KJZZ’s segment Voices of Arizona spotlights everyday Arizonans who help make our state an extraordinary place to live.
More than 10,000 aircraft fly to Oshkosh, Wisconsin every summer for AirVenture, the world's largest fly-in.
Cadets from the Civil Air Patrol attend every year to help guide aircraft on the ground safely. One cadet from a local squadron who had the rare opportunity to participate.
Mason Carter, from the Williams Composite Squadron 304 at Mesa Gateway Airport, was one of only two cadets from Arizona to participate in the National Blue Beret this summer.
Cadets manage the flightline and crowd, help locate overdue aircraft and marshal aircraft at what is for one week every year, the busiest airport in the world.
“If you ever look out the window of a jumbo jet, you see the people with the bright orange sticks that are doing random motions to the aircraft,” Carter said. “That is basically what it is. Those random motions are actually directions to the pilot on what he should do with the aircraft based on what is safe and what needs to be accomplished.”
If cadets prove themselves during the program, they are awarded one of the highest honors in the Civil Air Patrol: a blue beret. Not every cadet gets to graduate and receive a beret, Carter said.
Carter said the beret is just a fancy wool hat, but the crest pinned on the hat signifies much more.
“When you are crested and you cross the grassy hill, signifying that you are a full-fledged beret. Now, no one says congratulations,” Carter said. “No one says anything like that. They say welcome to the family.”
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The nominee for lieutenant governor on the Democratic ticket is brushing aside the multiple speeding tickets he got while mayor of Mesa. -
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St. Mary’s Food Bank distributes about 300,000 pounds of food each day. Most of that comes from donations, but the food bank still has to purchase supplemental items.
