1 DEC--This Day in US Military History

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 01 Dec 2014 09:03:44 -0500

1941 – The first Civil Air Patrol in the U.S. was organized.

Civil Air Patrol was conceived in the late 1930s by legendary New Jersey aviation advocate Gill Robb Wilson, who foresaw aviation’s role in war and general aviation’s potential to supplement America’s military operations. With the help of New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, the new Civil Air Patrol was established just days before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The CAP insignia, a red three-bladed propeller in the Civil Defense white-triangle-in-blue-circle, began appearing on private aircraft everywhere.
CAP initially planned only on liaison and reconnaissance flying, but the civilian group’s mission expanded when German submarines began to prey on American ships off the coast of the United States and CAP planes began carrying bombs and depth charges.” A CAP crew first interrupted a sub attack on a flight out of Rehoboth Beach, saving a tanker off Cape May, N.J. Since radio calls for military bombers were often unproductive, unarmed CAP fliers dived in mock attacks to force subs to break and run.
The CAP coastal patrol flew 24 million miles, found 173 submarines, attacked 57, hit 10 and sank two. By Presidential Executive Order, CAP became an auxiliary of the Army Air Forces in 1943. A German commander later confirmed that coastal U-boat operations were withdrawn from the United States “because of those damned little red and yellow airplanes.” In all, CAP flew a half-million hours during the war, and 64 CAP aviators lost their lives in the line of duty. The U.S. Air Force was created as an independent armed service in 1947, and CAP was designated as its official civilian auxiliary the following year.

http://thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/december-1/

December 1

1 December 1641 - Massachusetts became the 1st colony to give statutory recognition to slavery. It was followed by Connecticut in 1650 and Virginia in 1661. 1814 - The shallow-draft steamboat Enter...

Response by LTC Stephen F. made Jun 24 at 2015 5:04 PM

LTC Stephen F. — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 17:04:46 -0400

I did not realize that the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) had an offensive capability. You mentioned that the CAP " found 173 submarines, attacked 57, hit 10 and sank two." Since the CAP became an Army Air Force auxiliary in 1943 I expect the submarines may have been attacked after that point.