CAP fliers patrolled the American home front during WWII, flying as far as 150 miles offshore. By the end of the war, CAP pilots had flown 86,865 misions, logged 244,600 hours and 24 million miles, sighted 173 enemy submarines and attacked 57 of them, hitting 10 and sinking 2 German U-boats. CAP reported sighting 117 floating mines and flew 5,684 convoy missions for the Navy. In at least one instance, an unarmed CAP flier successfully disrupted an attack on a U.S. tanker by diving towards the enemy submarine in a mock attack!

On the humanitarian side, CAP crews summoned aid for 91 ships in distress and 363 surivors of submarine attacks.

CAP fliers also patrolled America's southern border, along the 1000 miles between Brownsville, Texas, and Douglas, Arizona. The job called for dangerous low flying, and the CAP Border Patrol lost two pilots for the 30,000 hours logged during the war.

CAP also took on a huge role in the training of military personnel. CAP fliers towed targets for air-to-air and ground-to-air gunnery practice, and flew night missions to provide tracking practice for searchlight and radar crews. Qualified CAP pilots served as instructors for Air Corps prospective pilots. In a proactive move, CAP initiated a cadet program for training American youth as preparation for serving in the Air Corps.

CAP was inordinately successful in the search and rescue of missing military aircraft. Cargo and courier transportation for the military, including mail and passenger services, was another area where CAP made a major contribution during the war.

CAP serves as the number one Emergency Services agency in the nation, performing 95% of all inland Search and Rescue missions nationwide and supporting other agencies. CAP has also performed humanitarian and relief missions during unfortunate events such as the space shuttle Columbia disaster and the hurricane Katrina disaster. After September 11, 2001, CAP fliers transported blood for the World Trade Center victims, and provided the first aerial photos of the attack site.

The "flying club" aspect was reintroduced into CAP in the late 1940s, making one of its goals Aerospace Education for its members as well as the American public. CAP's Aerospace Education Program includes formal graded courses about all aspects of aviation, including flight physics, dynamics, history, and application, and covering new technologies and advances in aviation and space exploration.

Several programs are available for improving pilot skills and earning FAA ratings. CAP also has outreach programs to help schools integrate aviation and aerospace into the classroom, through no-cost seminars, workshops and course materials.

The Cadet Program is a multi-step leadership training program. The cadets train in leadership principles, physical fitness, moral leadership, and other military concepts. They assist Senior Staffs in executing the Cadet program and participate in Emergency Services missions.

The program also offers orientation flights in powered and glider aircraft, cadet activities and competitions at local, state, regional and national levels, an International Air Cadet Exchange program, and scholarships for college, flight training, and several disciplines.

Currently CAP has 58,000 Senior and Cadet members in over 1,700 local units across the country, in Puerto Rico, and at overseas Air Force installations. Senior membership is open to U.S. citizens and legal residents who are able to pass an FBI background check.

Although a volunteer organization, CAP is structured on the military model, with lower ranks reporting to higher levels of command. Each state, designated a "wing," is part of one of eight geographic Regions. Each wing has several Groups comprising at least five local squadrons or smaller units called "flights." It is at the squadron or flight level that most of CAP's missions are accomplished.

CAP owns and operates the world's largest fleet of single-engine Cessna aircraft and maintains the nation's most extensive radio communications network, which is designed to operate during national emergencies. Some of its aircraft are equipped with advanced search and rescue technology, such as satellite digital imaging, and the ARCHER hyperspectral imaging system that uses visible and near-infrared light to help find and evaluate crash sites and disaster areas.

CAP mobilizes its aircraft and members for natural disasters and civil defense, to aid local government emergency services, and in support of federal agencies.

As a non-profit volunteer organization, CAP manages to fulfill its missions efficiently and cost effectively. A CAP search mission, for example, may average $70 per hour, compared to $700 per hour with a larger Air Force plane.

The Civil Air Patrol is essentially a great idea, originated in anticipation of war and still answering the country's needs in time of peace. It has earned its stripes -- and continues to do so day in and day out -- contributing to the safety and welfare of the community and the nation at large.

In order to keep up with the demands of the changing times, the FAA has had to expand the scope of its activities. For example, the FAA implemented airport security measures in response to the airplane hijackings of the 1960s and now confronts the terrorism threat with even more stringent measures. The latest security technology is right out of the movies -- the much publicized “x-ray vision” passenger scanners.

The responsibility for establishing noise standards at U.S. airports is now in the FAA’s court, as well as the administration of an aid program for airport construction and renovation.

The FAA currently focuses on three main areas: Airspace management, regulation and licensing, research and development.

In the United States, the FAA is the regulating agency and thus the licensing and certification authority, for everything related to aviation and aerospace.

All commercial passenger and freight aircraft, airlines, aviation facilities such as airports and airspace management facilities, and aviation personnel, including pilots, instructors, engineers, mechanics, and air traffic controllers, are under its authority. The Administration's authority extends to commercial space operations as well, including space-freight and space-launch facilities and space vehicles.

Licensing by the FAA usually is a tiered process, depending on requirements for operating the aircraft or equipment under set conditions or levels of ability. With a visual flight rules (VFR) pilot license, for example, the pilot can fly only under 3,000 feet and when visibility is 3 miles or better. An instrument flight rules (IFR) license, on the other hand, allows the pilot to fly above 3,000 feet and in reduced visibility.

Since the FAA is responsible for setting the safety standards for all aspects of aviation, it can ground a pilot, an aircraft or an entire airline, if there is any question as to whether safety will be compromised.

For example, if an airline has a couple of planes that fail inspection, the FAA has the authority to ground the entire fleet until the airline can assure the FAA that everything is in compliance. The grounded person or craft will not be able to fly until the FAA gives the clearance.

About the only aviation matter the FAA does not handle is the investigation of plane crashes, which is performed by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), an independent federal agency that investigates all transportation-related accidents.

In 1999, with 19,098 airports and millions of flights handled by air traffic controllers, there were 691 aviation-related fatalities. That same year, fatalities recorded for highway transportation was 41,611, water transportation was 853, and rail transportation was 805.

These statistics reflect the FAA's regulatory effectiveness on a mode of transportation that is usually perceived to be the most risky.

Considering the FAA's vital role in aviation, it is only to be expected that the Administration is constantly researching, developing and implementing new programs, technologies and methods that will improve aviation safety. In fact, the FAA has several sub-organizations dedicated to research and development.

Some key areas of FAA research include air traffic management and control systems, navigation systems, aircraft noise pollution, airport security, energy conservation, aviation and satellite technology, surveillance and communications systems, landing systems, and hazardous materials transportation.

One research program under development is a powerful computer system for field-testing the programs designed to enhance an aircraft's speed and safety during flight. Another research program aims to anticipate future threats to U.S. aviation so that preventative measures and countermeasures can be developed.

The FAA has also announced a 10-year strategy for the modernization of the air traffic management system, to convert the ground-based system to a network of satellites. This would allow for a 30% increase in capacity and fewer delays and bottlenecks.