Local Civil Air Patrol Squadron celebrates new Cadet Commander

The Bethesda-Chevy Chase Composite Squadron celebrated a new cadet commander during a recent dining out and cadet change of command ceremony held at the Montgomery County Public Safety Headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Cadet 1st Lt. Fernando Fontan assumed command of the Squadron's cadet corps from the outgoing commander, Cadet Lt. Col. Vivek Uppoor.

Cadet Lt. Col. Uppoor served as the cadet commander of the Squadron for a little over one year. During his command term, he saw over 30 new cadets join Civil Air Patrol, 27 cadets participate in a cadet encampment as students or cadre, and witnessed 137 individual cadet promotions/progressions which included 24 milestone achievements. He will be attending the University of Maryland, College Park in the fall where he intends to study Aerospace Engineering. During his final remarks as cadet commander, he reflected on the sheer amount of growth he underwent as a cadet in Civil Air Patrol and took time to thank everyone who helped him along the way.

Cadet 1st Lt. Fontan take commands after joining Civil Air Patrol in 2013. Shortly thereafter, he became a qualified search and rescue team member and began pursuing flight training. Within the Squadron, he served in a variety of positions ranging from the cadet emergency services officer and flight commander to cadet deputy commander. He also served as cadet cadre at the Tri-Wing Encampment for two consecutive years, was recognized as the Distinguished Graduate at the National Emergency Service's Advanced Ground Search and Rescue School, and is a solo pilot in both gliders and powered aircraft. During his first remarks as cadet commander, he talked about his desire to create an environment where cadets have the ability to grow, learn, and mature into leaders.

The night included a traditional "Grog Bowl Ceremony" and the presentation of several "of-the-year" awards including:

• Air Force Association Cadet of the Year: Cadet Lt. Col. Vivek Uppoor
• Veteran of Foreign Wars Cadet Officer of the Year: Cadet Capt. Meagan Collins
• Veteran of Foreign Wars Cadet NCO of the Year: Cadet Master Sgt. Bernadette Winnard
• B-CC Cadet Staff Member of the Year: Cadet Chief Master Sgt. Josue Navarro
• B-CC Most Improved Cadet: Cadet Staff Sgt. Steven Dang
• B-CC Cadet of the Year: Cadet Staff Sgt. Akiva Rosenzweig

Thank you to everyone who helped make this event a success!

The Bethesda-Chevy Chase Composite Squadron meets every Thursday from 7:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Montgomery County Public Safety Headquarters located at 100 Edison Park Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20878. For more information visit www.bcc-cap.org. You can also follow the Squadron on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BCCMD071 or follow @BCCMD071 on Instagram.

Nearly 1,500 CAP members serve in Maryland. Last year wing members flew 13 search and rescue missions. The wing was credited with four finds. Maryland Wing flew 32 missions for the State of Maryland. Members flew 2,245 hours in all mission categories. Volunteers contributed services estimated at $4.6 million. For more information, contact the Maryland Wing at www.mdwg.cap.gov or follow the wing on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MarylandWingCivilAirPatrol.

Civil Air Patrol, the longtime all-volunteer U.S. Air Force auxiliary, is the newest member of the Air Force’s Total Force. In this role, CAP operates a fleet of 560 aircraft, performs about 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 80 lives annually. CAP’s 60,000 members also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. In addition, CAP plays a leading role in aerospace/STEM education, and its members serve as mentors to over 25,000 young people participating in CAP’s Cadet Programs. Visit www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com or www.CAP.news for more information.