Civil Air Patrol Maj. Jerome "Pepper" Broad, of Marticville, is the new commander of Jesse Jones Composite Squadron 304, which is headquartered at the Lancaster Airport. He replaces Maj. Thomas A. Waltz Jr., who has commanded the squadron since 2018.

Broad, a member of the Civil Air Patrol since 2013, is a nurse and has been the squadron health services officer as well as deputy commander for seniors, emergency services officer and standardization/evaluation officer. He also serves as the coordinator of the small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) program for the Pennsylvania Wing.

The squadron is named for local aviation pioneer and wartime Civil Air Patrol member Jesse Jones.

The squadron meets at 7 p.m. on Mondays at the hangar in the northwest corner of Lancaster Airport at Lititz Pike and Millport Road. When more COVID restrictions are lifted, the squadron's meetings will be open to the public.

The squadron offers a Cadet Program for young men and women from 12 to 21 years of age as well as an Emergency Services and Aerospace Program for its members and the public.

Established in 1941, the Civil Air Patrol is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. In its auxiliary role, CAP operates a fleet of 560 single-engine Cessna aircraft and 1,944 sUAS and performs about 90% of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. CAP also performs homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. It offers aerospace education programs and also mentors youths participating in its Cadet Programs.

Visit http://www.CAP.News or http://www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com for more information. For information on the local squadron, visit http://www.jessejones.cap.gov.