Civil Air Patrol activities featured at Great Adventure

JACKSON - The Jersey Shore Council of the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America are hosting a weekend "scouting event" at Six Flags Great Adventure theme park, Route 537, April 20-22.

Guests will be treated to a special presentation to be given by the New Jersey Wing Civil Air Patrol (CAP), the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary.

Great Adventure management and the Scout Council have invited CAP to train Scouts and exhibit the CAP program for the last two years, according to a press release.

On April 20 starting at 5 p.m., more than 30 CAP cadets and senior members will set up a bivouac area at Tip Tam Camp Ground adjacent to the theme park. Cadet officers will perform final uniform and equipment inspections, assign duties and brief cadets on operations for April 21.

To locate the CAP exhibit look for the 15-foot-high "inflatable" Cadet Ken upon entering the park on April 21-22. The Scouts and the general public will be able to learn all about CAP missions, engage in aircraft flight training by operating several electronic flight simulators, watch ground CAP search and rescue team operations, learn military drill from a drill instructor, view color/honor guard demonstrations, and pick up literature about the aviation education programs for teens and adults.

On April 21 between 8-9 a.m., CAP will give a special presentation to the Scouts.

Civil Air Patrol, the only volunteer military auxiliary sanctioned by Con-gress, performs more than 95 percent of all U.S. Air Force search-and-rescue missions in the continental United States, according to the press release.

CAP also performs homeland security missions and drug interdiction air patrols using privately owned and CAP aircraft based at local airports.

The New Jersey Wing currently boasts a membership of 1,400 teenage cadet and adult officers who engage in a broad spectrum of disaster-mission-related, aerospace education, leadership and moral training activities. These include SAR mission flight training opportunities in small aircraft as well as orientation flights in military aircraft based at McGuire Air Force Base.

Teens and adults interested in serving with the Civil Air Patrol can log on to the Web site at http://www.njwg.cap.gov for locations of squadrons in New Jersey and their meeting days and hours.

For further information about the CAP weekend activities at Six Flags Great Adventure or general information about the New Jersey CAP program, contact Capt. Ulric Gordon-Lewis at bayshorecap@yahoo.com or Capt. Marvin Goldberg at goldmsigma@optonline.net.