Program areas at CAP
Emergency services: cap supported search and rescue (sar) missions across the country. Cap saved lives on these sar missions tasked by the Air force rescue coordination center and joint rescue coordination centers. Personnel supported homeland security efforts by flying cap aircrafts in intercept training for the Air force and the department of homeland security. Cap also flew in support of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies on drug interdiction missions along the border, over federal property, and in support of combined federal, state, and local task forces resulting in illegal drugs, currency, and property being seized by those agencies along with arrests being made. Cap also responded to numerous natural disasters, primarily taking aerial photographs for use by local officials and responders to assess damage allocating their own funds and resources effectively. With volunteer members from various backgrounds and cap's extensive professional development and training, cap delivers quality and reliable services that are also cost-effective.
Aerospace education and training: cap's aerospace education programs and resource materials, emphasizing the stem subjects of science, technology, engineering, and math, were used by students and teachers nationwide. New stem kits, to include robotics, remote-controlled aircrafts, flight simulators, astronomy, weather stations, rockets, quad copters, and hydraulic engineering were developed to expand cap members' knowledge of stem-related areas. Cap offers educators a special aerospace education membership (aem) that includes access to over 35 educational products, orientation flights, grants, awards, and professional development. Cap aems flew in orientation flights to learn first-hand about the flight principles and career opportunities, and to share with students in their classrooms and youth development programs. The unique "aerospace connections in education" (ace) program for grades k-6 impacted students across the country and is introducing aerospace and stem to young students.
Cadet programs: the cap cadet program transforms youth aged 12 to 20 into responsible citizens and aerospace leaders. Cadets develop leadership skills, explore career opportunities in aerospace and cyber, become physically fit, and embrace a set of lifelong core values through service learning projects, mentoring opportunities, and high adventure activities, such as opportunities to fly powered aircraft and gliders, making the program exciting and motivating the youth to excel academically and as young adults. The cadet experience challenges and inspires youth unlike anything available through school, sports, or clubs. Today's cadets are tomorrow's aerospace leaders.
Communications: cap maintains an extensive emergency communications network including vhf land mobile radios supported by repeaters and hf radios which are infrastructure independent. This system is designed to be secure, survivable yet interoperable with the dod and other federal, state, and local agencies, thereby ensuring messages can be successfully relayed during crisis situations. Cap has made a strong effort to rebuild our hf radio network over the last few years so that our incident command posts and ground teams are not limited during natural disasters where cell phone and other commercial communications resources are damaged or overloaded.
Counterdrug: in regards to homeland security and the war on drugs, cap aircrews are used to spot marijuana being grown illegally, as well as other clandestine activities like suspicious activity along the border. Cap assists military, federal, and state agencies and task forces responsible for law enforcement. Cap also supports practice aerial drug intercept missions similar to those conducted for the Air force. This work serves to protect america from both domestic drug operations and drug trafficking across its borders. Counterdrug mission support to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies led to drugs and currency being seized, as well arrests.
Drug demand reduction: cap's drug demand reduction (ddr) program has assisted regions, wings, groups, and squadrons in instilling an aggressive, positive, drug-free attitude in cap members, Air force families, department of defense civilians, and school-aged children. To that end, cap's ddr program provides leadership, educational materials, and partnerships within institutions and organizations to reach thousands of children and adults with a drug-free message. Its national red ribbon week each october is the country's oldest and largest community awareness event in support of healthy, drug-free lifestyles. In the cadet program, the anti-drug message is reinforced during summer activities where cadets produce their own video messages about substance abuse, as well as in routine squadron meetings.