MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. (afpn) – When the Winter Olympics begin Feb. 8, people from the Civil Air Patrol will be in the sky and on the ground to provide security support.
More than 150 members of the Air Force auxiliary will join federal, state and local authorities in ensuring the safety of athletes, fans and facilities at the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City that run through Feb. 24.
CAP volunteers will provide similar support for the Paralympics, also in Salt Lake City in March.
From the air, CAP will provide air reconnaissance and aerial video support. The volunteers will also perform observation flights over critical facilities as designated by security officials.
On the ground, CAP members will help staff the emergency operations center in Salt Lake City. Other crews from the CAP Rocky Mountain Region will be on standby to augment the Utah crews if needed.
“We are proud to be a part of the many organizations that will be providing homeland defense and security for the Olympics Games,” said CAP Col. Jack Butterfield, Utah Wing commander. “Our wing has a proud history of supporting our Utah communities. We stand ready to serve our nation.”
CAP is a nonprofit organization that performs more than 85 percent of inland search and rescue missions in the continental United States as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center.
The Civil Air Patrol was founded in December 1941, one week before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, by over 150,000 citizens concerned about the defense of America’s coastline. Flying under the jurisdiction of the Army Air Forces, CAP pilots flew over one-half million hours, were credited with sinking two enemy submarines, and rescued hundreds of crash survivors during World War II. Only July 1, 1946, President Truman established CAP as a federally chartered benevolent civilian corporation.
Congress passed Public Law 557 on May 26, 1948, which made CAP the auxiliary of the new United States Air Force. CAP was charged with three primary missions: Cadet Programs, Aerospace Education, and Emergency Services.
