Best Squadron Trip

mikeylikey · March 15, 2008, 03:08:40 AM

I was thinking about the trip the Squadron will be taking in the Summer and was curious as to what others here have done in that regard. So the Question is.....

What was the best trip (either overnight, or one day) that your squadron has taken? If you want, you can add what the worst trip was also!

For me, it would have to be when I was a brand new Cadet and the Squadron took all 35 members to the Patton Museum and stayed overnight at Fort Knox Kentucky. That was my first real exposure to the military, and since that time I knew I wanted to be in the Army. That one weekend getting tours of tanks, eating in the DFAC, shopping at the PX and going on tours of various units was simply awesome!

BTW....I highly reccomend the Patton Museum to everyone, it is not just about tanks. It is one of the finest military museums in the country.

nesagsar · March 15, 2008, 03:10:38 AM

My squadron didnt go anywhere...

jimmydeanno · March 15, 2008, 03:46:20 AM

We went to Washington DC for 10 days during a school vacation. During the trip we visited the monuments, museums, west wing of the white house, the admin building, etc. It was almost like a "mini civic academy." Definitely the coolest squadron trip we ever did.

brasda91 · March 15, 2008, 10:32:45 AM

Quote from: mikeylikey on March 15, 2008, 03:08:40 AM
For me, it would have to be when I was a brand new Cadet and the Squadron took all 35 members to the Patton Museum and stayed overnight at Fort Knox Kentucky.

mikey, where do you live? I'm just down the road a few hours from Knox.

NIN · March 15, 2008, 12:22:02 PM

As a cadet my squadron didn't go any place cool.

I've taken my current sq on a few different trips. Last big on I went on we took an overnight trip to the USS Intrepid in NYC. That was a blast. But we've been to places like Battleship Cove, West Point... stuff within a few hours drive of the unit.

A friend of mine, when he was a squadron commander in the 1990s in Michigan, took his sq on a 3-4 "Mega-trips" (his words) to various places in the US.

I volunteered myself as a driver for his first trip to DC. Barracks at Belvior, toured the Capitol, the Mall & memorials on one day (it was hot as the hinges of hades that day, let me tell you !), then Ft. Meyer, Arlington and the NASM the next day. The last day, he wrangled us into a Pentagon tour before we left for home. That was a LONG weekend.

His next trip was to Cocoa Beach. They drove like 20+ hrs, did KSC, Disney, Ron Jons, etc, then *pow* 20 hrs back to Michigan. Their last trip was to Colorado Springs. I could swear he finagled a Cheyenne Mountain tour, but I'm not sure.

John Bryan · March 15, 2008, 02:19:54 PM

In December 2002 I took over a unit that was falling apart and was near closing. Anyway we did a lot of recruiting and fund raising. Morale went up and at the end of summer 2003 (just a few months before the 100 year mark) we went to Kitty Hawk and Washington DC. It was a great road trip. We took 3 seniors and 10 cadets in a 15 pax van. We spent two days in NC , visiting Kitty Hawk, US Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, Bodie Island Light Station and of course went for a dip in the ocean. We then drove up to DC and spent 4 days there.....we went to the Air and Space Musuem and all the other sites. Only wish we had more time in each place.

mikeylikey · March 15, 2008, 10:18:05 PM

Quote from: brasda91 on March 15, 2008, 10:32:45 AM
Quote from: mikeylikey on March 15, 2008, 03:08:40 AM
For me, it would have to be when I was a brand new Cadet and the Squadron took all 35 members to the Patton Museum and stayed overnight at Fort Knox Kentucky.

Mikey, where do you live? I'm just down the road a few hours from Knox.

I lived in Indiana at the time. However during my "break" from CAP during early Active Duty I lived at Fort Knox. One of the best Army Posts in the country. The surrounding communities are awesome as well. One of my best day trips with some buddies was to the Colonel Sanders farm. I love KFC chicken, so for me, it was like visiting Graceland.

SSgt Rudin · March 16, 2008, 02:15:24 AM

Every year during the Air and Sea show we always try and get at least one ship tour. No Air and Sea show this year

but there are still a few ships pulling in for Ft Lauderdale's Fleet Week.

About a year ago we went to Kennedy Space Center, no launch, but one of our "members on paper" is a top official there so we go to go to a bunch of restricted areas.

Last month we went to the "National Model Rocketry Completion" (something like that) watched really big rockets that require FAA clearance to launch and GPS tracking to find.

Random trips up to Patrick AFB for uniform stuff.

PhoenixRisen · March 16, 2008, 08:19:08 AM

A tour of the USS Ronald Reagan right after it's initial docking at home port.

The tour of the air control tower and airfield fire fighting station/equipment at San Diego International airport.

The tour of the numerous aircraft squadrons (both fixed wing and rotary) & tower at MCAS Miramar my squadron went on today (which I sadly missed out on).

And various small things, like getting to go into the hangar belonging to one of my squadron members' Marine Reserve fighter squadrons and getting to check out (& sit inside) a few F/A-18's.

Living in one of the largest military towns has it's benefits.

NHQ-OS-126 Frank · March 16, 2008, 12:36:45 PM

Hello everybody,

You could come visit our squadron at Spangdahlem AB in Germany/Europe. We would be happy to welcome other cadets and seniors from the states over here............

jb512 · March 16, 2008, 01:30:44 PM

My best squadron trip was back in my cadet days, around 1992. My dad was stationed at Ft. Kobbe, Panama and I was in the overseas squadron there. We spent the day on a navy cruiser going through the canal (back in the days when we owned it). We boarded on the south side and got to go through all three sets of locks, and the Gatun lake (map attached...).

SSgt Rudin · March 16, 2008, 09:05:57 PM

Quote from: NHQ-OS-126 Frank on March 16, 2008, 12:36:45 PM
Hello everybody,

You could come visit our squadron at Spangdahlem AB in Germany/Europe. We would be happy to welcome other cadets and seniors from the states over here............

If I'm ever in Germany again I will take you up on that.

NHQ-OS-126 Frank · March 16, 2008, 09:13:01 PM

2d Lt RUDIN: You are always welcome.......just let us know.

Frank

mynetdude · March 17, 2008, 12:38:13 AM

Quote from: NHQ-OS-126 Frank on March 16, 2008, 12:36:45 PM

Hello everybody,

You could come visit our squadron at Spangdahlem AB in Germany/Europe. We would be happy to welcome other cadets and seniors from the states over here............

I was going to be in Germany this year, cancelled and rescheduled for 2009. Visiting an overseas squadron IS an agenda ON my list for sure!!!

Gunner C · March 17, 2008, 01:47:11 AM

WIWAC at Elmendorf AFB, AK, we got the opportunity to take a C-54 to Colorado Springs, CO during the Christmas break in 1969. It was a LONG flight. We got there and immediately went to a Burger King (we didn't have any fast food burger places back then in town). The next day, we toured the Air Force Academy and Peterson AFB. The day after, we went to see NORAD. We got to have some time with the local cadets and had a great time. The last night, we had a going away party that was the best cadet function I'd ever been to. We got press coverage both in the Colorado Springs area and in Anchorage. That was a GREAT trip. I've still got the press clippings in my old stuff.

GC

mikeylikey · March 17, 2008, 03:13:49 AM

^ Thats one awesome trip. So was that your first exposure to "fast food"?

Gunner C · March 17, 2008, 03:24:30 AM

Quote from: mikeylikey on March 17, 2008, 03:13:49 AM
^ Thats one awesome trip. So was that your first exposure to "fast food"?

Most all of us were military kids so we'd been to a McDonalds before, just not in about two years. We stopped at the first thing we saw - Burger King: I had a Whopper, fries, and a coke. HEAVEN! I'd never seen a hamburger that big before.