YODER, Kan. — Seventeen cadets recently attended the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) North Central Region Glider Flight Academy at the Sunflower Aerodrome near Yoder.
The 10-day academy allowed cadets aged 14-19 to experience flying in a glider, with the ultimate goal of flying solo by the end of their time in the program.
"The real goal is to give cadets flight time and introduce them to gliders," Lt. Col. Douglas Dutton, Kansas Civil Air Patrol operations director, said. "The ultimate dream is to get everyone to fly solo, and we got 16 out of 17 to solo this session."
CAP is a congressionally chartered, federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force. CAP currently has more than 56,000 volunteers who provide services such as search and rescue, disaster relief and humanitarian efforts.
When not actively flying in a glider, cadets attended classroom instruction, assisted each other on the runway and used flight simulators to hone their skills. The simulators offer a realistic experience, and the cadets' record time spent in them in their flight log books as training.
In addition to the 17 CAP cadets, the academy included 15 volunteers made up of three tow pilots, five Federal Aviation Administration-rated glider instructors and support staff.
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