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The recent rains failed to put a damper on CAF SoCal’s latest pilot to qualify on the F6F Hellcat.

Congratulations to Chris Liguori for accomplishing this enviable milestone in his flying career.

Chris began flying at age 14 and got his license on his sixteenth birthday, one month before getting his drivers license.
This is perhaps not surprising since Chris comes from an aviation family background with his father being a commercial pilot for 32 years and mom a flight attendant.

Chris has been flying corporate jets since 1999 flying Gulfstream jets from the GII, GIII, GIV, G550, and G650. He is currently flying a GV with another CAF SoCal pilot, Col Steve McCartney, out of Van Nuys airport. Chris got involved with the CAF SoCal after getting a ride in Man O’ War For his 40th birthday in 2012.
Says Chris, “the Hellcat is my first Warbird and I am “hooked”. It was a dream to fly and I feel very lucky to be a part of such a great team of people that we have here at the CAF, Camarillo wing.”

Our PBJ has been featured in the latest issue of Motor Presse, Stuttgart GmbH & Co. KG.  Click on the link to access  their web site and see the article.

http://www.klassiker-der-luftfahrt.de/geschichte/flugzeuge/seltene-mitchell-hebt-wieder-ab/663328

On Saturday January 23, 2016 members of the Wing paid their respects and said goodbye to our dear friend and comrade, Joe Peppito, Gone West on October 20, 2015.

The event was well attended by the Wing members as well as Joe’s family and included a flight by the Wing’s Mustang, Spitfire, Hellcat and Zero fighters in a Missing Man fly-by formation.

Joe was the Wing Maintenance Officer of CAF SoCal Wing from 1983-1998 and again 2007-2010 as well as serving as the Wing Leader from 1999-2002. He was the Crew Chief of our SNJ-4 “Blue Bird” #N6411D which he brought back to flying condition from a truck load full of parts and pieces.

Most recently, Joe has also been our Wing’s Training Officer, helping to mentor and guide our Wing Cadets over years.

Joe will be dearly missed. May he rest in peace.

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Play List of videos from Joe’s Memorial

Debbie Harris had visited CAF SoCal a couple of years ago while on a vacation from London, England.

Back for another visit “across the pond”, this time she was thoughtful enough to bring back a family photo album with pictures of her father RAF Sgt. A.C. Cromarty who was stationed in India and Singapore from 1945-1948. The photos showed scenes of life on the base and the surrounding area and included a few photos of aircraft including some Spitfires.

Seeing our Spitfire Mk. XIV along side the photos in her father’s photo album brought a certain life to both items that we don’t always get as we hear the warbirds roar overhead at airshows.

Thanks Debbie, for bringing to us a connection to these warbird’s past.

Meet Orvin Piellwitz  one of the last survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  He is pictured here (left) with one of our Zero pilots, Rob Hertberg.

Orvin visited our Museum during our Pearl Harbor Day Event.  He was a seaman recruit in the Navy, stationed at Kaneohi Bay, Hawaii  when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.  Orvin stayed in the Navy and eventually retired as a Chief Petty Officer.

Thanks for making our day Orvin!!

Photo by Frank Sellin