United States Coast Guard Auxiliary 

Flotilla 054-11-03, Gaithersburg, Maryland

"The Flying Flotilla"

New Member Information

Flotilla meetings are held the second Wednesday of every month at the Flotilla HQ trailor at Montgomery County Airpark.  The uniform is Tropical Blue Long or, in late Fall and Winter, Winter Dress Blue.  A flight suit and garrison cap or appropriate civilian dress may also be worn.  Meetings begin at 1930.  Members are encouraged to arrive early enough to get organized and seated prior to the call to order. As a prospective new member, you will be introduced as a guest during the meeting.

An orientation or training session is typically held after the meeting. The Flotilla Training Officer, Jon Buck (rjbuckcg@earthlink.net), will give you a packet of information including a Member Involvement Plan, the New Member Reference Guide, and other materials.

Before you can apply for membership, you must be interviewed by the Flotilla Commander and/or Vice Commander. During or after the interview you will be asked to fill out the application for membership. Up until that point you are under no obligations, but when you sign the application that changes. You are applying to become a uniformed member of the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, which is an active part of the Coast Guard and by extension the Department of Homeland Security. This is not something to enter into lightly.

If your application is accepted, you will become a member of the Auxiliary, the Coast Guard, and the Department of Homeland Security. You will be photographed and, perhaps, fingerprinted. A background investigation will be conducted. In a short time you will receive your official notification and, after that, your Department of Homeland Security identification card.

Congratulations! At this point you can begin training toward becoming a participating member of the Flotilla. As part of that training you may be taking online courses, attending training classes at the Flotilla offices, attending seminars in the area, handling radios or even flying as an observer-trainee. You aren't limited to any one training path - every Auxiliary training course and most Coast Guard courses are available to you. The Flotilla training officer will help you decide which courses to take.

Once trained you will be able to fill a variety of roles, ranging from air observer to vessel examiner. You can fly, stand radio watches, train others, or any of a number of other jobs. Important jobs. Jobs that are waiting for you to come do them.

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