Award-winning, best-selling author visits Hanscom Published July 29, 2010 By Sarah Olaciregui 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. -- Award-winning, best-selling author and Massachusetts resident Patricia Cornwell visited here July 27 to learn more about the base's mission and begin research for a new book in her Scarpetta series. In Ms. Cornwell's Scarpetta novels, the main character, Dr. Kay Scarpetta, is a forensic expert and medical examiner. In the author's newest novel, "Port Mortuary," due out in November, it is revealed Dr. Scarpetta has an Air Force connection that could lead her to Hanscom. Ms. Cornwell has been described as a meticulous researcher and insists on accuracy, according to her biography. She is so committed to making sure her characters seem authentic and the actions they do are realistic that she became a helicopter pilot and certified scuba diver because the characters she was writing about were doing these things. In fact, she has been a licensed pilot for approximately 11 years and her helicopter is stationed at Hanscom Field. "You have to spend time with real people to get a sense of what they do and how they speak," she said while meeting with members of the Public Affairs office and Col. Stacy L. Yike, 66th Air Base Group commander. From this point, Ms. Cornwell will take away information from the standard briefing and tour and begin doing research on the base's mission, the meanings of the many acronyms provided to her and decide how Hanscom will be incorporated in the plot for the next novel in the Scarpetta series. For those interested in learning more about the author, visit www.patriciacornwell.com.