COMMEMORATIVE AIR FORCE

The

C MPASS
M ISSOURI W ING JUNE 2013

P.O. Box 637 St.Charles, MO 63302 St. Charles County Smartt Airport 636-250-4515 Fax 636-250-4515 www.cafmo.org

MISSOURI WING

E XECUTIVE S TAFF
WING LEADER Col. Patrick Kesler 28 Confederate Way St. Charles, MO 63303 636-928-5687 636-250-4515 Wing wingleader@cafmo.org ADJUTANT Col.Bob Moore 6 Hidden Meadow Court St. Charles, MO 63303 636-928-5546 home 314-486-1205 cell moorerw@charter.net EXECUTIVE OFFICER Col. Bob Lawrence 111 W. Essex Ave. Kirkwood, MO 63122 314-494-7539 cell 314-894-3200 x103 work FINANCE Col. Steve Gossett 4 Limerick Lane O'Fallon, MO 63366 636-474-9763 314-306-5021 OPERATIONS OFFICER Col.Craig O'Mara 1085 Graywolf Court Fairview Heights, IL 62208 618-632-6113 home 618-558-7211 cell craigo777@juno.com MAINTENANCE OFFICER Col. Pat Fenwick 6 Heather Drive St. Peters, MO 63376 636-441-2856 SAFETY OFFICER Col. Chris Herrmann 309 Clearwater Drive Belleville, IL 62220 618-233-4782 PIO OFFICER Col. Cecilia Holechek 314-920-5118 infocafmo@gmail.com

STEVE BROWN VISITS SMARTT FIELD

May 11 general membership meeting marked the first time in the history of the Missouri Wing that the President of the CAF ever set foot on our field. CAF Col. Steve Brown addresses the members.

U PCOMING E VENTS
3
June 7-9 Cameron, MO Airshow B-25, LHFEs, PX Jun 8 General Meeting 1:30pm Jun 21-23 Davenport, IA Quad Cities Airshow B-25, TBM, LHFEs, PX June 30 Macomb, IL Fly-In B-25, LHFEs, PX July 3-7 Six Flags Flybys each evening B-25 & TBM July 4 Fourth of July Parade - Webster Groves, Mo. July 12-13 Wingnuts Flying Circus Airshow, Tarkio, Mo. TBM July 13 General Meeting 1:30pm Aug 10 General Meeting 1:30pm Aug 11 Festival of the Little Hills Parade - St. Charles, Mo. Aug 17 Sullivan, MO B-25, L-3 LHFEs, PX Sep 7 Warrensburg, Mo. Skyhaven Airshow B-25, LHFEs, PX Sep 14 General Meeting 1:30pm Sep 19-21 Camdenton, MO Lake Airshow B-25, L-3, LHFEs, PX Sep 21 HANGAR DANCE! Sep 28 Jefferson City, MO Open House B-25, L-3, LHFEs, PX Oct 11-13 AIRSHO 2013 Midland, Texas TBM (crew pays own expenses) Oct 12 General Meeting 1:30pm Oct 19 Mt. Vernon, IL Little Egypt Fly-In TBM, L-3, PX Oct 26 Smartt Field Open House & Pumpkin Drop Nov 9 General Meeting 1:30pm Nov 9 Veteran's Day Parade - Florissant, MO

Happy Father's Day!

View The Compass in color at cafmo.org

Saturday - June 8 - General Meeting - 1:30 pm

WING LEADER'S REPORT

Summer will arrive on June 21st and the Wing has already been hard at it in regards to airshows, flying events and LHFE rides. Weve already experienced some wicked weather, but have been more fortunate than those residents in Moore, Oklahoma. Our prayers and best wishes go out to those who have lost family members and friends and to all who are still homeless or suffering. We need to maintain vigilance when operating anywhere in the Midwest because of the volatile weather and will always retreat to the conservative position when it comes to aircraft activity during questionable weather periods. I would like to thank all of those members who were able to come out to the Wing on Saturday, May 11th and chat with Col. Steve Brown during his visit. This was the first time in the history of the Missouri Wing that the President of the CAF ever set foot on our premises. I would especially like to give major kudos to Cols. Angie and Chris Herrmann for acquiring and preparing all of the German brats, hot dogs, German potato salad, regular potato salad, baked beans, cupcakes and brownies. I heard that Angie was up until 3:00am Saturday baking goodies. Oh, and thanks again go to Connie Coffey for her delicious desserts. Also, thanks to all who stood over the hot grill, preparing those brats and dogs for the feeding frenzy. It was a great time in the B-25 hangar and Col. Brown was really impressed with our members, camaraderie and great food. I need to also lay high accolades on Col. Bob Lawrence who volunteered to ramrod the needs of Col. Brown once he arrived on Friday afternoon. He made sure Steve was comfortable and also kept him busy Friday evening with a great dinner at the Missouri Athletic Club and great seats just behind the Cardinal dugout during a one-hitter by pitcher Shelby Miller (Matt Conrad and I were asked to tag along and I was impressed with Bobs timely social skills). Bob also treated Steve and me to an impressive round of gluttony at Brazikat Brazilian Steak & Seafood in Clayton Saturday evening. Col. Brown departed Sunday morning very tired, well-fed, and totally blown away by the MO Wings composition and friendliness. Way to go Robert! Following our short monthly meeting, Col. Brown gave an hour-long presentation on the CAF and broke the news that the CAF is in the process of relocating National Headquarters (our Wing was first to receive the news). The search for a new city will be a 6 month long process. He expanded on the news and announced the new strategy of the CAF Airbase concept and the desire to elevate the national profile and improve the overall educational impact across America. He answered many good, direct questions by our members following his dissertation and told me he appreciated the immediate concern for this latest development. More detailed information on the Headquarters announcement can be found on the CAF website www.commemorativeairforce.org Due to inclement weather we were unable to participate in the final reunion of the WWII Stalag 17B German POW Camp survivors visitation scheduled at Spirit of St. Louis Airport on Friday, May 3rd. We invited the group out to our facilities, but they were unable to visit because of time limitations. They were able to visit Creve Coeur Airport and saw many of the warbirds while there. Please take a look at the front page schedule. Youll notice a few changes. Our participation in the June 28-29 Cape Girardeau air show has been cancelled due to lack of city funding on their part. We have also been requested to provide B-25 and TBM flybys over the Six Flags amusement park during the first week of July in support of Operation Homefront which will be conducting activities there July 3-7.

Remember, you can help Keep Em Flying and have a great, rewarding time in your life while doing so. Its always great to make new memories especially when they are associated with the memories of that Great Generation. Respectfully submitted, Col. Pat Kesler, Wing Leader

EXECUTIVE OFFICER/ MEMBERSHIP/WEBSITE/PX

Is it me or is this year passing us by rather quickly? Maybe it is always this way, I seem to recall my parents always saying the older you get the faster time flies. Apparently a reality that I now buy into. So lets see what I can share this month. In the Executive Officer file I am making headway on a few marketing projects that I have on my plate. In short a few projects to better share with the world who we are, what we do and why we do what we do. Membership has been going well, we have seen some new faces around the hangars this spring as well as some old. Website is still in the works, more details to follow as they develop. Now as for the PX, the reveal has come! I was fortunate to work with a company called Graphics Factory in Fenton, MO. While pictures do it little justice I have included a few before and after shots. The trailer is now covered in a vinyl wrap that has a 5 year UV rated life before we see any fading. The reality is that our PX trailer sees about 40-50 days a year of sunshine so by my math these new graphics should not fade for about 36yrs or until the trailer falls apart, whichever comes first. Besides for the new graphics I have replaced all lights, reflectors, brackets, fenders, rims and anything else on the exterior that I could. All internal content has remained the same with the exception of the camouflage table skirts. Those have been replaced with new blue table skirts that have the National CAF wings as well as the type set of Missouri Wing. See picture below but then go online to see it all in color! This has been a long process and I am sure that we will get even more attention on the roadways as a giant billboard than we had ever gotten before. As a matter of fact, the day I picked the trailer up I was driving Northbound on I-270 and was passed by a small car. In the passenger seat was a woman in her 70s-80s passing by with her thumb up and a big smile. That alone let me know that people driving by were already taking notice! Also on the PX our new gloves are available. These are made from a similar glove type as the Mechanix Brand Gloves. I have embroidered on then B-25 Show Me with an image. These have a price of $21.00 and are available in Large and X-Large. I have been doing a good deal of shipping to people who are ordering online or via email. If you would like to order any of our items let me know and all I ask is that you help cover the postage. I do have a sales sheet that I can email anyone should you like to see all the items that we have in regards to our Wing and aircraft. CAF Col. Bob Lawrence

SAFETY

IS

EVERYONE'S JOB

Pedicure for the Lawnmower Person??

Women - Dont try this do it yourself home pedicure. Men - Dont lose your man card. Here are some tips to avoid an accidental pedicure or manicure (or worse), while keeping the lawn looking nice for your neighbors. Frankly, if it werent for the Joneses next door, our lawns would look just fine with the grass being a bit longer.

Conrad and Fester landing after check ride.

- Do not operate your mower under the influence of alcohol, narcotics, or if youre just not alert. Remove the cup holder to avoid temptation. - Do not mow your lawn in sandals, flip-flops or with barefoot. Mowing your lawn without fully enclosed shoes could result in a fatal pedicure. - Unclog chute with a stick, not your hand (even if it isnt running). - Disconnect spark plug when removing a blade or working on the motor To avoid other costly mishaps, here are some additional thoughts for consideration. - Inspect lawn; remove all objects that can become missiles & injure a pet or person nearby. - Gas up your lawn mower outside - not in the garage near the gas hot water heater. - Do not mow without a grass catcher, if your mower is designed for one. - Empty the grass catcher with the mower off If you use electrical lawn care tools such as mowers, blowers, and trimmers: - Do not use frayed, under amperage, ungrounded power cords with your electric mower. - Let wet lawns dry before mowing. After a busy day of mowing your lawn SAFELY - you deserve a good nap! CAF Col. Chris Herrmann

John Fester's first flight with Matt Conrad (left). Congratulations to John for qualifying as co-pilot.

Jordan Brown in the TBM.

Korry Tacchi testing his new exhaust.

Pat Fenwick and Bob Cushman checking for oil leak on L3.

FULTON COUNTY FLYING CLUB 55TH ANNUAL FLY-IN DRIVE-IN PANCAKE BREAKFAST - CANTON, IL
Sunday, May 19, 2013. 04:30 Hrs, the alarm goes off suddenly and all too early. Is it Dear Season? No, now I remember, I signed up for the one day event at Canton, IL. A Fly-in Pancake Breakfast where apparently our B-25 will be the guest of honor and offer LHFE rides. After a 4-1/2 year gap since the last time I flew in a Missouri Wing aircraft, I was about to once again experience the sights, sounds, smells and feelings of flying in our B-25 Show Me. By 05:30 Im heading out to the Airfield for our Dawn Mission. Theres not much traffic on a Sunday morning at that time. You know its early when the local Dunkin Donuts doesnt even have their doors open yet (whats up with that?). Arriving at the Smartt Field at 06:20 Hrs, I see thankfully Im not the last crew member to arrive but 6 others are already there and have the hangar doors open. The crew today consists of the following Colonels: Matt Conrad-Pilot, Pat Kessler-Co-Pilot, Joe Miano-Mechanic, Buddy Welsch-FSO, Bob Carmack-ACM, Tim Dexter-ACM, Bob Moore-LHFE Do-all and myself. Soon Col Bob Moore arrives. I assist him with the LHFE items and receive a briefing on what he would like me to do to help him with the LHFE Flights during the day. After take-off and climb-out to 3,500 ft. we set course northward for Canton assisted by that strong south wind. Arriving at the scheduled time with military precision we make a pass down the field from North to South. Looking out as we go by I can see quite a crowd waiting along with many interesting aircraft including a dark blue TBM Avenger! After we land, taxi in and shut down we begin exiting the aircraft (yes the bomb bay door safety clip was inserted first) we are besieged by a throng of people all with interest, questions and stories. One Gentleman asks me if I was in the 5th Air Force as I am wearing that patch along with the 345th BG and 501st BS patches. After telling him no he begins to tell me he was an aircraft mechanic in the 5th AF in Korea and how they followed the fighting from Inchon all the way up until the retreat from the Northern region. He tells me that at times as they were abandoning an airfield in their trucks he could hear the Chinese Bugles not far away. Thats close! Another Gentleman eagerly reminisces to me that he was a B-25 pilot in Italy during WWII and that today he was going to be taking an LHFE flight. Turns out he wasnt the only ex B-25 pilot there. We had 2! There was also a co-pilot from the Italian theater and he too was signed up for an LHFE. How about that! The first pilot I mentioned said he was 92 years of age! I would have never guessed he was a day over 75. Maybe being around B25s keeps you young.

Cols Joe and Buddy have already been checking vitals on the aircraft assisted by Cols Bob Carmack and Tim Dexter (the other Tim). We all quickly set to the task of loading the items we will need for the day, doing the necessary paperwork and moving the aircraft out of the hangar. Once those items are completed and the Pilots have finished with their pre-flight inspections, we all gather at the nose for the obligatory Crew Photo before boarding (who is the Lady that comes out so early to take pictures?!). Once inside and settled in, Cos Matt & Pat start the engines, perform a few checks and taxi to the North end of the field. Today there is a strong South wind so we use runway 18. During the pre-flight engine run-ups and checks, while the plane is straining against the brakes, all of the familiar sounds, sensations and smells come rushing back and I feel like its only been 4-1/2 days since Ive done this.

Flyby at Canton

After at least an hour of politely answering questions I seek out Col Moore to see what help he needs. I finally locate him in a small building on the SE corner of the tarmac that the flying club is letting us use as our LHFE office and its air-conditioned! When we left Smartt Field we had one full and one partial LHFE flight booked for sure. We ended up with three full flights! 15 people total plus a VIP flight that was previously agreed to. Not a bad day but that meant 4 flights that day for the LHFE flight crew. The day was hot, humid and windy so I know it was hard work for them. I separated my time between helping Bob Moore (in the air conditioning remember?) and helping Joe, the other Tim and the other Bob on the tarmac as much as I could. Bob Moore had brought some hats and challenge coins to sell and when we ran out of the olive drab colored hats Bob even sold his own year plus old hat for $5.00! Is there anything that guy wont sell to make money for the Wing? After the last LHFE flight of the day all of us ACMs on the tarmac were dismayed to see oil on the outer portion of engine nacelle # 1. It had developed a leak during that last outing and we either had to fix it right there or find another way home. Undaunted, after the aircraft had taxied over to the fuel pump and disembarked the riders, Buddy and Joe immediately removed the necessary access panels. They were able to quickly identify the problem, repair it and they even had the necessary part on board. Nice going guys! While they worked on the plane, Bob Carmack and Tim Dexter cleaned the excess oil from the nacelle area. I busied myself with getting all of our gear to the aircraft for loading from the other side of the tarmac. Once completed we purchased 180 gallons of needed fuel from the FBO thereby giving something back to the local community (how many Cessna fill-ups is that?). Now we are ready to say our good-byes to our new friends at Canton. We board, taxi out and take off for the return trip. Now that stiff south wind becomes a stiff headwind. Matt Conrad mentioned that at times our ground speed was only 136 knots! Arriving at Smartt Field we land, taxi in and shut down. But wait, the work is not over yet. We must unload the gear and put the aircraft back in the hangar. Eventually it is time to depart for our respective homes and we say our good-byes. Everybody feels pretty good because we know we had a successful day for the Wing. Id like to thank all of the crew for a great day. Almost half of the crew I didnt even know at the beginning of the day but by the end of it I felt like I had made a swell group of new friends. Was it worth getting up early, sweating all day, wishing there had been better food available in the afternoon and feeling just plain tired the next day? You bet it was and I encourage any of our members who havent gone in awhile to do so. What are you waiting for? The fun, the people, the memories and the stories are out there waiting for you. Go get them! Respectfully submitted, CAF Col Tim McCluskey Missouri Wing CAF # 26413

Bob Carmack crawling through tunnel to get to the front of the bomber, on the way to Canton.

Joe Miano checks out helicopter at Canton.

A great time had by all in Canton, IL. Thanks to Colonels Matt Conrad, Pat Kessler, Bob Moore, Buddy Welsch, Tim McCluskey, Joe Miano, and Bob Carmack for their team work. Once again, Show-Me was a crowd pleaser and stole the show. Yes, it was hot & humid, but that didnt stop the folks from Canton from coming out to marvel at our B-25. In fact, two World War II pilots who flew the B-25 stopped by and shared their experience with us. What an honor it is to meet gentlemen like this! I learned one of the pilots crashed a B-25. After that experience he never flew one again. This came directly from the pilots son. It almost seemed like the son was razzing his dad a little bit. Without hesitating, the veteran explained the event that lead to his crashhe was shot down by the Germans and spent the rest of the war as a POW. How quickly I forgot about the heat and humidity. Another gentleman spent some time with us and brought a book his father had written on his experience from WWII. In fact, his father flew in a B-25 that had the same Apache markings as Show-Me. A special thanks to Col. Bob Moore for organizing the LHFSs rides and Col. Matt Conrad and Col. Pat Kessler for piloting ShowMe, and Col. Buddy Welsch for doing his part to make sure our guest had a safe and memorable flight. Bob, Matt, Pat, and Buddy were busy all day! To insure we had a safe and uneventful flight home, Colonels Buddy Welsch, Joe Miano, and Bob Carmack fixed a small oil leak in engine number one. I hope you had a cold one or two when you got home. You earned it. CAF Col. Tim Dexter

STEVE BROWN'S VISIT

Everyone enjoying the cookout.

Steve and Pat

Tim Dexter, Chris Herrmann and Dave Woodson start cooking.

John Fester, Jordan Brown, Dave Thompson, Matt Conrad

MAY GENERAL MEETING

CALL TO ORDER PLEDGE OF ALLIGIENCE ROLL CALL OF STAFF: WL __ ADJ __ EXEC __ OPS __ MAINT __ FIN __ SAFE __ PIO __ RECOGNIZE VISITORS AND GUESTS MINUTES OF LAST MEETING (in COMPASS) INFIRMED MEMBERS Joe Baruzzini is going OK COMMITTEE REPORTS: Compass John Coffey Gasoline Sales Jim Lammert/$teve Gossett Web Site Bob Lawrence Museum Jack Seeman/Joe Wurtz PX Bob Lawrence Recruiting & Membership Bob Lawrence Air Shows Matt Conrad LHFE Bob Moore Hangar Dance Pat Kesler OLD BUSINESS GREAT LUNCH Thanks to Chris & Angie, Connie and the grillers. BUSCH STADIUM FLYBYS Discuss. Next one on May 23rd at 7:30pm. STALAG 17B POWs Final Convention Friday May 3rd cancelled for weather. RANKIN TECHNICAL SCHOOL VISIT Don Huster ramrodded this on Sunday April 21st. Had a great time! MAINTENANCE STORAGE BLDG Looking into grants and assistance in getting 4 20 movable storage containers. NEW BUSINESS 1. STAFF REPORTS: MAINTENANCE __ EXECUTIVE __ OPERATIONS __ SAFETY __ ADJUTANT __ PUBLIC INFO __ AIRSHOW __ LHFE __ FINANCE __ 2. AIRCRAFT STATUS: B-25 Airworthy TBM A/W L-3 A/W 3. AIRCREW SAFETY TRAINING More classes will be available in the future. Chris Herrmann is OIC. 4. FEP PROCEDURES So far so good 5. VALLEY of FLOWERS PARADE Nick Talarico 6. CHECK AIRSHOW/EVENT SCHEDULE IN COMPASS Please help by volunteering. 7. COL. STEVE BROWN PRESENTATION Meeting Adjourned @ 3:00pm

GENERAL MEETING

- 1:30 PM May 11, 2013

COMMEMORATIVE AIR FORCE

MISSOURI WING P.O. Box 637 St. Charles, MO 63302-0637

JUNE 2013

April 2013 Busch Stadium Flyover

June Birthdays!

Greg Easton (3) Schuyler Shipley (5) Steve Gossett (6) Tim Jackson (6) Glenn Racine (15) Dutch Meyerpeter (17) Wayne Langbecker (22) Chris Santschi (27) Joe Wurtz (29) Compass Deadline: Articles should be submitted by the 24th of each month.