CAPA Archive

Some 25 members shared free pizza and attended a lively discussion with lots of personal sharing about 9-11. 

Christopher Hirl, Chief MSgt of the 102d Intelligence Wing (then 102d Fighter Wing), shared his experience with the F-15s that were scrambled to fly to New York that day and more.  

When: September 4

Where: Atlantic Aviation, Hyannis

 Arlene Myers introduced speaker Mark Hanson, who despite recovering from a bad cold, did a great job with his FAAST training Public Benefit-Compassionate Flying Intro & Safety Considerations.

Mark Hanson, entrepreneur, started flying in 2009 and soon discovered volunteer pilot opportunities. Since then Mark has flown over 450 volunteer missions for a variety of causes.

After 8 years of flying for and serving on the board of Patient Airlift Services/SkyHope in the northeast, Mark recognized the need to raise awareness for charitable aviation nationally.

In 2020 Mark joined the Air Care Alliance as a Vice President and Board Member to advance charitable aviation to both pilots and people in need.

Air Care Alliance nationally promotes and advocates for all types of public benefit flying by volunteer pilot member organizations.

This includes assisting with FAA regulation development, maintaining a Compassion Call Sign for volunteer pilots and other related work. There are more than sixty members of the Air Care Alliance.

A special thank you to Pat McNamara who donated the cheese, pepperoni and veggie pizzas from The Auld Triangle in Hyannis, and to Lucy Young who donated the drinks. 

Treasurer Sherry Grobstein gave an update on CAPA Leadership. Arlene Myers is Interim President & Scholarship Chair, Lucy Young is Interim Clerk/Secretary and Erica Waasdorp is Interim Director. 

Phil Boire is in charge of the scholarship raffles. Rene Haas in charge of the web site. Pat McNamara is Program Chair and he will chair the Nominating Committee. Jack Alexander chairs the By-laws Committee. Stay tuned for more updates before the annual meeting October 2nd. 

John Silverberg, FAASTeam leader gave an update on the Falmouth Airport Accident December 2nd, 2022, Reducing LOC (Loss of Control) and weather related accidents, Pilot Actions Regarding Inflight Emergencies/Engine Malfunctions, Effect of wind on “Impossible Turn”, and Off Airport Landings.

Graeme J W Smith was born in Glasgow, Scotland and immigrated to the USA in 1999. His talk will focus on some of his childhood influences and how, when the opportunity arose, he picked flying from his bucket list. In 12 years he has amassed 2,500 hours in 42 types and he will recount some of the adventures he has had along the way. 

Lucy Young gave an update on her career in the navy, as a pilot and her involvement with the movie Sully.

A special in-person presentation by Garmin East Coast Manager Michael Kerrigan provided the chance to become familiar with the many advances in cockpit technology and the latest product innovations.

Automation in the cockpit has added features for GA which previously were only available to airlines. The new Garmin autopilot has now been approved for many more models, the Garmin Autoland system is being installed on many more models, and if you're considering trashing the steam gauges and upgrading your panel to EFIS, Michael explained the differences between a G3X and G500TXI.

Pilots are taught in early flight training that a good landing starts with a good traffic pattern. But the traffic pattern is more than just a gateway to a good landing. Improper pattern operations can be hazardous to all aircraft operating at that airport.

FAA Aviation Safety Program Manager Stephen K. Brown revisited those early lessons we were taught and discussed pattern entry/exit procedures, proper radio communications, and pilot behavior. This presentation provided safety tips for use during daily flying, and cover some of the common errors associated with the traffic pattern.

Every June, the scholarship committee presents the scholarship awards to deserving Cape students pursuing aviation careers. 

The location for this varies.