The Kentucky Wing of Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is the highest echelon of Civil Air Patrol in the state of Kentucky and is a part of CAP's Great Lakes Region. The Kentucky Wing headquarters is located in Frankfort. The Kentucky Wing consists of over 600 cadet and adult members at 17 locations across the state of Kentucky.
Mission
The Kentucky Wing performs the three primary missions of Civil Air Patrol: providing emergency services; providing a cadet program for youth; and offering aerospace education for both CAP members and the general public.
Emergency services Providing emergency services includes performing search and rescue and disaster relief missions; as well as assisting in humanitarian aid assignments. The CAP also provides Air Force support through conducting light transport, communications support, and low-altitude route surveys. Civil Air Patrol can also offer support to counter-drug missions.
In January 2009, members of the Kentucky Wing, along with CAP members from the Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio Wings, flew sorties surveying damage and boosting communications for the Kentucky National Guard following a severe ice storm, while CAP ground crews assisted National Guardsmen in going door to door to perform wellness checks on residents.
In April 2015, members of the Kentucky Wing were called to assist the Red Cross to help with victims of flooding that occurred in Louisville, Kentucky. In that same month, they supported the Red Cross for 3 days until their assistance was no longer needed.
From August to September 2021, Kentucky wing cadets and senior members assisted in a national effort to review disaster relief imagery from the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, reviewing hundreds of images and tagging countless structures with their apparent damage level to help determine what areas most critically needed relief efforts focused towards them.
It may also be noted that members of the Kentucky Wing have been requested by the Governor on several occasions to take surveillance photographs of numerous areas stricken with disasters. These photographs have assisted not only members of the Ground Teams of the Kentucky Wing, but also several other disaster relief teams in knowing where to go first.
Cadet programs Civil Air Patrol offers cadet programs for youth aged 12 to 21. Cadets receive training in aerospace education, leadership training, physical fitness and moral leadership.
Encampment Kentucky Wing holds a cadet encampment annually. Serving as a weeklong training camp for cadets, the encampment involves instruction in discipline, teamwork, and leadership. Other activities involve instruction in drill and ceremonies, customs and courtesies, basic CAP knowledge and military tradition. Encampment attendance is a prerequisite for the Gen. Billy Mitchell Award. Senior members may also be awarded the ribbon for providing leadership at CAP this encampment. The most recent encampments have been hosted at the Wendell H. Ford Regional Training Center near Greenville, Kentucky.
Aerospace education Civil Air Patrol offers aerospace education for CAP members and the general public; this includes offering training to the members of the CAP, and facilitating teaching workshops for youth through schools and public aviation events.
Organization
+ Squadrons of the Kentucky Wing Designation Squadron Name LocationNotesGLR-KY-001Kentucky Wing HeadquartersFrankfortGLR-KY-011Paducah Composite SquadronPaducahGLR-KY-039Louisville Composite SquadronCrestwoodGLR-KY-050Boone County Composite SquadronWaltonGLR-KY-050 Official WebsiteGLR-KY-057Bowling Green Senior SquadronBowling GreenGLR-KY-058Frankfort Composite SquadronFrankfortGLR-KY-073Northern Kentucky Composite SquadronNewportGLR-KY-122Stuart Powell Cadet SquadronDanvilleGLR-KY-131Heartland Composite SquadronElizabethtownGLR-KY-214Bowman Field Senior SquadronLouisvilleGLR-KY-216Fort Campbell Composite SquadronClarksvilleGLR-KY-221Blue Grass Senior SquadronLexingtonGLR-KY-222Van Meter Cadet SquadronLexingtonGLR-KY-223Owensboro Composite SquadronOwensboroGLR-KY-225Elkhorn Cadet SquadronGeorgetownGLR-KY-300Southern Kentucky Cadet SquadronBowling GreenGLR-KY-357Lake Cumberland Cadet SquadronSomersetGLR-KY-802Fleming County High School Covered Bridge Cadet SquadronFlemingsburgGLR-KY-999Kentucky Legislative SquadronFrankfort
+ Former Squadrons of the Kentucky Wing Designation Squadron Name LocationNotesGLR-KY-123Kentucky ANG Composite SquadronLouisvilleInactive c. 2023
Kentucky Civil Air Patrol Wing Commanders Commander's Name Rank Period of Command Service Albert Henry Near Colonel 1941–1942 Carl W. Ulrich Major 1942 Charles H. Gartrell Major 1942–1943 Howard B. Brown Captain 1943 William S. Rinehart Colonel 1943–1946 Charles E. Hall Colonel 1946–1949 John B. Wathen III Colonel 1949–1953 Francis A. Blevins Colonel 1953–1957 Houston H. Doyle Colonel 1957–1958 Carlos O. Puckett Colonel 1958–1959 James A. Denham Colonel 1959–1961 Francis A. Blevins Colonel 1961–1965 George B. Carter Colonel 1965–1969 Richard R. Dooley Colonel 1969–1971 Charles E. Lynn Jr. Colonel 1971–1972 John F. Price Colonel 1972–1976 William R. Ritter Colonel 1976–1977 Herman H. Bishop Colonel 1977–1980 Nathaniel L. Tucker Colonel 1980–1982 George M. Hudson Colonel 1982–1986William K. Hughes Colonel 1986–1991 Denzil Allen Colonel 1991–1994 Douglas N. Huff Colonel 1994–1997 Jimmie W. Cantrell Colonel 1997–1998 Michael A. Cooper Colonel 1998–1999 John F. Price Colonel 1999–2000 Loretta L. Holbrook Colonel 2000–2004 Henry L. Heaberlin Colonel 2004–2009 Robert J. Koob Colonel 2009–2013 James F. Huggins Colonel 2013–2016 David A. Kantor Colonel 2016–2017 Darrel D. Williamson Colonel 2017–2021 Brian W. Schmuck Colonel 2021–2024 Jaimie Henson Colonel 2024 - present
See also Kentucky Active Militia Kentucky Air National Guard Kentucky Army National Guard United States Coast Guard Auxiliary
References
External links
Kentucky Wing Civil Air Patrol official website