Feb 8, 2014 3 min read

Capt. Alex Ladzinski of Peters Township was recognized recently as Civil Air Patrol’s Washington County Squadron 601 Senior Member of the Year at the unit’s annual banquet.

Ladzinksi, who has served as the squadron’s aerospace education officer since December 2009, also received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from Congressman Tim Murphy, R-18th District, for his outstanding work in the community.

Washington Squadron 601 is the county’s local chapter of the Civil Air Patrol, an all-volunteer, civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force that provides emergency services, aerospace education and youth leadership programs to communities nationwide. Local unit members include adults and students from throughout Washington County.

Ladzinski works mainly with cadets, instructing them in the historical and technical aspects of aerospace, including current events. Ladzinski, who originally became involved with the organization when his son joined several years ago, said he was honored and humbled when he learned he received Senior Member of the Year for his service.

“Just having the opportunity to share my knowledge and experiences with the cadets is already reward in and of itself,” Ladzinski said. “I feel privileged to have the opportunity to spend time preparing our cadets for the next generation of aerospace – whatever that will be.”

Ladzinski’s mission is to increase understanding and appreciation of aviation and space exploration. The aerospace education component of the CAP program strives to communicate knowledge, skills and attitudes relating to aerospace activities and the total impact of air and space technology upon society. In addition to conducting monthly classes, Ladzinski also takes students on numerous field trips and engages them with projects that demonstrate the various concepts regarding flight.

“Aerospace education of the American people is one of CAP’s three important missions,” said Capt. Edward Silassy, commander, Washington Squadron 601. “We are very fortunate to have someone like Capt. Ladzinski, who is both knowledgeable and willing to volunteer his time to teach our local youth the concepts of flight and aerospace technology, as well as their impact on our country’s future.”

When he is not volunteering with Civil Air Patrol, Ladzinski works as a quality assurance supervisor for Air Methods Corp., and is an adjunct professor at the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics, where he teaches a class on rotorcraft systems and maintenance. Ladzinski also is a safety team representative for the Federal Aviation Administration at the Allegheny County Flight Standards District office and provides ongoing education to members in the regional aviation community.