Front, Glider with Pinsky and Cipriani lands at from Woodbine Airport as part of Civil Air Patrol encampment July 10. Left: Heather Pinsky, right, prepares for takeoff as Francesca Cipriani sits in the glider cockpit. Photos by Harry B. Scheeler Jr.

WOODBINE - Francesca Cipriani, 15, of SouthToms River took flight this week in a Civil Air Patrol glider at the Woodbine Airport.

“Flying is a feeling we always wanted to do for thousands of years and now I can do it myself, it’s different from anything else on earth,” said Cipriani just after making her seventh flight here.

Cipriani, took part in a week-long camp hosted by the Civil Air Patrol Cape May County Squadron with 11 other teenagers from around the state at the CAP‘s summer encampment.

Cipriani hopes to continue her flight training and one day fly for the Air Force, much like 2nd Lt. Heather Pinsky, Cipriani ‘s flight instructor during the event.

USAF 2nd Lt. Heather Pinsky, 21, of Morristown has been a licensed pilot since 17. She looks back to when she was taking flying lessons at 15 and sees a lot of herself in Cipriani.

Pinsky, a graduate of the Air force Academy, will begin her flight training this year at Lakeland, Texas Air force Base.

Helping to get many of the cadets into the air was Lower Township resident and flying buff Ed Wuerker. He told the Herald that he had spent much of his day towing the gliders skyward.

Another local pilot, Dr. Richard Fellows also took part in the encampment.

The Cape May Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol is based at the Cape May County Airport in Erma. Its volunteers provide search and rescue coverage along with the State Police and Coast Guard. It is open to young people interested in flying and furthering friendships with others with similar likes.