'Always Vigilant:
A Brief History of Civil Air Patrol The US Air Force Auxiliary' by Chaplain, Major James Moser In September of 1997 I joined as a cadet in Civil Air Patrol which I later learned was the Auxiliary of the US Air Force. I must admit some of my reasons for joining were varied and perhaps, like many of my peers, a little silly. I liked the uniforms, for example, along with the chance to be with my friends from school; however, as time went on, my list of reasons evolved considerably. |
I enjoyed serving my local community and being a part of a group which did their part to serve the nation.
In addition to such service, perhaps one of my chief reasons for joining then and remaining years later, was the organisations’ long and still-growing history, together with the opportunity I had to be part of it. All this stated, I invite you to read on to learn just some of this rich and enduring history of ‘service before self’ and understand the history of the US Air Force Auxiliary of Civil Air Patrol. |
Part I: Early Days and Influences
Early during the Second World War, Britain soon recognised a growing need to encourage all able subjects to join in the war effort. Women, for instance, soon found themselves working in factories, while children gathered scrap goods, and whole families ‘dug for victory’ in order to ‘do their bit.’ In May of 1940, certain members of the British government, including the newly elected prime minister Winston Churchill, soon realised another source of eager yet untapped talent in the nation when looking at older veterans of previous conflicts and others ‘ineligible for regular service.’ Such individuals were soon used to form what was initially known as the ‘Local Defence Volunteers’ and later dubbed the now famous ‘Home Guard’ – a last yet determined line of defence against invasion. Click Here to Learn More |