District X—Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah
Lawrence Tougas — Vice President
As your District X vice president, I am often given the opportunity to meet some remarkable people. Our San Diego–area associate vice president, Tim Attaway, invited me to an unforgettable evening event, and he has written a report to share with all of us.
A memorable night in San Diego
A memorable night in San Diego unfolded July 17, 2012, with a special presentation to two deserving longtime AMA members: retired U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Robert “Bob” Cardenas and Frank Gagliardi, president of the Silent Electric Flyers of San Diego (SEFSD).
Following the award presentation, Bob shared his experiences as a B-24 bomber pilot with SEFSD members. He survived being shot down during World War II and, after the war, test-flew the German Arado 234 and the Me 262. Bob was the chief test pilot for the YB-49 Flying Wing and later turned the program over to Glen Edwards when he was called upon to be the pilot of the B-29 that would later drop the Bell X-1 on its first supersonic flight.
Bob’s friends have included Chuck Yeager, Bob Hoover, Scott Crossfield, and Glen Edwards. He shared stories of his life in aviation, illustrated with dozens of photographs, and described his induction into the Air Commando Hall of Fame in 2002.
His discussion of flying the various Northrop Flying Wing variants was particularly compelling. He was the first to conduct stall tests that put the aircraft into a near-fatal end-over-end tumble, from which he was able to recover. Those tests, however, revealed serious control and stability issues that ultimately doomed the design and its production—not a political conspiracy, as some rumors suggested, but problems simply too difficult to solve at the time. His anecdotes were appreciated by roughly 50 SEFSD members in attendance.
Frank Gagliardi and Don Madison
Frank Gagliardi is a friend of General Cardenas. Born in the Bronx, New York, he began his modeling experience with an AVN-8 and now builds and flies scale aircraft, pylon racers, indoor models, 16-foot B-29s, and turbine jets. He joined the U.S. Marines in 1953 and spent 25 years with various Marine bands, including “The President’s Own.” After retiring to San Diego, he became a local legend in modeling.
Don Madison, a close friend of Frank’s and a legend in scale modeling, was born in Kansas and relocated to San Diego at age five. He joined the U.S. Army Air Forces in 1943 and became a navigator on B-24 aircraft. He later served in the Korean War, flying a B-29. Don’s special interest has always been scale warbirds.
Frank and Don have cultivated model airplane clubs in San Diego and helped establish the Association of Model Clubs of San Diego County. In 1998, Don was asked to help sort through the modeling estate of a friend whose widow was in dire need of assistance. Frank joined the effort, and the two have since teamed up a number of times to help with large estates. To date they have helped 48 widows secure the sale of their late husbands’ modeling assets.
Don and Frank deserve recognition for their many contributions promoting modeling and the AMA for decades. Their work assisting widows in San Diego County is especially commendable. This dynamic twosome received a special AMA recognition award presented by District X VP Lawrence Tougas, who made a special trip to San Diego for the presentation.
It was a pleasure to attend this meeting. I won’t soon forget the wonderful people I met that night. Please check the District X website, www.ama10.org, for a video to go with this article.
Reminders — upcoming AMA deadlines
- Flying Site Improvement Grants: March 1
- AMA Hall of Fame: March 31
- Youth Scholarships: April 30
Take advantage of these programs and enjoy the benefits your AMA membership provides.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
