 I'm Robert Lansing. During the past few years, I've become fairly well acquainted with the United States Air Force and its mission through different parts that I've played on television and motion pictures. Although the primary mission of the United States Air Force is, of course, national defense, there are other Air Force activities that have a dramatic bearing on our lives. A specific Air Force accomplishment I'm going to talk about is Air Force support of our Civil Air Patrol. The Civil Air Patrol is an Air Force auxiliary made up of thousands of civilians who give of their time, their efforts, their skills in finding and rescuing people who are lost or injured. The story you're about to see will give you an insight into how those rescue missions are organized and carried out by the men and women of the Civil Air Patrol. Music Yeah? Mitch Crawford? Yeah? Mitch Crawford, this is Major Brown, Western Rescue Center. How old now? I've got a November 7197 Alpha, a Cessna 172, two personnel on board. Excited. California, 2,300 Zulu hours yesterday. Destination, Scottsdale, Arizona. Another job for the mechanics, the salesmen, the plumbers, the volunteers of the Civil Air Patrol. Another overdue plane to find. Possibly lost in a wilderness so vast it will be like looking for a needle in a haystack. When the plane didn't arrive Scottsdale, the pilot's wife, Mrs. Donnelly, called Phoenix Flight Service. Phoenix issued the all-night. We've completed ramp checks at Riverside and Scottsdale. Results negative. Other ramp checks are in progress en route. As to man and set up a mission headquarters, five hours to alert pilot and crews, have them briefed and ready for the search. I want you as my assistant. Captain Michael Riley at your service, sir. Okay, Tom, let's have it. And try and get at least one with night weather electronic search capability for an ASAP launch. Just in case Dr. Donnelly had a locator beacon. Sure can. But what's the story? Later. Two planes into the air at first light on an initial route search. Should heck it. Me, you, ground ops, comm, IO, and admin types. Okay? Now, here's the story. Assessment 172 with two aboard departed Riverside. First light. Two aircraft are launched on initial route search for a pilot who did not file a flight plan. His most probable route. Riverside direct thermal. Thermal direct life. Life direct Buckeye, Arizona. Buckeye direct Scottsdale. Until we get more information, we must assume that Dr. Donnelly flew this route. We'll start by covering 10 miles each side the assumed flight route. But we'll concentrate here and give the area first priority. Mike, will you brief the grid assignments? Thanks, Tom. Carter, you have the aircraft in experience. You'll take grid 236. You inform them, lay out a plan of attack, and then turn them over to Mike Riley. He gives them the specifics and the detailed briefings on individual grid assignments. You can't just launch aircraft into the air and expect to achieve any meaningful results. The crews have to be informed. You stress flying safety, review scanning techniques, brief them on the weather to expect, go over the search patterns and all the other ingredients so vital to a well-organized mission. Only then do you flash the green light. With the initial search plans laid out and the search planes in the air, mission headquarters can now tie up the loose ends, seek more information, and begin piecing together the puzzle. Mike, what have you got? Mike and Edward's report the weather was generally fair to poor last night between Riverside and Arizona. However, there were some snow flurries reported in the San Bernardino Mountains. Flight Service reports pyreps indicating moderate turbulence in the primary search area. Find out how much endurance he had when he departed Riverside. Let's find out about his habits and skill. What nav aids did he have and did he know how to use them? Did he panic under stress? Didn't he have a history of any sickness or illness? Word goes out. All points bulletin. Where's the teletype that should get right out? Okay. San Bernardino to all units. Be on the lookout for a down to aircraft. Riverside to Scottsdale. To every town between. In the desert. In the mountains. Hey, Rob, I just received an APB about a down test on 172. Took off from Riverside and route to Scottsdale. Civil Air Patrol ground team spread out. Questioning, trying to get answers. If only 10 can give you a lead. Or even just one. I got this information from his wife. When Dr. Donley left Scottsdale, he planned to divert to Tucson and route to Riverside. Hmm. Let's check it out on the map. Tucson Flight Service says he filed a flight plan to Riverside. And topped his tanks with a fuel endurance of five hours. But get this. Riverside has no record of his refueling and all the fuel vendors concur. At least he did something right at Tucson. Where does that put them? Here somewhere. He had less fuel than we thought. Possibly enough to get him 175 miles max. Let's call this the area of maximum possibility based on his fuel. And this the most probable area. So, let's check fuel vendors all along this route. On the map, a mere few inches from a small plane, the vast hostile expanse. How did it react? Darkness closing in, fuel running low. Some turbulence in the valleys. In trouble, did he continue flying east toward Blythe? Or did he reverse course? Or did he search the valley floor of her place to land? Or did he fly into the side of a mountain? Let's concentrate coverage a little more. Reassign Andy from Blythe. And ask Western Rescue if all ramp and fuel checks have been completed. Then update them on leads. Hi, Mr. Stavis. I don't know if it's the airplane you're looking for. Oh, $900. Leads resulting from press, TV and radio coverage coming in. And people who saw a plane or thought they saw one. People trying to help. Okay, ma'am, can I have your name and number? Okay. And thank you very much for calling. Hello, patrol. Mr. Stavis. A lear jet near Palm Springs. Scheduled 747 of a big bear. Are you three and you're out a while? Hi, Bob. How's the pleasure? Oh, it's really bad. Terrible. What can I do for you? I understand you saw a low-flying aircraft around here yesterday. Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was a Cessna 172 that went down right over the horizon yesterday around dusk. The right type of aircraft, the right time frame, but the wrong color, the wrong owner, the wrong plane. Some of these leads get pretty wild, Tom, but we try and check them all out. The results are big fat zero. Ground operations, Major Savucci. A white and red beach craft. Hello, Dee. Hi, Major. Here's what we have on Dr. Donnelly so far. According to his son, he was a good pilot, but had less than $300 experience. Here's one. I quote, For my dough, Dr. Donnelly couldn't fly a kite. Unquote. That's the opinion of Dr. Matthew's brother. A Riverside associate said he had a couple of cocktails, but seemed sober when he took off. Then why in the hell didn't he file a flight plan and refuel? Now, this may help, Major. A flight instructor who has flown cross-country with Dr. Donnelly reports that he sometimes fails to lean his mixture. Now, that would reduce his range and reinforce this as our primary area. Western rescue completes all checks and Arizona is thanked and relieved of the search. It's three hours not a dark. Three hours before the day's search ends. Air crews continue their sorties, recover at Chino and then fly again. They check out any clue that might lead to a five. White Bear 755. I see a break in the trees. Headquarters, this is Brown Bear 135. I can't make it out. White Bear 135, copy. When you've squeezed every minute out of daylight, then it's time to bring them home. You get them together so you can compile what was accomplished during the day. Today's coverage in the mountains, 10%. In the desert and valleys, 50%. You add it all up. You prepare the assignments and plans for the next day. The list of replacements, Major. Thank you, Judy. Here you go. The list of lawyers, clerks, plumbers, salesmen, and mechanics, you select the replacements for those who can't make it the next day. The press demands word on the latest developments and gets it. In exchange, they give you saturation coverage. Have there been any civilian fatalities reporting? Do you know where the airplane was going? Tom? Yes, Cheryl. Could you come and answer a few questions, please? One thing, Major, can you tell us if you expect to find anyone alive? Gentlemen, let me put it this way. We certainly hope so. Today our people flew 48 sorties. Some risk their own lives. We will continue to fly sorties until there is no longer any hope. Does that answer your question? The search area is expanded. Areas of highest probability receive first priority. 12, 30 hours. Thank you. We'll follow that up. Hey, Tom? Mike? Yeah. Los Angeles reports that Adela 747 picked up a weak signal beam on Victor 264. Now, that's about 55 miles east of the Pomona Vortac. Where does that put them? Let's see. That should put them just about right there. If that was Dr. Donnelly, how did he get way up there? Never mind how he got there. Check it out. Hit grids 208 and 209 hard. Reassign aircraft. Move in the ground teams. Keep your fingers closed. This may be the lead you've been waiting for. We are reassigning you to grid 209. A rancher in the Yucca Valley recalls the morning news broadcast. Two days ago at dusk, he saw an aircraft circling at a low altitude, engine sputtering. A Cessna, white with green trim. He remembers the description even to the tail numbers 97A. This had to be it. Concentrate on grid 209A with aircraft and ground crews. Give it everything you've got. We're getting hot. Advise western rescue. Have them alert a rescue chopper for a possible recovery. Alert the ambulance. Alert the medics. Have them ready to go in. Overlook anything that might be a clue. The wind of sunlight on metal. Broken branches. Anything. I find that not the one you're looking for. Some of the highway patrol can take care of this one. You call in hoping this isn't it. He never walked away from that one. Get around for another look. Another hour. Nothing. Less than an hour to dusk. 3-5. This is white there. 7-5-5. Over. California found them this time. Next time it could be Colorado, Louisiana, Maine, or any other of the 52 civil air patrol wings in any one of the other 49 states in Puerto Rico. Now call in the civilian pilots. The dedicated guys who risked their lives and aircraft. Let them go back to their families. And do their jobs in the banks. In the offices. In the stores. In the plant. Knowing that what they did today will be remembered by two men and their families. As long as they live. And then when everyone is checked out.