# Presentation: 909382

## History Of Civil Air Patrol

- <date/time>

- C/MSgt Constantine

## The Founding

- <date/time>

- Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the United States Air Force, was established December 1, 1941, one week before Pearl Harbor.
- After a shortage of pilots to fly and fight, people argued for the creation of an organization to harness their aviation resources to aid the nation in the event America entered the conflict of WWll.
- Led by writer-aviator Gill Robb Wilson and supported by Gen. Henry "Hap" Arnold, Civil Air Patrol was created.

## Who were the founding fathers? Gill Robb Wilson and General Henry Harley “Hap” Arnold             

- <date/time>

- Who were the founding fathers? Gill Robb Wilson and General Henry Harley “Hap” Arnold

**	****Gill Robb Wilson** (September 18, 1893-September 8, 1966) was an American pilot, Presbyterian minister, and military advocate. Born in Clarion County, Pennsylvania, Wilson became director of aviation in New Jersey in 1930, and later the first director of the Civil Air Patrol. In World War II, he was a correspondent for the Herald Tribune. He died in Los Angeles County, California.
**Henry Harley "Hap" Arnold** (June 25, 1886 – January 15, 1950) was an aviation pioneer and Chief of the United States Army Air Corps (from 1938), Commanding General of the U.S. Army Air Forces (from 1941 until 1945) and the first and only General of the Air Force (in 1949). He is also the only person to achieve five-star rank in *two* American armed services.

## First National Commander

- <date/time>

- Major General John Francis Curry was the first national commander of the Civil Air Patrol. A United States Air Force Auxiliary. He also was a Major General in the United States Air Force.   Curry served as National Commander for a few months, but his great leadership helped CAP remain throughout the war as an effective demonstration of volunteer spirit as opposed to the 90-day test period it was originally given.

## What did CAP do?

- <date/time>

- CAP performed many missions including coastal patrol to search for enemy submarines, search and rescue missions throughout the United States, cargo and courier flights to transfer critical materials and personnel, and even towing targets so Army Air Corps personnel could practice air-to-air gunnery techniques - a very risky mission with new gunners.  The brave volunteers of CAP flew more than half-a-million hours, sank two enemy submarines, and saved hundreds of crash victims.

## Coastal Patrol

- <date/time>

**Coastal Patrol**

- The pilots of the CAP did not have planes fitted with bombs and were strictly scouts for enemy aircraft and naval craft.  By the time bombers could get to the target, the enemy would escape.  CAP planes were then granted bombs and depth charges.
-  Coastal Patrol reported 173 U-boats, 57 of which were attacked by CAP aircraft with 83 ordnance pieces and two of which were confirmed sunk. For a group of volunteer civilians, this is without a doubt a monumental achievement. In addition, the Coastal Patrol flew 86,865 missions, logging over 244,600 hours. Coastal Patrol aircraft reported 91 ships in distress and played a key role in rescuing 363 survivors of U-boat attacks. 117 floating mines were reported and 5,684 convoy missions were flown for the Navy.

## Border Patrol

- <date/time>

**Border Patrol**

- Between July 1942 and April 1944, the Civil Air Patrol Southern Liaison Patrol was given the task of patrolling the border between Brownsville, Texas, and Douglas, Arizona.
- CAP Border Patrol, reported almost 7,000 out-of-the-ordinary activities and 176 suspicious aircraft' descriptions and direction. During the entire operating period, only two members lost their lives.

## Target towing

- <date/time>

**Target towing**

- In March of 1942, CAP aircraft began towing targets for air-to-air and ground-to-air gunnery practice. Targets would be trailed behind the aircraft to simulate strafing attacks. CAP aircraft would also climb to various altitudes and would trail two targets for heavy AA guns to use for practice. Although uncommon, an antiaircraft round would occasionally hit the aircraft. Surprisingly, no deaths resulted from errant shots.
- Despite the dangerous nature of these missions, fatalities and accidents were rare. CAP flew target missions for three years with 7 member fatalities, 5 serious injuries and 23 aircraft lost. A total of 20,593 towing and tracking missions were flown.

## Search and Rescue operations (SAR)

- <date/time>

**Search and Rescue operations (SAR)**

- During the period between January 1, 1942, and January 1, 1946, the Civil Air Patrol flew over 24,000 hours of federal- and military-assigned search and rescue missions in addition to thousands of hours of non-assigned SAR missions.

## Courier service and cargo transportation

- <date/time>

**Courier service and cargo transportation**

- In the spring of 1942, the Pennsylvania Wing conducted a 30-day experiment with the intention of convincing the AAF that they were capable of flying cargo missions for the nation.
- The Pennsylvania Wing transported Army cargo as far as Georgia, and top Army officials were impressed.
- The War Department gave CAP permission to conduct courier and cargo service for the military.
- Cargo and courier transportation was an important job for the organization.

## Today

- <date/time>

## Aerospace Education

- <date/time>

**CADET** The CAP Cadet Program has a mandatory aerospace education program; in order to progress, a cadet must take courses and tests relating to aviation. Cadets also have educational opportunities through guest speakers, model building and actual flight.
**Senior Aerospace Education** Senior members may also learn A.E. through the Senior Member Professional Development Program.
**External Aerospace Education** CAP has focused on providing schools and teachers with materials and help for educating youth about aerospace.

## Cadet Program

- <date/time>

- Civil Air Patrol's cadet program is a traditional military-style cadet program. CAP cadets wear modified versions of Air Force uniforms, hold rank and grade, and practice military customs and courtesies. They are also required to maintain physical fitness standards and are tested on their fitness and their knowledge of leadership and aerospace subjects for each promotion. This program is similar to that of the Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) primarily because the Air Force JROTC program was 'cloned' from the CAP Cadet Program in the 1960s.

## Emergency Services

- <date/time>

- There are several Emergency Services areas that the Civil Air Patrol covers. The principal categories include Search and Rescue missions, Disaster Relief, Humanitarian Services, and Air Force Support. Others, such as Homeland Security and Counter drug Operations, are becoming increasingly important.
**Search and Rescue** Civil Air Patrol is arguably best known for its Search and Rescue (SAR) activities. CAP now flies about 95% of inland SAR missions directed by the Air Force Rescue Coordination center and is credited for saving on average 100 lives per year.
**Disaster relief** CAP is particularly active in disaster relief operations, especially in hurricane-prone areas such as Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana. CAP aircrews and ground personnel provide transportation for cargo and officials. CAP aircrews often provide aerial imagery to emergency managers in order to help them assess damage. In addition, squadrons and Wings often donate manpower and leadership to local, state and federal disaster relief organizations during times of need.

- <date/time>

**Humanitarian Service** The Civil Air Patrol conducts Humanitarian Service missions, usually in support of the Red Cross. CAP aircrews transport time-sensitive medical materials, such as blood and human tissue, when other means of transportation (such as ambulances) are not practical or possible.
**Air Force support** CAP performs several missions that are not combat-related in support of the United States Air Force. Specifically, this includes damage assessment, radiological monitoring, transportation of officials, communications support and low-altitude route surveys.

## Are There Any Questions

- <date/time>