.S.Army as an of-ficer and wantsto have the besteducation andtraining possibleto prepare herfor the chal-lenges of being aleader. She saidI have a burn-ing desire to de-fend Americans and their rights, while extending lib-

erty to others around the world.Samantha has demonstrated outstanding leader-ship in various positions in the squadron and in heroutside activities. She completed Encampment Au-gust 2004 and was a member of the honor flight. Shesays that Civil Air Patrol has been very instrumentalin making her West Point dream possible.

Samantha is a top student at Foothill High Schoolin Pleasanton, CA and participates in varsity tennisand lacrosse. Her lacrosse team was undefeated andranked no. 1 in California. She was also the numberone doubles tennis player at her school. Samantha

also participated in an engineering, mathematics andscience competition and has acted as a peer tutor. Ontop of all that, she also finds time to hold a job at alocal ice cream store.

This is the second year in a row that Squadron 18has sent a cadet to a service academy. Last year Ca-det 2d Lt Clayton Ten Eyck won an appointment tothe Air Force Academy and is doing well in his firstyear there. The squadron also has a cadet in collegeAir Force ROTC and another now serving in the Per-

sian Gulf with the USMC Reserve.The squadron members are very excited about

Samanthas appointment and know she will excelthere.

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SAN DIEGO, CA PeaceThrough Strength. This is themotto of the USS RONALDREAGAN (CVN-76), the UnitedStates Navys newest nuclear-powered aircraft carrier,homeported at Naval Air Station,North Island, in SouthernCalifornias San Diego Harbor.

The USS RONALDREAGAN is big. It is as long asthe Empire State Building is tall.It towers 20 stories above the wa-terline, and can travel at speeds inexcess of 30 knots (35 mph).When deployed, it is home to ap-proximately 6,000 men andwomen on their mission to pro-vide sea-based tactical air powerin defense of Americas right to

freedom of the seas and protec-tion of United States sovereignty.I was shocked by the sheer

size of the USS RONALDREAGAN from the moment Ifirst saw it, Cadet Tech Sgt Jor-dan Petree of the Fullerton Com-posite Squadron 56, said.

On March 12, 2005, 23 CivilAir Patrol members from threeSouthern California squadronshad the rare opportunity to tour

the USS RONALD REAGAN.Their host and guides for the daywere Lt Chad Simpson, USNR,Petty Officer 3rd Class Laura We-ber, Petty Officers 2nd ClassTracey Borrero, Royce Jones,John Obispo, and Seaman JohnnyDouglas. Throughout the day,these men and women displayedgreat pride in being a

1st Lt Chris Storey, Fullerton Composite Squadron 56

Capt Dennis Ammann, Cadet Squadron 144

CAP Squadrons Tour Navys NewestAircraft Carrier USS RONALD REAGAN

crewmember aboard the USSRONALD REAGAN. Simpsonalso has the distinction of being aplank owner. In naval terminol-ogy, a plank owner is one of theoriginal commissioningcrewmembers of a ship.

The tour began with a shortlesson on naval etiquette. CivilAir Patrol members were in-structed on the custom of salutingthe national ensign flying fromthe stern, the back end of the shipin civilian terms, and the officerof the deck upon boarding andleaving a commissioned vessel.Members also received a briefingon safety while aboard. The USSRONALD REAGAN is, after all,a warship.

EA-6B Prowlers, E-2CHawkeyes, C-2A Greyhounds,and SH-60F Sea Hawk helicop-ters are stored and maintained inbattle ready condition.

After ascending three verysteep flights of stairs, called lad-ders aboard a ship, the grouptoured a ready room used by E-2CHawkeye flight crews for missionbriefings and debriefings.

All the aircraft sorties flownare dependant on the specific andoverall mission of the USSRONALD REAGAN. From theaircraft fuel load to the types ofweapons carried, everything ismission driven, Simpson said.

After what seemed anotherendless maze of passageways, the

group arrived in the forecastle, orfocsle in naval terms, where theanchor chains for the two massive30-ton anchors are handled. TheUSS RONALD REAGAN is bigand so are its anchors and chains.Each link of anchor chain weighs360 pounds. On a ship of this size,dropping or raising anchor can bedangerous and requires close co-ordination and teamwork. PettyOfficer 2nd Class Royce Jones

explained the vital importance ofteamwork in this or any type ofhazardous environment. Jones, anAviation Support EquipmentTechnician, also explained theimportance of leaders holdingthemselves to a higher standardand always setting a good ex-ample for those you lead.

There is value

in always being

correct in your

actions. Learn

good habits and

apply them at

all times, even

when nobody is

watching.

Hangar Bay Number One wasthe first stop where, along withtwo other below deck hangarbays, 80 combat aircraft such asF/A-18 Hornets, S-3A Vikings, Continued on page 47 . . .

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29/33

There is value in always be-ing correct in your actions. Learngood habits and apply them at all

times, even when nobody iswatching, Jones said.

After more winding passage-ways the group stepped out ontothe flight deck. The USSRONALD REAGAN is giganticand the flight deck is no excep-tion. The flight deck covers fourand a half acres with four aircraftlaunching catapults; two bowcats and two waist cats(amidships). Superheated steamat 1,200 psi, from the ships twonuclear reactors, is used to hurl anaircraft from zero to 120 mph inthree seconds, creating a force ofthree Gs.

A catapult launch from anaircraft carrier is the ride of a life-time, Simpson said.

Simpson explained the pro-cess of how the USS RONALDREAGAN launches and recovers

its aircraft. There is enough spaceon the flight deck that aircraft canbe simultaneously launched andrecovered, or trapped as the Navycalls it, by three massive arrestingcables stretching across the rearportion of the flight deck. The ar-resting gear is so powerful it canstop a 28-ton aircraft traveling at150 mph in less than 400 feet.

The group toured thebubble, a tiny glass enclosed

compartment protruding abovethe surface of the flight deckwhere the catapult officer controlsthe actual launch of each aircraft.Simpson also explained the roleof the Landing Signal Officer(LSO) stationed on a platform justoff the edge of the flight deck.The job of the LSO is to talk

On the bridge of the USS RONALD REGAN, Lt. Chad Simpson, USNR, explains to

a group of Civil Air Patrol Cadets the intricacies of maneuvering a ship this big in for-

mation with other ships during a tour on Feb. 12, 2005, at the ships homeport of

San Diego, CA. Simpson, one of several on board the USS RONALD REAGAN

qualified to drive the ship, explained the importance of teamwork and communica-

tions when underway in close quarters. (CAP photo/Capt Dennis Ammann)

Members of the Civil Air Patrol aboard the aircraft carrier USS RONALD REAGAN

(CVN-76) during a tour on Feb. 12, 2005, at the ships homeport of San Diego, CA.

Cadet and Senior Members of the Civil Air Patrol saw firsthand the newest example

of how the United States Navy can project tactical air power over sea and land.

(CAP photo/1st Lt Chris Storey)

USS RONALD REAGANContinued . . .


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down and guide each aircraft to asafe landing and evaluate eachone to ensure the pilots are always

performing at their best.Through another maze of pas-

sageways and up more ladders to14 decks above the waterline, inthe towering superstructure of theUSS RONALD REAGAN knownas the Island, is the PrimaryFlight Control station. From herethe Air Boss has an unobstructedview of the entire flight deck andcommands all of the flight deckoperations.

Up another ladder, now over100 feet above the waterline, isthe Bridge. From here, the captaindirects the movement of the USSRONALD REAGAN while atsea. From the flat-screen displaysto the fiber optic LAN, everythingon board the newest ship of thefleet is state-of-the-art. Promi-nently mounted on the bulkheadbehind the helmsman is a 406

MHz Emergency Position Indi-cating Radio Beacon (EPIRB),the maritime equivalent of the air-craft Emergency Locator Trans-mitter (ELT) with which Civil AirPatrol members are so familiar.As powerful as the ship is, onestill needs a way to call for help.Even with all of the high-tech andits state-of-the-art systems, theship is steered the same way thatships have been steered for hun-

dreds of years, by a sailor stand-ing behind a wooden ships wheel.

Simpson is a naval aviator,but he is also a qualified officer-

of-the-deck when underway andwas able to explain his job of ma-neuvering the ship while at sea

and in close formation with otherships of the battle group. This isan enormous responsibility, espe-cially at night during flight opera-tions, and Simpson is one of a se-lect few members of the crewwho is qualified to drive the ship.The tour and Simpsons explana-tions of how the aircraft carrierfills such a vital role in protectingAmerica was certainly not lost onthose members in attendance.

It all came together to showme the power of the aircraft car-rier and its import role in protect-ing our country, Petree said.

Being a floating city, themedical department of the USSRONALD REAGAN is completewith surgical suites, a traumalevel emergency department, adental clinic, and an outpatientclinic. This miniature hospital is

capable of treating all types of in-juries and maintaining the healthof the approximately 6,000 menand women who will ultimatelycall the USS RONALDREAGAN their home, some fortwo years at a time.

It is fitting that the shipnamed after our 40th Presidentand Commander in Chief has aspace dedicated to preserving thememory of The Great Communi-

cator. The President RonaldReagan Room is adorned withphotographs, video screens play-ing some of his greatest quotes,

and artifacts commemorating thelife and achievements of RonaldReagan. The centerpiece of the

President Ronald Reagan Roomis a uni

Documents

California Wing - May 2005