One of the three missions of Civil Air Patrol is Emergency Services. As can be deduced from the name, Civil Air Patrol participates, in conjunction with other organizations, in helping our fellow man in less than normal situations. SAFETY IS THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY when conducting operations, not only for the victims, but to our members as well. California Wing maintains an extensive alerting system made up of state-of-the-art alphanumeric pagers tied to a state-wide E-Mail system. This allows the immediate notification of the resources closest to the mission, and has resulted in dramatic reduction in response times. This system is the PRIMARY means by which California Wing Mission Coordinators activate resources.

Even though Civil Air Patrol's primary job is airborne search, CAP also provides ground team support. Ground teams coordinate with aircraft to locate downed aircraft or lost individuals and provide communications as well as on location support to other organizations during a disaster.

The primary search mission that Civil Air Patrol operates is in locating Emergency Location Transmitters or ELTs on aircraft and their sea going cousins EPIRBs, which are on larger boats and ships. They emit a homing signal when activated. ELTs will activate automatically upon a very hard impact or, in the case of EPIRBs, when submerged. But ELTs are not fool proof. They will start transmitting for various reasons including hard landings, improper maintenance, or improper disposal. When this happens, the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC) receives the homing signal via a satellite.

From this information, AFRCC calls the closest Civil Air Patrol Wing Mission Coordinator. The Mission Coordinator then calls out resources from a pool of Emergency Services personnel nearest the approximatelocation of the signal. CAP personnel will begin signal triangulation from the ground, and from the air if needed. The ELT or EPIRB transmitter is then located and silenced.

Luckily over 90% are "routine" ELT or EPIRB signals, where the transmitter has activated outside of a real emergency. But every mission most be taken seriously. Even though this is good practice no one ever wishes for the "real thing".

Civil Air Patrol also helps during natural disasters. During the 1994 Northridge Earthquake, CAP teams from California Wing (Aided by CAP personnel from as far away as Alaska, Ohio & Texas) manned aid stations, food distribution sites, and provided both ground and aerial damage assessment. In the aftermath of the 1992 Los Angeles riots CAP personnel were in the field assisting state, county and local authorities assess the damage.

Members are constantly trained in the latest methods of search and reconnaissance and are required to maintain certain standards to maintain qualifications.