What is the Civil Air Patrol?

We are dedicated "Citizens Serving Communities" since 1941.

Measuring Our Impact ...

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110
Saved 110 lives through search and rescue efforts in 2017, thanks in large part to the assistance of CAP’s National Cell Phone Forensics and National Radar Analysis teams

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560
Operates one of the largest fleets of single-engine piston aircraft in the world, with 560 planes currently in the fleet

58,000
Consists of 1,445 squadrons and approximately 58,000 volunteer youth and adult members nationwide

100,352
Flew more than 100,000 hours again in 2017, surpassing this milestone flying mark for the second straight year

177,000,000
CAP members contributed over $177 million in man-hours in the past year, serving their communities, states and the nation

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Do YOU have what it takes to be a CAP member? Find out HERE!

Our Mission Statement

Supporting America’s communities with emergency response, diverse aviation and ground services, youth development, and promotion of air, space and cyber power.

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About CAP

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Civil Air Patrol is congressionally chartered and operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, CAP performs services for the federal government as the official civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and for states/local communities as a nonprofit organization. CAP is made up of eight geographic regions consisting of 52 wings (the 50 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia). It is a strategic partner of the Air Force, serving as a member of its Total Force. CAP has three primary missions — Emergency Services, Cadet Programs and Aerospace Education. This year, Civil Air Patrol is celebrating its 70-year association with the U.S. Air Force. Congress passed a law on May 26, 1948, designating CAP as the official Air Force auxiliary.

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Our Three Primary Missions

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Cadet Programs

• Attracts over 25,000 members ages 12 through 20 for participation in its cadet programs.

• Educates youth in four main program areas — leadership, aerospace, fitness and character development.

• Enriches school curricula through after-school programs.

• Offers orientation flights in powered and glider aircraft, as well as flight training scholarships.

• Provides activities and competitions for cadets at the local, state, regional and national levels.

• Makes opportunities for community involvement available through color guard/drill team and emergency service missions.

• Challenges youth to be ambassadors for a drug-free lifestyle.

• Nurtures the skills of CAP cadets who make up about 10 percent of each of the U.S. Air Force Academy’s classes.

• Cadets who have earned the Gen. Billy Mitchell Award enlist in the Air Force, U.S. Army and U.S. Coast Guard at a higher pay grade.

• Participates in the International Air Cadet Exchange program.

• Awards college scholarships in several disciplines.

Aerospace Education

• Educates adult and cadet members and the community on the importance of aerospace.

• Develops, publishes and distributes national academic standards-based Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) aerospace education curricula for kindergarten through college classrooms, reaching about 300,000 K-12 students nationwide.

• Generates interest in STEM careers through aviation, space and technology focused activities and CAP “STEM Kits” associated with astronomy, flight simulations, model and remote-control aircraft, robotics, rocketry, weather, hydraulic engineering, computer programming, coding, circuitry and mathematics.

• Provides educators with free educational programs, products and services, including orientation flights.

• Offers grant and college credit opportunities for adult and teacher members.

• Provides aerospace support for educational conferences and workshops nationwide.

Emergency Services

• Conducts 90 percent of inland search and rescue in the U.S. as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and other agencies.

• Coordinates Air Force-assigned missions through CAP National Operations Center at Maxwell AFB, Ala., at a cost of $120-$165 per flying hour.

• Has more than 6,900 aircrew members and nearly 33,000 emergency responders trained to FEMA standards.

• Provides 450 chaplains and 500 character development instructors who minister to youth and adult members and help comfort survivors and victims of disasters.

• Performs aerial reconnaissance for homeland security.

• Provides air intercept training, impact assessment, light transport, communications support and low-level route surveys for the Air Force.

• Provides disaster-relief photography and support to local, state and national agencies.

• Transports time-sensitive medical materials, blood products and body tissues when commercial resources are unavailable.

• Assists federal, state and local law enforcement agencies in the War on Drugs.

• Maintains an extensive VHF and HF communications network.

70 Years as the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary

Civil Air Patrol marks its 70th anniversary in 2018 as the auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force – a role authorized by Congress with Public Law 80-557 and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman on May 26, 1948. Before that, CAP had served in support of the U.S. Army Air Corps. The 1948 law ensured that the partnership would continue with the newly formed Air Force, which was created Sept. 18, 1947. Civil Air Patrol celebrated the 75th anniversary of its founding in 2016 and the 75th anniversary of its cadet program in 2017.

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CAP fulfills its role as the newest member of the Air Force’s Total Force through such vital services as assisting with aerial intercept and unmanned aerial vehicle training, as well as disaster relief aerial reconnaissance and search and rescue. Its citizen volunteers — 59,000 members strong in 1,445 communities across America — respond to disasters; help teachers and students with aerospace-related science, technology, engineering and math educational resources; and provide youth with the opportunity to develop strong ethical character, leadership and self-confidence that will allow them to excel as adults in their chosen professions.