THANK YOU for supporting your son’s or daughter's interest in the Civil Air Patrol's Cadet Program. Through their experiences as CAP cadets, young people develop into responsible citizens and become tomorrow's aerospace leaders.

CAP is the volunteer, nonprofit auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. Its three missions are to develop its cadets, educate Americans on the importance of aviation and space, and perform life-saving, humanitarian missions.

Our Philosophy for Developing Youth

Cadet life is a young person’s opportunity to flourish. When a cadet puts on the uniform, they see themselves differently and begin to ask, Who am I? What do I stand for? To be a cadet is to take your personal growth seriously.

Good Habits

Accordingly, CAP instills self discipline, understood as the habit of following a set of Core Values to achieve goals that better yourself and the community. We hope those goals will involve aerospace careers, but if not, we’re pleased if we’ve helped form responsible citizens.

Status as Young Adults

The cadets’ seriousness of purpose distinguishes them as young adults, not children. While we remain committed to ongoing dialogue with parents, we want to see cadets – not parents – prepare their own uniforms, follow-through on commitments they make, and use the cadet chain of command to resolve their questions and concerns.

Resilience

CAP is a safe place to learn. Challenge is a key aspect of cadet life, so we support cadets as they try new experiences, knowing that they may not succeed fully at first. We believe that affording cadets freedom to make mistakes builds resilience. We ask parents not to hover, but to give their cadet the space they need to grow.

Download the Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program Parent's Guide for a wealth of information.