Commander

1st Lt Scott Kirkwood, Commander of the Lakeland Composite Squadron

At the age of 15, my father, a former Air Traffic Controller from the Vietnam war, saw that my ambition to take to the skies was never dying. He knew that this part of me would grow, and as a father he knew that he had a responsibility to push that forward.

My father purchased a discovery flight for me at the Colorado Springs airport, followed by ground school lessons. I flew in a Cessna 150 with a qualified pilot, and was even given the opportunity to take the controls after takeoff. I distinctly remembered the aircraft being brown on white, and I remember feeling extremely high off the ground, yet looking to the west and seeing the mountains towering above me. It was one of the strangest, out-of-body experiences I had ever felt, but more importantly I was in control. And because I was in control, I felt safe!

With each passing week all I could ever do was think about taking to the skies. I was young, inexperienced, and had absolutely no sense of direction. While my father was a great father in this aspect, he too lacked the ability to provide me proper guidance. However, he did know how to point me in the right directions when I ask the right questions. That being said, I figured out very quickly that flight lessons were going to be extremely expensive. So, I immediately turned towards being a mechanic, earning an A&P certificate from Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, Oklahoma, approximately 2 years after graduating high school.

Following graduation, I was given an opportunity to work for L3 Communications in Greenville, Texas. I didn't know anything about Texas.  It sounded green, so I dropped everything, took my family, and moved to Texas. For the next three years I worked as a mechanic while going to school, ultimately working my way up into the engineering department as an intern. I worked aerospace design, both electrical and mechanical, before getting a chance to go work in software engineering, where I picked up my passion for Linux.

From the software engineering perspective I learned a lot about systems engineering, and most importantly I learned about the different facets and complexities that aviation brings.

With the passing of my dad, I developed a hole that I have never been able to fill.  Ultimately, my love for aviation forced it's way in, and I decided to earn my pilot's license.

In 2013, I moved back to Colorado Springs where I worked for Northrop Grumman as a systems engineer. One of the specialties of systems engineering is system safety engineering, which I learned from one of the country's greatest champions in the field that came before me, Warren Naylor. By Summer of 2015, I decided to take a systems engineering job with L3 Communications (now L-3Harris) back in Greenville, Texas due to the high tax rates and increasing economy in Colorado, not to mention their decreasing interests in aviation. By early 2018, I had accepted a position working full-time as a system safety engineer for Lockheed Martin, in Orlando Florida. Working with Lockheed Martin as by far been one of the most exciting, and most pleasant experiences of my life. The Apache program has shown me the real purpose of our army. Lockheed Martin supports the US Army far above what other companies have been able to do. And to be part of that journey, has been an experience that I would never trade for anything!

I originally started my Civil Air Patrol (CAP) career in 2014 when I originally joined the Colorado Wing. Truth is, after about 6 months, I was not able to stay with the squadron as I had a lot of pull from outside the squadron, and I truly didn't understand what my responsibilities would be within the squadron. I did recognize that CAP demanded a lot more of my time, but I found that it was far more than I was able to give being as how I was working full-time for Northrop Grumman, working full-time to run my own aviation maintenance shop, and leaving virtually no time for other things that were essential, like sleeping and eating. Family tends pulls on a man pretty hard, and in this case pulled on me a lot to the point where I knew that joining the CAP full-time would not allow me to watch my children grow.

Fast forward to 2022, I found myself in a position where I was ready to really join the CAP and commit my time and resources to an organization that goes above and beyond it helps the community.  I joined the Lakeland Composite Squadron with the intent on being a Mission Pilot. By July of 2023, I was given what feels like the most impossible task of being the Squadron Commander to lead the squadron in a new direction.

It has been an exciting first year, and I believe there is room and purpose for everyone, from all walks of life, who have ever dreamed of being part of a large organization to be something better than themselves. What we do for the CAP is vitally important to the communities in which we serve. We are not just a face, and we are not just a name. The Lakeland Composite Squadron is a fast growing squadron with the sole purpose of being deeply embedded in every aspect of community relations possible. We stand behind all three pillars of what we do: Aerospace Education, Cadet Services, and Emergency Services.  I believe my only regret once I get to the end of the road and transition away from CAP will be that I wasn't more involved that I am right now.