Springfield, Missouri: Local Squadron of Civil Air Patrol Recieves New Plane

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The Springfield Regional Composite Squadron of Civil Air Patrol receives a new plane Saturday.

The plane, a Cessna 182, will enable the local squadron to work more closely with the office of Emergency Management, Law Enforcement, FEMA, SEMA, and others in disaster relief or emergency situations.

The Squadron believes that with a aircraft stationed locally they will be more readily available to assist with photo reconnaissance, search and rescue, and other services.

The Civil Air Patrol is a auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force with more that 61,000 members nationwide and operates a fleet of 550 aircraft.

The Patrol preforms 90 percent of the search and rescue missions in the U.S. and is credited with saving 54 lives in the last year.

The showing of the plane was accompanied with cadet training as the plane was used to practice aircraft marshaling and also gave one cadet his orientation flight.

Civil Air Patrol planes are owned by the Air Force and this one is painted in patriotic colors of red, white, and blue.

Source:   http://ozarksfirst.com