Civil Air Patrol, U.S. Air Force Auxiliary
Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 64,000 volunteer members nationwide, operating a fleet of 540 aircraft. CAP, in its auxiliary role, performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and saves an average of 80 lives annually. Working with First Air Force, its volunteers perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state, and local agencies, play a leading role in aerospace education, and serve as mentors to more than 28,000 young people currently participating in its cadet programs. Other Air Force missions include being targets for air defense training, acting as surrogate drones for Green Flag exercises, and providing primary flight familiarization for officers and enlisted participants in the Rated Pilot Preparatory Program. CAP received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2014 for its extraordinary World War II service and has performed missions for America for 82 years. Visit GoCivilAirPatrol.com for more information and to learn how you can join Civil Air Patrol.