Civil Air Patrol's presentation to the Bay Area 99s

By Lt. Col. Juan Tinnirello, CAP

Public Information Officer

Amelia Earhart Senior Squadron 188

California Wing

Lt Col Juan Tinnirello

On Thursday, May 9, 2013, Lieutenant Colonel Juan Tinnirello, the Public Information Officer for Amelia Earhart, Senior Squadron 188 of the Civil Air Patrol, made a presentation of what CAP is and does. CAP is the official Auxiliary to the United States Air Force. The event took place at the monthly meeting of the Ninety Nines, Inc. the International Organization of Women Pilots founded in 1929 by 99 licensed women pilots and the first president was Amelia Earhart. The meeting took place at the Kaiser Air building located at the Oakland International Airport, North Field.

Members of the 99'ers and CAP

The meeting started at 19:00 hr. and present were six members of the organization plus one guest.  Attending from Sq. 188 were, Major Noel Luneau, Squadron Commander, Captain Luis Rivas, Deputy Commander and Captain Kathy Johnson, Mission Observer.

Lt. Col. Tinnirello's presentation included a brief history of the beginning of CAP back in December 1941 as well as its participation during WWII. The current membership of 60,000 seniors and cadets includes 8,000 aircrews and 32,000 emergency responders trained to FEMA standard.  CAP also operates one the largest fleet of single-engine piston aircraft in the world, with 550 planes that fly more than 100,000 hours annually. It also has a fleet of 950 emergency services vehicles for training and mission support.

Maj Noel Luneau and a 99's member

He also talked, in detail, about CAP's three primary missions; emergency services, cadet programs and aerospace education.

During the presentation, the participants asked several questions to clarify or request more information.  The members from squadron 188 assisted by adding details of their particular specialties.

The presentation concluded by 20:00 hrs. and Lt. Col. Tinnirello invited all the participants to visit the CAP hanger to see the brand new Cessna 182 and it G1000 avionics suite.

Everyone was delighted to see the plane and took turns sitting in the completely lighted cockpit to enjoy the big screen display.

A 99's member sits in the Cessna