December 29, 1998: New Hampshire CAP Helps in Search for Fatal Crash

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On this date, the New Hampshire Wing of the Civil Air Patrol assisted in the search of a single engine Piper Arrow carrying two New Jersey men.  The plane fatally crashed in the mountains.

An excerpt from the New York Times:

The plane took off from the Berlin Airport in Milan, N.H. about 7:30 P.M. on Sunday and headed south. Air traffic controllers tracked it as it climbed to about 5,600 feet, but then it disappeared from their radar, according to the Civil Air Patrol's New Hampshire Wing.

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May 25, 1998: Massachusetts CAP Plane Crash Kills Two Crew Members

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On this date in 1998, a Civil Air Patrol Cessna 182 crashed in Massachusetts during a training flight, killing both crew members.

An excerpt from Aviation Safety Network:

The Civil Air Patrol Cessna 182 was conducting what was briefed as a 1 hour instrument proficiency flight. After 30 minutes the pilots cancelled the instrument flight rules clearance and the flight continued under visual flight rules. About 15 minutes later the airplane was observed to conduct a low approach to a private airport, and then initiated a climbing right turn. During the climb, the bank increased and the airplane descended into trees with no change in engine power.

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April 16, 1998: Following Tennessee Tornados, CAP Assists with NOAA Assessment

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On this date in 1998, ten tornadoes pounded Tennessee, including one that hit Nashville.

The day after the tornaodoes, the National Weather Service enlisted the aid of the Civil Air Patrol to help it study and assess the storms' paths and tracks.

An excerpt from Stormtrack.org:

The authors realized it was essential that the damage survey begin as quickly as possible after the disaster in order to preserve evidence. A meeting was held at the Nashville Weather Service the morning after the disaster in order to establish logistics of the survey. Hard copy radar images and newspaper accounts were gathered to determine the locations of potential damage paths. An aerial damage survey was scheduled to be done first in order to quickly establish the locations and number of tornado damage paths. However, inclement weather conditions prevented us from conducting the aerial survey until three days after the event. Therefore, the ground survey was conducted first by driving through the damage area. Since numerous downed trees and power lines prevented us from driving down each road, the authors proceeded in walking portions of the damage path in the rain. Similar methodologies have been described by McDonald and Marshall (1984) and Bunting and Smith (1990) for conducting damage surveys.

It was important to have proper equipment in conducting the damage survey. Detailed road maps were obtained before the authors began surveying the damage. Still cameras with both print and slide film were used to photograph the damage. A wide angle lens on one camera captured the overall damage scene whereas a zoom lens on another camera captured specific details. Also, bringing a second camera along was also a good idea in case one of the cameras malfunctioned. Notebook paper, a clipboard, and pens were brought along for documentation purposes. House-by-house F-scale ratings were plotted on paper for each block. A tape recorder was utilized to record the locations of the photographs as well as record pertinent observations. A tape measure was helpful to determine the distances between objects and obtain dimensions of building components. Proper identification also was needed to enter the disaster areas. Hard hats provided some safety from falling objects.

A high-winged, single-engine aircraft was employed for the aerial survey with pilot from the Civil Air Patrol. The aircraft was flown between 1 and 2 km above the ground in overlapping circles which paralleled the damage path. Clearance of the air space had to be obtained from air traffic control due to our close proximity to the Nashville airport. Numerous photographs were taken of the damage path. The best perspective was obtained when photographing directly above the damaged buildings. In many cases, specific buildings were be identified and served as landmarks. This was especially true for churches, schools, and hospitals. Numerous trees were downed as a result of the tornado which made identifying roads easier. The aircraft also had a GPS (global positioning system) digital display onboard which helped confirm our location especially when roads or other landmarks were not available.

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April 8, 1998: Alabama CAP Assesses Damage after F-5 Tornado

On this date in 1998, following powerful F-5 tornado in Alabama, the Alabama Civil Air Patrol assisted with aerial missions to assess the damage.

An excerpt from NOAA:

Aerial surveys conducted by the National Weather Service with the help of the Alabama State Troopers Aviation Unit and the Civil Air Patrol determined that the tornado that ripped across west Jefferson County Wednesday night, April 8 ^th was an F5 tornado, the most violent tornado that occurs. F5 tornadoes have winds in excess of 260 miles per hour. The F5 tornado is highest rating for the most violent tornado. The Fujita Scale runs from F0 for the weakest to F5 for the most intense.

The tornado track (map of tornado track, size about 236 kb) was approximately 30.6 miles long and at it's widest point was half a mile wide. After first touching down on the east side of the Warrior River in Tuscaloosa County, the tornado crossed into Jefferson County at 7:52 pm moving just south of the town of Scrap, just inside Jefferson County. It traveled east-northeast impacting Oak Grove, Concord, Pleasant Grove, Edgewater, McDonald's Chapel areas before ending in Pratt City. The storm reached it's strongest intensity producing F5 damage in the Concord area and the McDonalds Chapel/Edgewater area.

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