Pros/Cons of Joining the Civil Air Patrol?

ATC doesn't initiate a search unless there is an overdue flight plan or an ELT goes off and is reported. Families initiate searches when their loved ones are missing. The smart/prepared ones do so based on standing instructions from the pilot.

Hang out on the backcountry pilot forums for an education on the community I'm referring to. This is far from fantasy. Fantasy is following victor airways all your life and letting ATC assign your altitudes and headings. Actually that sounds more like hell but to each their own.

I am not saying there are droves of pilots out there who would volunteer with the CAP if they somehow magically woke up and decided to emphasize the "civilian" part of their namesake. I'm saying it is not an inclusive organization and there are qualified pilots who would train and volunteer if there was an alternative. And having seen first hand the calibre of volunteer in othe sar organizations, like the mra and air scent search dogs I wholeheartedly reject the notion that volunteers are of lower quality service than pros. In fact the opposite is true - when you attract people who are already highly skilled at the discipline needed, which the CAP is not doing. We're talking about grid search with an observer - this is not rocket science and it does not require paid planes with logos. Volunteers - more than we have now - can and should be used - with a proper readiness evaluation and a training plan in place to get them there.

I'm not trying to bash the CAP too much. I just think a spade needs to be called a spade.

Feel free to post anecdotes of CAP actually successfully completing a mission. I'd like to hear some of those stories personally, cause all I hear and see is negativity.

airdale said:
The internet is amazing. So many facts available at your fingertips, many of them complete fantasies. Please cite your sources.

BTW, families don't initiate searches. There is a formal "missing airplane" procedure where ATC initially involves Flight Service, then the situation may progress to the AFRCC and, usually, the state duty officer. ELT reports and other situations are handled according to similar procedures. It is at the AFRCC/Duty Officer level that search assets are chosen and deployed.

Even if a family member somehow contacted CAP directly, that would not be cause to initiate a search. They would be referred to AFRCC and asked to provide whatever information they had. AFRCC would decide.

(All this for CONUS inland SAR. Maritime/USCG and Alaska have different but similar procedures. Not sure about Hawaii.)
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One of the CAP pilots I know has two finds, both in the last couple of years.

One crash was in the mountains. Alert went out in the middle of the night some time. Search was started in the morning, wreckage found in the afternoon. No survivors, unfortunately.

In the other crash, the pilot (sole occupant) was able to send out a mayday and some transmissions after the crash. CAP found the plane quickly and reported the coordinates. Pilot was rescued (airlifted) within two hours of going down.
 
Thanks again for all ya'lls input. After speaking with several local CAP guys, I've made my decision not to join. While the local guys seem pretty cool and don't seem to be those "wear a cool uniform and be better than everybody else" types, other items have steered me away. The primary being that the main CAP pilots rent our aircraft over using the CAP's, primarily attributed to Mx concerns. Thinking back, a couple of 'em have also rented our planes to do their own personal SAR and rescue missions when CAP wouldn't have anything to do with it.

Anyway, thanks again for your input, and for what seems to have saved me some trouble and headaches.
 
Lucky you for figuring it out. The pro CAP posters are a give away to mainstream CAP culture. :lol:
HighFlyingA380 said:
Thanks again for all ya'lls input. After speaking with several local CAP guys, I've made my decision not to join. While the local guys seem pretty cool and don't seem to be those "wear a cool uniform and be better than everybody else" types, other items have steered me away. The primary being that the main CAP pilots rent our aircraft over using the CAP's, primarily attributed to Mx concerns. Thinking back, a couple of 'em have also rented our planes to do their own personal SAR and rescue missions when CAP wouldn't have anything to do with it.

Anyway, thanks again for your input, and for what seems to have saved me some trouble and headaches.
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soyAnarchisto said:
ATC doesn't initiate a search unless there is an overdue flight plan or an ELT goes off and is reported. Families initiate searches when their loved ones are missing. The smart/prepared ones do so based on standing instructions from the pilot.
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ATC initiates a phone call to AFRCC who usually initiates a phone call to the affected Sheriffs. Families initiate a phone call to LE who also, contact the Sheriff.

Legally in most States, especially Western ones, Sheriffs are the only people with authority to initiate searches. Some have standing MOUs with the search groups to get moving and keep the dollar amount below $X prior to approval.

Sheriffs often have final authority over the entire search, whether they choose to involve CAP or not. AFRCC may spin up CAP first on an aircraft search, but legal authority to start or continue a search usually comes from the Sheriff.

And that TFR someone mentioned? Would have to go look up Utah's law, but the Sheriff had to authorize it, probably. And continue to do so.

Depends on the laws of your State.

Worth looking up if you're doing any type of SAR work. CAP or not.

A few states have nuisance searcher laws for non-professionals who get in the way. Sheriff gets to decide if they charge someone for that crime, also.
 
ClimbnSink said:
Lucky you for figuring it out. The pro CAP posters are a give away to mainstream CAP culture. :lol:
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What, not emotional drama queens about it all? :)

Searches out here are usually involving a lot more resources than just CAP and folks generally get along. All this talk of CAP being bad from folks who've shown to generally be impulsive and hot-headed over long periods of time here, or who are staunch "do it my way or it's wrong" types, isn't much damning evidence -- other than they don't play well in large volunteer groups. :)

I've been doing volunteer stuff so long, CAP is the least of my worries.

And, if you're referring to me personally, I have stated before (in this thread even) that I don't care if someone wants to replace CAP with something they think is better. Talk to Congress.

In all of my volunteer roles over the years, you know what I've learned? The people who whine the loudest about volunteer organizations, would be the very last people who'd show up at 2AM to do any real work. They'd have some sort of whine and excuse then too.

They definitely wouldn't volunteer to do anything other than fly, and it takes more people on the ground than in the air to organize SAR work. Big time. Especially if you want it done to any standard. Even a low one. Write procedures? Test people? Teach classes? Right. No.

Go to meetings at the State and local levels to build bridges with other non-volunteer groups who are all getting paid to sit at the conference table and take a day off of work to do it? Fat chance.

Most of the things that would make CAP really really good would require paid professionals to organize. Everybody at my level gets paid double last year's salary every Christmas as a bonus. $0 x 2 is still $0.

Most States get CAP searchers at an all-inclusive price of less than $200 per hour. Often less. Or zero.

It's kinda a "you get what you pay for" thing. Here in CO our dual-hat under State helps fill in stuff that it would be impossible to fund from the National level at current prices. Check the budget, it's public and audited by a third party...
 
bqmassey said:
One of the CAP pilots I know has two finds, both in the last couple of years.

One crash was in the mountains. Alert went out in the middle of the night some time. Search was started in the morning, wreckage found in the afternoon. No survivors, unfortunately.

In the other crash, the pilot (sole occupant) was able to send out a mayday and some transmissions after the crash. CAP found the plane quickly and reported the coordinates. Pilot was rescued (airlifted) within two hours of going down.
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This point brings up another CAP quirk....

A local fire official who also happens to be in CAP here was sitting at home when a call came in from a passing car who witnessed a plane crash at the private airstrip that runs parallel to highway into Jackson...

http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/article.php?art_id=10015

So, here is a CAP member that responds to a call from the sheriffs dispatch to do her fire position job, which she is paid full time employee..

A day or so later I get a email from the Wyoming CAP group... And what is the headline..... CAP MEMBER CREDITED WITH A FIND...

You have got to be #ucking kidding me..:mad2::mad::mad2::lol::eek:
 
N801BH said:
This point brings up another CAP quirk....

A local fire official who also happens to be in CAP here was sitting at home when a call came in from a passing car who witnessed a plane crash at the private airstrip that runs parallel to highway into Jackson...

http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/article.php?art_id=10015

So, here is a CAP member that responds to a call from the sheriffs dispatch to do her fire position job, which she is paid full time employee..

A day or so later I get a email from the Wyoming CAP group... And what is the headline..... CAP MEMBER CREDITED WITH A FIND...

You have got to be #ucking kidding me..:mad2::mad::mad2::lol::eek:
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You're not allowed to self-deploy to do a search. You must be on an authorized mission number, requested or received from AFRCC by a qualified Incident Commander.

Ground teams, even in "Urban" areas are required to be two people.

(I actually have a problem with this one personally, since it's stupid... but stupid stuff like the above are the reason regulations change upon review by higher command. I'm pretty sure if I'm in contact with the IC via cell, radio, and freakin' Internet simultaneously, they can monitor my progress driving to an airport with my DF gear. I refuse to re-up my ground certifications for this very reason... but I'm sure some dumb-ass somewhere ran off the road and the IC didn't check in on them for too long once... and the rules get changed to meet the lowest common denominator.)

If you are deputized as Law Enforcement or working for the public in another role, at the beginning of each operational period you are required to state who you're working for (that agency or CAP) and dual-hatting is not allowed.

I suspect that the ELT went off, AFRCC started a mission number, called the on-call IC or Commander (don't know how WY handles that -- here, the ICs are on rotating on-call duty for AFRCC calls) and by the time he got the word out, she was there and told him she'd found it.

Probably she never told anyone she was there on other official business, because she had no idea there was a dual-hat regulation. So her Commander put her in for the award. It's not a hard award to get... even a non-distress beacon is a "Find". The award to shoot for is a "Save", that's a lifesaving award.

Little awards keep some volunteers happy. I probably qualify for 20 or more Finds back when I was NOT a CAP member, so I don't have them, and don't care. A little non-CAP group around here used to monitor 121.5 and go find the things and have the owners shut them off back when lots of them were always popping. Whoop dee doo.

WY probably toots their own horn a little more than some. USAF bean counters need something to count, or they might recommend yank away airplanes or other resources to somewhere else. "Find" awards are probably part of that political numbers game on someone's spreadsheet somewhere.

Like I've said before, lobby Congress for your better solution. You want USAF to have more helos and crews on-call all the time to do SAR work, you can ask Congress to do it. Won't be cheap. They'll probably do a great job, and won't need to talk to the Press about any of their internal awards or try to use it as a good PR opportunity at all.

Kinda hard in rural America not to have people dual-hatted... or triple-hatted... hell, the Mayor could be out looking for a lost aircraft and have six jobs. Not sure what your surprise about that is... you live up there.

Plus, it'd be kinda stupid to withhold a Find award from a member who's Commander requested it over the dual-hat thing. Her Commander may have been pushing for good PR for WY and got over-zealous, but who cares? It's all the "pay" she'll ever get in the job, and like I said, some people are really motivated by that stuff.

Personally, I have two CAP awards hanging up... one is the award for the level of rank I earned, the other is an Outstanding Achievement Award that I worked my buns off for one weekend. The rest are in a drawer somewhere, and mean very little to me.

"Find" is pretty easy if you're active and been around long enough to be in the right place at the right time. Some are hard-won, others are that you bothered to shower and get out of bed that morning.

You look pretty unnecessarily mean, picking on that one. That one is probably just your fellow WY folks, fighting a perception of some USAF Beltway General's staff, who would otherwise see a "0" or small number of Finds/Saves in his WY column, and not correct it for population density.
 
denverpilot said:
You're not allowed to self-deploy to do a search. You must be on an authorized mission number, requested or received from AFRCC by a qualified Incident Commander.

Ground teams, even in "Urban" areas are required to be two people.

(I actually have a problem with this one personally, since it's stupid... but stupid stuff like the above are the reason regulations change upon review by higher command. ....................Probably she never told anyone she was there on other official business, because she had no idea there was a dual-hat regulation. So her Commander put her in for the award. It's not a hard award to get... even a non-distress beacon is a "Find". The award to shoot for is a "Save", that's a lifesaving award.

Little awards keep some volunteers happy. ............
WY probably toots their own horn a little more than some. USAF bean counters need something to count, or they might recommend yank away airplanes or other resources to somewhere else. "Find" awards are probably part of that political numbers game on someone's spreadsheet somewhere.

..... Her Commander may have been pushing for good PR for WY and got over-zealous, but who cares? It's all the "pay" she'll ever get in the job, and like I said, some people are really motivated by that stuff.


You look pretty unnecessarily mean, picking on that one. That one is probably just your fellow WY folks, fighting a perception of some USAF Beltway General's staff, who would otherwise see a "0" or small number of Finds/Saves in his WY column, and not correct it for population density.
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This wing will do anything to bring attention to themselves as they are funded by the local taxpayers and we pay for EVERY drop of their fuel /maintenance /hangar/party food bill.... They literally fly for free and any good press keeps the cash cow happy..... Just this last weekend I opened up my hangar and provided water and stuff so they could wash their planes..Plural..... As in the old one and the NEW 206 they grabbed last month from the Colorado Springs wing.. They are like 6 year olds, giddy with excitement that they took someone elses plane... And claiming that last "find""" just to get attention is despicable... Why I rejoined is beyond me..:goofy::goofy::goofy:

Nate... I don't even know you but your work with the Colo branch of the CAP is commendable and I applaud you.... My beef comes from what I see happening here... And it ain't purty...:no:
 
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What's funny about that is, there might be people here who'd act all silly if they thought they "stole" an aircraft from another Wing too...

And then a mission would come up where it was needed elsewhere and they'd hop in it and fly it there the second National said "move that asset to X to work on Y". LOL!

Boys with their toys. ;) Airplanes generally go where they're needed, since they can ... Oh... Fly. Heh.

WY has always been teeny tiny. I bet they do get excited with new stuff. Heck, your Wing Chaplin lives down here I believe. ;)

(I've met him a few times, seems like a nice guy. Always never figured out a way to properly rib him about the apparent lack of clergy in our neighbor State to the north. Never quite sure how people will take my humor on something like that? Ha. "Can't you find a pastor in Wyoming?!" might come off wrong...)
 
Plane distribution in CAP is entirely political.
 
weilke said:
The 'natcap wing' has 4 exquisitely equipped aircraft and absolutely 0 airspace to fly them in :confused: .
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They seem to have found a way to fly right through the middle of a NOTAM'd, hot aerobatic box while a competitor was flying her sequence during a contest last fall. Now my eyes could have deceived me, but I swear the wings had CAP markings. I wish I had taken a picture...
 
1200AGL said:
They seem to have found a way to fly right through the middle of a NOTAM'd, hot aerobatic box while a competitor was flying her sequence during a contest last fall. Now my eyes could have deceived me, but I swear the wings had CAP markings. I wish I had taken a picture...
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Any CAP member with a private pilot's license can get a checkout and rent the plane for personal flying (with several restriction). However, not every pilot meets the qualifications to fly CAP missions.

There's a big difference between a mistake like that happening during a CAP mission with qualified crew, and it happening with a single pilot renting the plane. In the latter case, it could be someone with a brand new private pilot's certificate and could have just as easily taken place in any other plane he rents.
 
bqmassey said:
Any CAP member with a private pilot's license can get a checkout and rent the plane for personal flying (with several restriction). However, not every pilot meets the qualifications to fly CAP missions.

There's a big difference between a mistake like that happening during a CAP mission with qualified crew, and it happening with a single pilot renting the plane. In the latter case, it could be someone with a brand new private pilot's certificate and could have just as easily taken place in any other plane he rents.
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Fortunately, we had a spotter and they weren't cut in half by Melissa's Edge 540 on a vertical downline.

I understand. And there but for the grace of god go I, etc., but after watching all the hoops those guys jump through just to make a local flight, I was surprised that they would have missed that NOTAM.
 
I would just like to jump in on this and say a few things. I can't really speak for the senior member side, but I am a current cadet and did get my private through them. Once you are checked out in the airplanes it is not that hard to just go fly. I managed to do my form 5 checkride with the DPE that did my private (just had to ask real nice). As far as the cadet side of things I think it's a great program. Cadets under 18 get five free orientation rides, about an hour a piece. They also have a great opportunity to talk with senior members who have been in their shoes, and to get advice from them. I have also had the opportunity to take some helpful classes for first aide, search and rescue etc... Even if I don't go on a mission these skills are very valuable to have. Although there is more to it than search and rescue, and if flying is the only reason you're joining I probably wouldn't. However, for me it has been an excellent program that has helped me enormously. I believe without the CAP I probably would not have my private right now, nor would I have received some of the scholarships I did.
 
"Melissa's Edge 540 on a vertical downline". I don't know Melissa, but having seen the homebuilts and acro aircraft going nuts in the KGTU pattern one to many times I think it might be better to attend one's own glass house rather than toss rocks at the house next door.
 
RileyMitchum said:
I would just like to jump in on this and say a few things. I can't really speak for the senior member side, but I am a current cadet and did get my private through them. Once you are checked out in the airplanes it is not that hard to just go fly. I managed to do my form 5 checkride with the DPE that did my private (just had to ask real nice). As far as the cadet side of things I think it's a great program. Cadets under 18 get five free orientation rides, about an hour a piece. They also have a great opportunity to talk with senior members who have been in their shoes, and to get advice from them. I have also had the opportunity to take some helpful classes for first aide, search and rescue etc... Even if I don't go on a mission these skills are very valuable to have. Although there is more to it than search and rescue, and if flying is the only reason you're joining I probably wouldn't. However, for me it has been an excellent program that has helped me enormously. I believe without the CAP I probably would not have my private right now, nor would I have received some of the scholarships I did.
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Glad you had a good experience with the Cadet Program and got your ticket on the backs of the taxpayers of the U.S....

Since you are a young collage student my I suggest you land a high paying job, pay the maximum taxes allowed so you can fund the SS system, as I am retiring soon and need Social Security to be solvent to pay out my earned benefits.....:yes:;)
 
N801BH said:
Glad you had a good experience with the Cadet Program and got your ticket on the backs of the taxpayers of the U.S....

Since you are a young collage student my I suggest you land a high paying job, pay the maximum taxes allowed so you can fund the SS system, as I am retiring soon and need Social Security to be solvent to pay out my earned benefits.....:yes:;)
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I get the feeling you don't like the Civil Air Patrol very much, correct? Regarding the funding, we are funded by the Air Force, so if they get a budget cut, we do too. In fact that happened a while back and all CAP aircraft were grounded except for essential missions (i.e. only SAR, Drug Demand Reduction etc.) after their budget situation was sorted out our aircraft were back in flying order. You are correct, I am in college, and already pay taxes, but I am sure I will only pay more from here. I am very appreciative of all the tax payers for subsidizing my flight training. One day I would like to give back to some cadets what I got, not having to pay for a flight instructor (Big expense!). My flight instructor was actually a former cadet, who got his ticket through CAP and did just that, really great guy! All in all I do not believe CAP is a waste of anybodies money, especially not when compared to other wasteful programs that are on the budget. It gives great opportunities to build character, leaders, and aviators. By the way, I am working on getting you your social security, by working in my free time. If I'm not at work I am at school and if I'm not at school.... I'm at work :hairraise: Even during the summer! But I guess that is the life of a responsible teenager, work, school, and no free time ;)
 
Instructing for free in the CAP is not giving back to the taxpayer. lolz.
 
I've been interested in the CAP for a while, but haven't done anything about it. After reading this thread I'm going to check out the local squadrons next month when my new artificial knee is fully on line.

Any organization that attracts so much naked jealousy must have something going for it. ;0
 
JimNtexas said:
I've been interested in the CAP for a while, but haven't done anything about it. After reading this thread I'm going to check out the local squadrons next month when my new artificial knee is fully on line.

Any organization that attracts so much naked jealousy must have something going for it. ;0
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Oh I'll be there! Naked!
 
RileyMitchum said:
I would just like to jump in on this and say a few things. I can't really speak for the senior member side, but I am a current cadet and did get my private through them. Once you are checked out in the airplanes it is not that hard to just go fly. I managed to do my form 5 checkride with the DPE that did my private (just had to ask real nice). As far as the cadet side of things I think it's a great program. Cadets under 18 get five free orientation rides, about an hour a piece. They also have a great opportunity to talk with senior members who have been in their shoes, and to get advice from them. I have also had the opportunity to take some helpful classes for first aide, search and rescue etc... Even if I don't go on a mission these skills are very valuable to have. Although there is more to it than search and rescue, and if flying is the only reason you're joining I probably wouldn't. However, for me it has been an excellent program that has helped me enormously. I believe without the CAP I probably would not have my private right now, nor would I have received some of the scholarships I did.
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I didn't like the cadet side because its hard not to laugh at a 15 year old on a power trip barking orders with a crackling voice.

I was particularly unimpressed at Oshkosh - they had a guard full time at their encampment. I inquired why one night, and the answer I got was shocking "All CAP encampments are on government facilities and they need to be guarded"

Apparently saying "no **** Sherlock we're at an airport" isn't the correct answer.

The best part is when they blow a whistle at you for crossing the imaginary airshow line - or when they tell you the area is too dangerous for pedestrians.

I look forward to messing with the CAP at Oshkosh this year almost as much as I look forward to the show.
 
JimNtexas said:
I've been interested in the CAP for a while, but haven't done anything about it. After reading this thread I'm going to check out the local squadrons next month when my new artificial knee is fully on line.

Any organization that attracts so much naked jealousy must have something going for it. ;0
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Not sure where the jealousy reference comes from. In my case it was more disbelieving amazement. I'm quite sure not all squadrons were as ill prepared, poorly led and disorganized as the one I was briefly a member of, but when an organization shows no inclination to take advantage of honestly offered real world SAR experience you have to wonder about their commitment to their professed mission.
 
DavidWhite said:
The best part is when they blow a whistle at you for crossing the imaginary airshow line - or when they tell you the area is too dangerous for pedestrians.

I look forward to messing with the CAP at Oshkosh this year almost as much as I look forward to the show.
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I know a cadet that was knocked out at Oshkosh, he got hit in the head by a Cessna Taxiing past.:lol:
 
N801BH said:
This wing will do anything to bring attention to themselves as they are funded by the local taxpayers and we pay for EVERY drop of their fuel /maintenance /hangar/party food bill.... They literally fly for free and any good press keeps the cash cow happy..... Just this last weekend I opened up my hangar and provided water and stuff so they could wash their planes..Plural.....
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You mean they washed them with ordinary TAP water? Here they make the cadets (or the non-flying pax, or anyone but the grumpy old pilot) wash the wings with distilled water. After. Every. Flight. Heaven forbid they use regular hose water!!!! :nono:
 
DavidWhite said:
I didn't like the cadet side because its hard not to laugh at a 15 year old on a power trip barking orders with a crackling voice.

I was particularly unimpressed at Oshkosh - they had a guard full time at their encampment. I inquired why one night, and the answer I got was shocking "All CAP encampments are on government facilities and they need to be guarded"

Apparently saying "no **** Sherlock we're at an airport" isn't the correct answer.

The best part is when they blow a whistle at you for crossing the imaginary airshow line - or when they tell you the area is too dangerous for pedestrians.

I look forward to messing with the CAP at Oshkosh this year almost as much as I look forward to the show.
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If the air show got someone else to provide crowd control, would you mess with them too?
 
Palmpilot said:
If the air show got someone else to provide crowd control, would you mess with them too?
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I listen to the CAF guys in orange and white shirts - they know what's going on. A kid with a whistle and a walkie talkie who knows jack? No thanks.
 
The orange cones for the 500' line from the airshow ran halfway down our airplane, and when we moved our chairs to stay in the shade under the wing (past the cones) we got whistled at. Some big butch girl came and told us what we were doing was illegal (ILLEGAL!) and we reminded her that we were performers. So, that day we went to target and bought some cones and whistles and put cones around the entire airplane and we would whistle at the little grubs when they got close. They left us alone after that.
 
There were even a group of them stomping around with a big antenna "Trying to find crashed airplanes" and I pointed out that with half a million people around, someone would probably notice a crashed airplane.
 
DavidWhite said:
I listen to the CAF guys in orange and white shirts - they know what's going on. A kid with a whistle and a walkie talkie who knows jack? No thanks.
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I'm not surprised to learn that adult CAF volunteers are able to exercise better judgment, but when non-adult volunteers are used, maybe the air show management should be giving them better instructions.

On the other hand, I was thoroughly unimpressed with the ability of the adult, non-CAP crowd-control volunteers to make appropriate decisions at the last air show that I went to.
 
DavidWhite said:
There were even a group of them stomping around with a big antenna "Trying to find crashed airplanes" and I pointed out that with half a million people around, someone would probably notice a crashed airplane.
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The antenna is for finding ELTs, which as you probably know are false alarms most of the time. If a cadet used the wrong words, well boo hoo.
 
RileyMitchum said:
IRegarding the funding, we are funded by the Air Force, so if they get a budget cut, we do too.
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That is 100% incorrect. CAP is funded separately by the Congress and the Air Force manages the dispersion of funds and audits.

The inaccurate description of "Air Force Missions", etc... Tends to muddy this, but the funding is direct from Congress and a separate line item for the very reason that USAF would go spend it on bombs or whatever they'd like, if they had any authorization to do so.

The recent budget changes during the talks on sequestration were planned to slow spending (imagine a government entity stating within budget!) while awaiting news of whether the Congressional line item for CAP was cut. It was not. (We're cheap. Really cheap.)

Talk to your Wing Legislative Liason Officers for more information. They've been battling the "the Air Force pays us" misconception for at least 20 years.
 
P.S. There have been attempts to move CAP out from under Air Force pass-through funding and audits for decades also. Lots of reasons why it hasn't happened, but some critical steps have been done every once in a while.

Example, we're also audited by a 3rd party auditor. (I believe Earnst & Young, but I'd have to go look it up to be sure...)

USAF gets funding to do our audits, and that's something they want to keep. They're not quite sure which Command we fall under though, and that changes from time to time. Internal political battles.

Historically, since it was guys like Gen Curry who founded the whole thing as a true USAF Auxiliary, there are historical reasons not to get too far afield from USAF. Congress has retained that title but wants the organization Civilian. A tour through a CLC course will provide more info (and block diagrams... And Death By PowerPoint). Anyone who's completed Level III (or is it IV?) in the Professional Development track *should* know this stuff, but you'll probably get some blank stares depending on who you ask. Some of us were trying hard not to accidentally nap when the lights were low. We had to drive 100 miles away to attend and left home before dark that morning. ;)

And USAF also (for lack of a better word) "appreciates and leverages" the recruiting opportunities in the Cadet program, although it's technically not there. Cadet program falls mainly under the Aerospace Education mission but touches on the other missions defined by Congress. And it's also Congressionally funded. Not USAF funded.

Ultimately Congress decides what happens with both USAF and CAP. They're just not the same line item or even part of the same budget process.
 
Nate gives good insight on the inner working of the CAP.. but.... If you peel back the layers you will find the Air Force and the CAP are tighly woven together... For Instance.........

1- Apply to join the CAP and watch where your application goes, and your fingerprints, and your check.

2- The planes are Clearly marked U.S. AIR FORCE.

3- The cadet program closely mirrors military boot camp with senior USAF officials reviewing the kids and cherry picking the best sheeples that fit their needs.

4- As with any guvmint org, you can ask 100 different CAP people a question and get 100 different answers.. It is really hard to fit in when Bubba says to do it this way and Clem says not to do it that way..:mad2:

I would like to think there are decent wings out there for good and honest people to join and share the love for aviation, you just need to look VERY close at them before wading into the deep end..:redface: IMHO.
 
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