OWL CANYON GLIDERPORT, Colo. (Jun. 17) -- They might not be old enough to hold a driver's license, but who said they can't fly a sailplane? More than two dozen U.S. Civil Air Patrol (CAP) cadets from across the country will converge Sunday at this airfield north of Fort Collins for the third-annual CAP National Glider Encampment, June 21 to July 2, 1998.

From dawn to dusk, volunteer instructors from CAP and the Soaring Society of America (SSA) will teach the basics of flying a non-powered aircraft to cadets age 14-15. Duration flights of more than five hours are possible above the surrounding prairie and countryside. "The cadets can take the knowledge and skills they develop in learning to fly sailplanes directly into powered flight training," said Lt. Col. John R. Buschmann, event director and Director of Cadet Programs for the CAP Rocky Mountain Region.

The encampment is made possible in part by a 1996 Memorandum of Understanding signed by CAP and SSA. The agreement permits CAP to select promising young cadet members while the SSA offers ground school and glider crew operations – a full exposure to the aviation sport of soaring. "It is a great atmosphere for the student, a focused learning experience with close supervision," Lt. Col. Buschmann said. Laramie County Community College (LCCC) in Cheyenne, Wyo., will host all 29 enrolled cadets during the encampment. This third-annual glider camp is the largest held to date here. Some 23 cadets attended in 1997 and 16 in 1996. Six Colorado CAP cadets are scheduled to attend while Wyoming CAP will send one member, Cadet Judson McCardy, of Cheyenne. Participants will represent 16 states, including Montana, Virginia, Oregon and Minnesota. Twenty cadets will be attending their first glider camp; the others are returning veterans. Five attending cadets are female. Nationwide, nearly 400 CAP cadets applied for just 100 slots at five such encampments.

The Owl Canyon Gliderport is a private airport north of Wellington, owned by the Colorado Soaring Association (CSA). It is an ideal training environment, with four marked runways up to 5000' long and acres of landable prairie between runways. No power traffic is permitted, making it one of the few glider-only facilities in the nation. Facilities at the gliderport are limited. For the event, a mobile food kitchen will be operated by volunteer reservists attached to the 917th Mission Support Squadron, Barksdale AFB, LA.

Event sponsors include the Colorado Soaring Association, the Black Forest Soaring Society, the Denver Soaring Council, Dunlop Aero of Salida, the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Young Eagles Program, LCCC, Knauff & Grove Soaring Supplies, and Bob Wander Soaring Books & Supplies.

There are more than 59,000 CAP members nationwide: approximately 25,000 cadets and 34,000 adult volunteers. They wear the Air Force uniform with distinctive CAP emblems and insignia. Members operate more than 5,000 privately-owned aircraft, 530 CAP-owned aircraft and nearly 1,000 vehicles in support of the organizations programs. Civil Air Patrol, the official Air Force auxiliary, is a nonprofit organization. It performs more than 85 percent of inland search and rescue missions in the continental United States. Volunteers also take a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to America's youth through CAP cadet programs.

MEDIA VISITS: Media visits during the flight encampment at the Owl Canyon Gliderport near Wellington, Colo. are welcome. A driving map is attached. For additional information, contact Captain Aaron E. Kornblum, Wyoming CAP Wing PAO and event PAO, (307) 773-4117, or the Owl Canyon Gliderport, (970) 568-SOAR. For more information on-line, visit:

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Captain Aaron E. Kornblum, PAO
Wyoming CAP Wing Headquarters
P.O. Box 9507, Cheyenne, WY 82003-9507
307 / 773-4117 FAX: 307 / 773-4783