CAP Commander Interviews 'Aluminum Overcast' Pilot
Col. Jonathan Lartigue, commander of Civil Air Patrol's Iowa Wing, displayed his public affairs skills when he interviewed one of the pilots of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress “Aluminum Overcast” Oct. 22-25 at Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids.
Lartigue spoke with Rex Gray, who pilots the vintage World War II bomber and tours the country as part of the Experimental Aircraft Association's Living History flight exhibits. The B-17 made only two stops this year, including the one in Cedar Rapids. Others were planned, but cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It's not about the airplane so much. It's that whole generation that made such a difference in World War II,” Gray said. “They gave us a whole different world than what we might have had if they hadn't stepped up and made sacrifices.”

Gray also gave a shoutout to CAP cadets, who often provide traffic control and participate in ground tours during EAA events. “They're volunteering in the community so they're giving service to somebody else,” he said. “That's something that will take you through your life and serve you well.”
Ind. After-School Program Recognized for ACE Participation
The Thrive after-school program in Mount Vernon, Indiana, has been recognized with the 2020 Civil Air Patrol National Aerospace Connections in Education Collaborative Point of Light Program Award.

Thrive is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing kindergartners through eighth-graders at West Elementary and Mount Vernon Junior High with enriching after-school programming. Joy Millay, executive director, described Thrive’s approach as seeking “to foster curiosity and discovery in our students, because that is how you create lifelong learners.”

“The ability to create curiosity is what made our partnership with Civil Air Patrol and the Air Force Association so incredibly valuable for our students,” Millay said.

Thrive worked closely with the Indiana Wing’s RiverCity Cadet Squadron and the AFA’s P-47 Memorial Chapter, with members of both teaching CAP-provided ACE (Aerospace Connections in Education) lessons after school.

Lt. Col. Brian Schmuck, the Indiana Wing’s chief of staff for missions, launched the ACE program at Thrive for the 2019-2020 school year using a strong collaborative approach that incorporated local CAP and AFA members.
Ariz. Wing Adds a Pair of Blood Drives to Fall Schedule
The American Red Cross recently called on the Arizona Wing after some Red Cross staff members were exposed to the COVID-19 coronavirus, forcing the organization to cancel some scheduled donations because of reduced staff capability.

To help the Red Cross catch up on the blood units lost because of those cancellations, the Arizona Wing added two more donation campaigns to its fall schedule, both at Mesa's Falcon Field on Nov. 10 and 19.
NHQ News
A Final Look at CAP's Core Values: 'Respect'
National Headquarters' Marketing & Strategic Communications team is reprising National Commander Maj. Gen. Mark Smith’s Core Values Video Series from 2019.

The first three core values, “Integrity,” “Volunteer Service,” and “Excellence,” have been reviewed in recent weeks. Now it's time to hear the commander's last video of the series, this one on “Core Value Series: Respect.”
CAP Now Has a National Collective Call Sign
The National Headquarters operations staff has been working with the Air Force Voice Call Sign Office to reorganize several of CAP's call signs at the national level. One development from this initiative has been the creation of a national collective call sign for CAP — “TRIBLADE.”

The TRIBLADE call has been CAP's for several years but has been in use by the National Traffic Net and the National Message Center Stations that operate that net. Now they will be moving to different call signs to free up “TRIBLADE” and reassign it as the nationwide call sign for everyone in CAP to use.

A collective call sign applies to everyone in the named group. In this case, TRIBLADE is now the call sign for any CAP radio station.

Please pass this change to everyone who operates in the CAP radio service. For your convenience, there is also a PowerPoint slide (shown above) you can insert into other briefings to help get the word out. Please direct any requests or questions to doko@capnhq.gov.
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