By Skippy | AuxBeacon News Contributor

[Editor’s Note: We received this from a former CAP member. Thank you for your contribution.]

A letter to the Editor

The following is a letter to our editor that we received last week.

On February 3, 2004, we sent this information to the commander of the Civil Air Patrol’s Arizona Wing, with a copy of that inquiry sent to CAP’s National Headquarters, seeking their comments. As of today, we’ve received no reply from either.

The Coral Springs Squadron problem is pretty tame compared to what goes on in the Arizona Wing. Coral Springs is simply subject to demigods culling the volunteer pool to suit their own egos.

Arizona Wing excels in the destruction of the cadet program at each and every opportunity.

Here are just a few examples of the problems at the Arizona Wing’s Deer Valley Composite Squadron:

Stealing: The Squadron Commander attempts to steal the personal property of other members, then lies about knowing anything about the equipment.

Sexual Misconduct: During an SAREX ground team exercise, the senior ground team leader decided it would be easier to stay at a cadet’s relative’s home rather than return to base. The problem: two of the ground team members were teenaged girls. Never mind the CAP regulations that require an adult female on any outing with cadet females. This ground Senior member told the SAREX staff he was returning to base with the girls, but he spent the night in a nearby town with the cadet ground team.

Sexual Misconduct: A cadet member became a Senior member then elected to “tutor” a new female cadet. This particular cadet achieved her Mitchell Award in less than a year after her mother secured a $6,000 donation to the squadron. Curiously, this particular female cadet knew very little about aerospace.

Drug abuse: A cadet Lieutenant Colonel could not pass a Phoenix Police Department drug screen, but he was still allowed to move from the cadet ranks to the senior ranks.

Membership Abuse: Three cadets were the only cadets within the entire Arizona Wing membership that bothered to provide community service for an area devastated by a forest fire. All three cadets have since been forced out of this particular squadron for various “trumped up” excuses.

Discrimination: A cadet with an Indian (Hindu) ethnic origin had achieved a communication proficiency level that allowed him to train all the other cadets as well as run the communications during a SAREX. Because he dared to file a formal complaint regarding the problems within the squadron he was restricted from any SAREX activities. The squadron commander later had to rescind the restrictions as the cadet was the only qualified operator. The Squadron’s Deputy Commander for Cadets frequently disparaged this cadet with racial slurs and encourage the cadets to denigrate the ethnic background of this cadet. Comments were used, such as, “Did I screw up, or did (Hindu cadet’s name) screw up?”

Records Mismanagement: The cadets’ records are not stored in a secure place as required by the CAP regulations. Access to records is frequently denied, especially to those out of favor with the squadron commander and the deputy. The records are always “at home” when the cadet or the cadet parents asks to review the files. The Public Affairs Officer told one senior member that she had reviewed that member’s file. The Public Affairs Officer is NOT on the list to review personal files!

Cadet Testing: A Non-CAP member conducts cadet achievement testing.

Many of these abuses were formally reported to the Arizona Wing’s Group III IG as well as the Wing IG. Those members complaining are now gone.

The Air Force response to the problems; reward the squadron commander with a ceremonial coin for her handling of the situation.

I’m sure James MacKay will respond by emphatically stating all these accusations are lies. Of course, Mr. MacKay cannot provide any documentation to support his claim.

These problems are not limited to the Deer Valley Composite Squadron. The Luke AFB Squadron can outdo nearly every problem described at Deer Valley and accomplish this achievement on Luke AFB under the very noses of the Air Force.

The Luke AFB [CAP] squadron commander is so bad she deliberately withheld any information from the squadron membership regarding the passing of the Administration Officer. Mrs. Ontovars served the squadron for well over six years only to be ignored not only by her squadron, but also by the Arizona Wing. But then again this is the wing that ignored the passing of a former Wing Commander.

Although the writer gave us permission to identify the writer, we are electing to withhold the name of the writer.