Operations Support
Civil Air Patrol (CAP) conducts a variety of operational missions primarily in the areas of Emergency Services (Search And Rescue (SAR), Disaster Relief (DR)), Counterdrug (CD), and Homeland Security (HLS). Most of this is done in CAP's role as the United States Air Force Auxiliary as Defense Support to Civil Authorities (DSCA) under Title 10, but CAP also provides assistance to State and Local authorities in many cases before there is a defined Federal interest under Title 36 as well. In order to conduct these missions, there are many programs and personnel that provide Operations Support. This website provides a consolidated area for guidance and tools that our support personnel need to do their jobs. The menu to the left lists the many tools and requirements in this area.

While there are many functional areas to a Search & Rescue operation or training mission, here are just a few that the vast majority of CAP members generally focus on.

The Civil Air Patrol is best known for its Emergency Services mission. The Civil Air Patrol provides air and ground search and rescue as well as disaster relief. The Civil Air Patrol flies over 85% of the air search and rescue missions tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center at Langley AFB, VA.

CAP uses aircraft to fly to look for missing aircraft and missing people, while coordinating with teams on the ground to complete the rescue. CAP also provides disaster relief support tasked through the Air Force National Security Emergency Preparedness Agency in Georgia. Civil Air Patrol uses its ground and air assets to provide damage assessment, communications, critical transport, and relief manpower during natural disasters.

Iowa Wing has seven light aircraft to support our emergency services mission, positioned throughout the state to respond to emergency. These light aircraft can provide an airborne search platform, capable of staying on station for several hours to locate an objective, relay communications, send real-time images to the ground of an emergency, or provide aerial damage assessment after a disaster.

Our newest capability is our "video imaging" platform. We can send an equipped aircraft airborne over an incident scene to take images of the scene. This could be useful during either a natural disaster or a hazardous materials release. Real-time images of the scene are then relayed back via radio link to the incident command post or any other remote location with a receiver unit. High resolution images can be taken from a safe distance and altitude minimizing risk to personnel in order to provide a clear picture of what the emergency is and how best to respond. Iowa Wing also has ten ground vehicles to support our operations during an emergency situation. They to are positioned throughout the state for immediate mobilization during an emergency to provide ground search and rescue, mobile communications, and mission support functions. CAP maintains this fleet on its own to provide relief when called to assist.

Search and Rescue (SAR)
The National Search and Rescue plan assigns responsibility for coordinating inland SAR operations in the United States to the Air Force. The actual coordination is performed by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, based at Langley AFB, Virginia.  This coordination is performed by the US Coast Guard in Puerto Rico and by the Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) in Alaska and Hawaii. CAP supports all three and is the primary resource available for inland SAR. In fact, CAP routinely performs on average over 85% of the SAR missions for inland search and rescue.

All CAP personnel who participate in SAR operations are volunteers who have been specially trained. A SAR
mission is always a serious and critical endeavor. Therefore, CAP units may not participate in a SAR mission
unless they have people trained to quickly and successfully accomplish the mission. Life-saving techniques,
attained through prior planning and practical exercises in performing the tasks required, must be carried out with
speed and efficiency. SAR missions can be quite involved, with many functions and activities to be supervised and
accomplished. A typical SAR mission will require people trained in the following areas: command, administration,
planning, operations, media relations, and logistics.

Ground & Urban Direction Finding Team Tasks (GTM & UDF Handbook - Includes 24 & 72-hour gear lists)  PDF

Did you know?
CAP uses over 530 corporate aircraft, nearly 1,000 corporate vehicles, and thousands of
corporate radio and computer equipment to support missions including ES?

Disaster Relief (DR) Operations
In 1979, several federal agencies we combined into one – the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). FEMA is the single point of contact within the federal system for disaster relief planning and management. This includes civil defense, natural disaster, and man-made emergencies. 

The Civil Air Patrol has national level agreements with many government and non-government relief agencies to assist when disaster strikes. Over the years, CAP has worked closely with organizations such as FEMA, the American Red Cross, and the Salvation Army. CAP also has agreements with local agencies at the wing level and participates with various state emergency management agencies.

The US Army has overall responsibility for coordinating disaster relief efforts involving Department of Defense (DoD) agencies. The Air Force supports the Army. As the volunteer auxiliary of the Air Force, the CAP may participate in the Military Support to Civil Authorities (MCSA) program.

The organization of CAP DR efforts is very similar to the SAR mission. The main difference is the agency that controls the mission. CAP always retains command of CAP resources, but mission control is delegated, usually at the state level, to the agency primarily responsible for a particular DR operation.

Under MSCA the Air Force Reserve coordinates and does the tasking through its Air Force National Security Emergency Preparedness (AFNSEP) office. The AFNSEP office is co-located with the Army Forces Command at Fort McPherson, GA. After receiving an Air Force mission authorization, CAP works directly with the agency that requested help and performs the activities
specifically requested, within CAP’s capability.

The types of DR missions CAP supports include:

Two good examples of the types of support CAP gives in Disaster Relief operations is illustrated by its efforts during the 1993 Missouri Flood and CAP’s response to the September 11, 2001 attacks. During the summer of 1993, the Mississippi River overflowed its banks and caused the worst flooding in over 100 years, flooding millions of acres of land, and submerging whole towns and cities. Civil Air Patrol members from across the country came to the aid of flood victims: filling sandbags, surveying damage, flying everything from mail to emergency supplies to needed areas, establishing emergency communications links and ferrying government officials.

CAP members were also among the first to respond to the September 11th attacks on New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania, providing communications, emergency transfer of blood, supplies, and people, and rendering other types of assistance as requested by state and federal agencies.

Other Flight Missions
CAP flight activities are not limited to SAR and DR. There is a national-level agreement between CAP and the
US Customs Service and the Drug Enforcement Agency. Under this agreement, CAP provides reconnaissance,
transportation, and communications services to assist these agencies in the control of drug traffic. CAP has no law
enforcement authority, it only provides “eyes.”

Aircrew & Flight Line Tasks  PDF