Bill Bostic has been active in Civil Air Patrol for 47 years

Nov. 01--Lt. Col. Bill Bostic has spent his share of cold nights in fields or woods searching for a downed airplane or a missing person.

A member of the Civil Air Patrol Shelby Composite Squadron for 47 years, the 86-year-old has served on 21 missions. He has also held the positions of squadron commander and chief ground team operator.

Bill became interested in airplanes as a young boy and would catch a ride to the Shelby airport from the Trinity Community in Mooresboro for a chance to fly with Paul Bridges, Bob Packard or Joe Rose. Because he was always at the airport, the men asked him, "Why don't you become a cadet?"

He became a cadet in 1946 and later that year joined the Air Force. After basic training, he was sent to Japan, where he trained as a mechanic on P51 fighter planes. He was stationed in Japan for two years and then returned to Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter, S.C.

"I came out with the highest MOS, which means I was qualified to go to any airfield to be an inspector," Bill said.

Serving the community

He came home, though, and married Mabel Dixon, in 1950. He worked at Cone Mills in Cliffside and then the couple built a service station, which they operated for 29 years before retiring. Bill was also a volunteer firefighter in Cliffside for 35 years, and he and Mabel worked traffic control in Rutherford County for funerals.

He established a Civil Air Patrol Squadron in 1964 in Cliffside, after a plane crash in the area. The group was active for two years before disbanding. The records were sent to Asheville and lost, he said. He rejoined the Shelby Squadron in 1967.

The plane crash in Cliffside was a T-33 Jet Trainer. The two pilots bailed out and were rescued, he said.

He and his wife were working at the store when they saw the plane get into trouble.

"The canopy landed above the store," Mabel said.

Bill said the rescue squad was at a meeting and they responded to the crash site quickly. In 1993, a boy playing in a field in Cliffside found one of the harnesses from the crash, he said.

He has copies of most of the newspaper articles about the missions he has been on. The clippings are yellowed with age, but are a record of the events that he lived through.

'On-duty 24 hours a day'

"You are on-duty 24 hours a day," he said. "It's rough to crawl out of the warm bed, but I did it for years."

And Mabel always went with him -- even on Christmas day when they responded to a crash in Rutherfordton.

"I packed up my goodies and took them along," she said.

It was going to be an all-nighter.

"We sat down in the floor of the Rutherfordton Airport -- the Forest Service, Civil Air Patrol, Rescue Squad -- we had pinpointed where the plane might be," he said. "After the fog lifted, the pilot found it in about 15 minutes."

Some of the men who served on the missions with him were Tommy Bridges, Ed Spangler, Jack Howell, James Harris, Mark Beaver, Flay Washburn, Joe Rose, Gene Meade, Pat Patterson, Charlie Jenkins, Dr. Frank Sincox, Tony Miller, Fred Nanney, Donald Whisnant, Ronnie Hawkins, John Reynolds, Ada Bridges, Doris Cooper, Burl Turner, Joyce Ashdown and William "Bill" Ashdown.

One of the worst crashes Bill ever responded to was a midair collision in Hendersonville. There were no survivors. He remembers walking through the more than 80 burned bodies, lying next to each other in rows.

"The Civil Air Patrol secures the crash site from onlookers," he said.

'They teach all of us'

A few of the older members like Bill are still active in the Shelby Squadron and their service is invaluable, said Lt. John Gore.

"The knowledge they have does not grow on trees and is not available to us today," he said. "The things they have encountered helps the young people out and gives them some insight into what the past was. They teach all of us."

Although the Civil Air Patrol hasn't been out looking for an airplane in about three years, they do provide emergency services for the community, said Squadron Commander Maj. Thomas Bly.

"We have a couple of guys who have been around Civil Air Patrol for half my lifetime," he said. "What they do -- especially for the cadets -- is give some continuity to the program. Bill has been involved in emergency services up until the last four or five years. I value his input a lot and we get to talking about how the search and rescues were conducted."

Both Bill and Mabel said he has never thought about retiring, and as long as he goes to the meetings, she will go with him.

"I never have give it no thought," Bill said. "It's all I have done. I'm doing it to help my fellow man. That's what we train for -- every week, every month, every year -- to help a fellow man in time of need."

Senior Reporter Jackie Bridges can be reached at 704-669-3337, jbridges@shelbystar.com or on Twitter at @jmbridges.

Want to become a Cadet?

The cadet program with Civil Air Patrol offers an opportunity for young adults to learn to be leaders in the community, participate in actual emergency services exercises and missions of the US Air Force. They can begin at age 12 and remain in the program until age 21. Upon completing a certain level they will also qualify to join the US Air Force as an E-3 in rank, which is a significant pay grade jump. Some of the opportunities include summer training, flight orientation, and opportunities for flight scholarships. The program also offers low cost flight training programs for those wanting to solo an aircraft.

The Shelby Squadron is recruiting and would like to invite any young adult age 12-18 to join up. Adult members are needed as well. There is no commitment to join any branch of the military. You may email: jgore024@gmail.com or air.warrior@yahoo.com or call 803-417-9420 for more information. Anyone is welcome to attend. Meetings are Tuesdays at 6 p.m. at Shelby Airport, 830 College Ave., Shelby.

Bill Bostic's missions

During 47 years with the Civil Air Patrol, Bill Bostic has served on 21 missions, some of them include:

- Airplane crash with a family on board into a small mountain east of Rutherfordton airport -- no survivors

- Airplane crash into a home in Spindale -- no survivors

- Airplane crash near Scaly Mountain -- no survivors

- Helicopter crash in Polk County -- both survived

- Searches for missing persons in Cleveland County and Cherry Mountain

- Jet crash at Shelby airport -- no survivors

- Three river drownings

Copyright 2014 - The Star, Shelby, N.C.