Cadets take fight at Civil Air Patrol glider school

The skies over Socorro saw glider flight after glider flight last week as Civil Air Patrol cadets worked toward becoming certified pilots as part of a program sponsored by the CAP and the U.S. Air Force.

It's an elite brotherhood in the CAP, where the cadets work toward different career goals while also supporting each other along the way.

As they watch one of their brethren hundreds of feet in the air in his glider about to take flight, there are some nervous looks until the radio squawks "Ka-Chow," the catchphrase of animation star Lightning McQueen of the Pixar franchise Cars series.

The group breaks out into cheers and laughter as cadet Josiah Peacock releases his glider for his very first solo flight. Ten days of intensive classroom and flight training have led to this moment, when he's finally earned the rating to go solo.

Peacock's tow pilot has taken him on a slightly different pattern than the one he did when he had an instructor in the backseat. The instructor's weight had been counterbalanced with a bag of weights. Peacock's flight pattern is more westward and southerly, and he perfectly rides downwind before making his turn back upwind. He sails over part of the City of Socorro and makes his approach over a large ditch before bringing the runway into center under his glider.

The glider's two wheels touch down along the painted stripes, and a couple of hundred feet later, his aircraft comes to a halt in the exact spot needed for the tow plane to hook up to the next hopeful. His fellow cadets rush out to pull Peacock from his seat and pose for pictures, and his joy is equally shared.

Peacock is from Wichita, Kansas. At 16, he is about the average age of the cadets seeking their glider certifications. He's attending the CAP glider school to check out his life choices.

"If it makes me the most money I will probably fly as a career. I like flying. It's a good hobby," Peacock said. "But I came here to learn if I wanted to make it career choice and get a little bit more understanding about aviation."

Peacock is far from being the youngest at this year's school; that honor belongs to 14-year-old Kegan King, who soloed on his birthday in Pryor, OK, earlier this year.

King is an excellent example of the camaraderie enjoyed by the CAP cadets as he helps with the logistics of the camp and gets his fellow cadets into the air.

"They need help. I've been helping on the simulators because the instructors can't be everywhere at once," King said.

With aspirations of attending the U.S. Naval Academy and becoming an astronaut, King has already taken the first step toward earning an engine-powered plane license and a military career.

Retired Air Force pilot Brad Oliver spent 28 years in the service and now works with the Air Force program that enables the CAP to carry on its glider flight training program.

"We manage a grant the Air Force gives to Civil Air Patrol. It covers Air Force missions that CAP performs. I work as a partner with CAP between them and the federal partner," Oliver said.

Friday's "graduation" to solo status almost didn't happen for several of the cadets due to weather restrictions that would have allowed them to fly with an instructor but not solo.

The wind kept edging up above the allowable limits, and when it exceeded those, the flight training began to focus on preparation for a solo flight.

Far off in the distant south, the sky was smattered with rain clouds, and their movements brought the wind back down, allowing cadets to continue their flights.

Stephen James was one of the cadets standing at the cusp of going solo only to be "grounded," and he admits it was a roller-coaster of emotions.

"The weather was not cooperating all week. We had a ton of maintenance issues, and I did not really think I was going to get solo. I was really disappointed because I had really high expectations of this camp," James said.

The two and a half years that had led him to the solo runway seemed like they were going to fizzle. The cadets would be able to return to their home squadrons and fly there, but when you're on the brink of solo flight, the experience can't come soon enough.

Was the flight the biggest challenge in the life of the future Coast Guard helicopter rescue pilot hopeful?

"Absolutely, 100 percent it was. For a moment there I was panicking a little bit on the landing. I was a little bit off. Then I just turned it into a slip because I was a little bit high. I brought it back in and it ended up working out. About half the time, I didn't fully comprehend there was no instructor on board. I'm still kind of in shock," James said.

This is the second year the 10-day glider school has been held in Socorro, home to the Civil Air Patrol Socorro Composite Squadron.

LTC Dave Finley takes an active role in promoting the CAP and told El Defensor Chieftain that Socorro is playing into the CAP's plans to include an upcoming Summer Encampment on the campus of New Mexico Tech. It's a week-long mini bootcamp for cadets.

"It is a week of intense work with the cadets. It's a milestone event for cadets. We want every cadet to get to do one encampment, usually in their first year. There will be kids from all over the state. It's probably 80 or so, plus of them," Finley said.

The encampment features a full day with cadets first call (wakeup) coming at 0500 hours (5 a.m.), a group reveille formation 15 minutes later, followed by an hour of daily calisthenics/sports, a 20-minute shower and uniform change and breakfast at 0700 hours.

Along the way, cadets will do drill and ceremonies and go through dormitory and uniform inspections. It won't be all spit and polish with the encampment also designed to spark the imaginations of the young men and women toward a possible military career. The graduation ceremony is set for 4 p.m. on Sunday.

"They're going to do a lot of drill, physical fitness and aerospace education. Typically, they go up to Kirtland Air Force Base, and they get to see C-130s, helicopters, and stuff like that," Finley said. "They take a flight, or they have in the past, but that's not always guaranteed. The encampment it's a really intense thing. It's really rewarding. You can see a difference before and after with the kids who have been there."