The Civil Air Patrol is the official, noncombatant, United States Air Force Auxiliary. Its history dates back to World War II, when civilian pilots flew their privately-owned aircraft from the Atlantic coast, patrolling America's shores on the lookout for German submarines.

With most of the Army Air Corps aircraft deployed in Europe, Africa, and the Pacific, only the Civil Air Patrol was left to search for enemy vessels. When a submarine was spotted, Civil Air Patrol pilots called in air strikes on the enemy vessel. German commanders quickly recognized the threat of these seemingly-harmless aircraft.

Submarines would crash-dive upon sighting a Civil Air Patrol aircraft. Many German submarine crews would try to shoot down these aircraft. Consequently, the Army Air Corps began arming Civil Air Patrol planes with bombs. Two German submarines were sunk by Civil Air Patrol aircraft.

However, victory was not without its price. CAP crews that were shot down had little chance of survival in the cold Atlantic waters.

As a result, CAP quickly learned the art of search and rescue, taking care of their own in the process. These early CAP pilots came to be known as the Flying Minutemen: with no formal military training, these civilians would leave their homes and families in the morning, fight a war, and return home for supper.

The mission of today's Civil Air Patrol is threefold:

• Emergency Services
• Aerospace Education
• The Cadet Program

The Glenn L. Martin Composite Squadron is highly active in all of these missions. To continue your guided tour, select "Next" in the left menu.