EMERGENCY SERVICES 


"Civil Air Patrol is always the first unit in and usually the last unit out when a real disaster occurs.
They are very well trained and always respond quickly."
Toby Carrol

Corporate Safety Evaluation Director,
Continental Airlines
Guardian Angel '91 Exercise


Also see - History of Civil Air PatrolGrowing from World War II experience, the Civil Air Patrol has continued to save lives and alleviate human suffering through a myriad of emergency-services and operational missions.

SEARCH AND RESCUE
Perhaps best known for its search-and-rescue efforts, CAP flies more than 85% of all federal inland-and-rescue missions directed by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center at Langley Air Force Base, VA. Outside the continental United States, CAP supports the Joint Rescue Coordination Centers in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Just how effective are the CAP missions?

Nearly 100 people are saved each year by CAP members!


DISASTER RELIEF
Another important service CAP performs is disaster-relief operations. CAP provides air and ground transportation and extensive communications network. Volunteer members fly disaster-relief officials to remote locations and provide manpower and leadership to local, state, and national disaster relief organizations. CAP has formal agreements with many governments and humanitarian relief agencies including the American Red Cross, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Federal Aviation Administration, National Transportation Safety Board and the United States Coast Guard. CAP’s disaster relief missions, such as those during hurricanes and floods, often don't make headlines, but CAP provides both air and ground transportation and an extensive communications network. CAP ground teams provide vital assistance to disaster relief operations.

HUMANITARIAN SERVICES
CAP flies humanitarian missions - usually in support of the American Red Cross - transporting time-sensitive medical materials including blood and human tissue, in situations where other means of transportation are not available.

AIR FORCE SUPPORT
It's hardly surprising that CAP performs several missions in direct support of the U.S. Air Force. Specifically, CAP conducts light transport, communications support, and low-altitude route surveys. CAP also provides orientation flights for AFROTC cadets. Joint U.S. Air Force and CAP search-and-rescue exercise provide realistic training for missions.

COUNTER DRUG
CAP joined the "war on drugs" in 1986 when, pursuant to congressional authorization, CAP signed an agreement with the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Customs Service offering CAP resources to help stem the flow of drugs into and within the United States.
 

"The war on drugs is a battle of such vast proportion that we may not yet recognize its scale...We need mandatory drug education to get our youth pointed in the right direction.  Our young people need to know how to resist peer pressure, to learn self-respect and pride - just like Civil Air Patrol teaches its cadets."
Ernie Preate, Jr.
Former Pennsylvania
Attorney General