Civil Air Patrol

Incognito

Incognito

Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2019
Messages
45
Good morning. DD attended her first CAP meeting last night and is definitely interested in joining as it seems like it offers a lot of exciting opportunities. I’d love to hear any advice you may have or experiences you’d like to share regarding CAP.
 
like most things location, location , location - some units will be better than others - also you'll get out what you put in
 
BlueBulldog said:
like most things location, location , location - some units will be better than others - also you'll get out what you put in
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There’s only one squadron within an hour drive of our home that meets the one day of the week DD doesn’t have sports/training, so we’re hoping for the best!
 
If the local leadership is retired military (preferably a few who were senior USAF FGO's), then it will probably be a good experience. If not, then it's a gamble.

The more active the unit, the typically better things will go.

CAP was Total Forced into the bigger AF a few years ago, so this is probably a good time to join. Small but not insignificant steps have been taken to including CAP as part of the broader homeland mission.

On balance, I'd recommend CAP over JROTC (or scouting at this point) in most cases. Definitely a great way for a high schooler to spend their time.
 
Mod Note:
Moving this thread to "Service Academy Parents forum" as more discussions about SA admissions prep and EC's tend to gravitate there.
 
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Can you expand more on CAP vs. Scouting in particular? We’re in scouts now but there’s a CAP program nearby too once my kids get old enough.



Tbpxece said:
If the local leadership is retired military (preferably a few who were senior USAF FGO's), then it will probably be a good experience. If not, then it's a gamble.

The more active the unit, the typically better things will go.

CAP was Total Forced into the bigger AF a few years ago, so this is probably a good time to join. Small but not insignificant steps have been taken to including CAP as part of the broader homeland mission.

On balance, I'd recommend CAP over JROTC (or scouting at this point) in most cases. Definitely a great way for a high schooler to spend their time.
Click to expand...
 
Tbpxece said:
If the local leadership is retired military (preferably a few who were senior USAF FGO's), then it will probably be a good experience. If not, then it's a gamble.

The more active the unit, the typically better things will go.

CAP was Total Forced into the bigger AF a few years ago, so this is probably a good time to join. Small but not insignificant steps have been taken to including CAP as part of the broader homeland mission.

On balance, I'd recommend CAP over JROTC (or scouting at this point) in most cases. Definitely a great way for a high schooler to spend their time.
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What does “Total Forced” mean?
 
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My DD is about to promote to CMSgt and has been a member since Feb 2018. You get out of it what you put into it. She loves it and was selected for a National Cadet Special Activity this summer. She has also started flight lessons at an incredible price reduction. We have 4 local units but she had to choose the one she is in because of scheduling and could not be happier. She also likes the fact that none of her school friends are in it so she can really let her hair down (not really!) and go for it without her friends not understanding her desire for the military life. Like minded kids and all that.
 
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jaglvr said:
My DD is about to promote to CMSgt and has been a member since Feb 2019. You get out of it what you put into it. She loves it and was selected for a National Cadet Special Activity this summer. She has also started flight lessons at an incredible price reduction. We have 4 local units but she had to choose the one she is in because of scheduling and could not be happier. She also likes the fact that none of her school friends are in it so she can really let her hair down (not really!) and go for it without her friends not understanding her desire for the military life. Like minded kids and all that.
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I assume she started in 2018 (or before) as C/AB to Goddard Achievement takes significantly more than three months... ;)

Congratulate her on the NCSA and flight training. She should keep pushing until she has the Mitchell (at minimum - IMHO).
 
FMHS-79 said:
I assume she started in 2018 (or before) as C/AB to Goddard Achievement takes significantly more than three months... ;)

Congratulate her on the NCSA and flight training. She should keep pushing until she has the Mitchell (at minimum - IMHO).
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my bad
yup 2018
 
321pilot said:
Can you expand more on CAP vs. Scouting in particular? We’re in scouts now but there’s a CAP program nearby too once my kids get old enough.
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CAP offers more real-world opportunities in my experience, and the ability to interface with adult members (most of whom are former or retired military) is invaluable. Scouting seems to have lost the plot over the past decade or so and is struggling to attract and retain members and leaders.

Personally, I was in Scouts as a teen, and my experience was good. However, of the three organizations, I have found the prior-CAP junior military members to have benefited the most from their choice of extracurriculars. That effect is only pertinent for the first year or two of service, and really boils down to what @AROTC-dad pointed out-- better situational awareness, better basic survival knowledge, etc. You could easily get that from either Scouts or CAP-- it really depends on your local unit/troop.
 
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Incognito said:
Thank you! Very informative and enlightening articles.
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Here is a specific article announcing the USAF's formal embrace of CAP as part of the broader USAF Total Force mission.

Understand that this restructuring's biggest impact to CAP is (a) much greater relevancy, and (b) increased funding and access to USAF resources.
 
jaglvr said:
My DD is about to promote to CMSgt and has been a member since Feb 2018. You get out of it what you put into it. She loves it and was selected for a National Cadet Special Activity this summer. She has also started flight lessons at an incredible price reduction. We have 4 local units but she had to choose the one she is in because of scheduling and could not be happier. She also likes the fact that none of her school friends are in it so she can really let her hair down (not really!) and go for it without her friends not understanding her desire for the military life. Like minded kids and all that.
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That sounds great. My DD is interested in getting her PPL before HS graduation (she’s only 14) so she’s definitely interested in the flight opportunities that come with CAP.

With this squadron being an hour away, no chance she’s running into school friends, which may be a good thing as it’s definitely a completely different peer group than she’s used to. I agree with you that the distance and separation from the norm may help her acclimate with less hesitancy and worry about “what everyone else thinks.”
 
Thanks


Tbpxece said:
321pilot said:
Can you expand more on CAP vs. Scouting in particular? We’re in scouts now but there’s a CAP program nearby too once my kids get old enough.
Click to expand...

CAP offers more real-world opportunities in my experience, and the ability to interface with adult members (most of whom are former or retired military) is invaluable. Scouting seems to have lost the plot over the past decade or so and is struggling to attract and retain members and leaders.

Personally, I was in Scouts as a teen, and my experience was good. However, of the three organizations, I have found the prior-CAP junior military members to have benefited the most from their choice of extracurriculars. That effect is only pertinent for the first year or two of service, and really boils down to what @AROTC-dad pointed out-- better situational awareness, better basic survival knowledge, etc. You could easily get that from either Scouts or CAP-- it really depends on your local unit/troop.
Click to expand...
 
Tbpxece said:
Scouting seems to have lost the plot over the past decade or so and is struggling to attract and retain members and leaders.
Click to expand...
You can say that again, Baden Powell is rolling over in his grave right now.
 
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