Civil Air Patrol, which sponsors the #46 Busch Series Monte Carlo driven by Ashton Lewis Jr., announced today that its members are fully prepared to support Operation Liberty Shield. The announcement was made by CAP’s National Operations Center, located at Maxwell AFB, Ala. CAP is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. The CAP operations center and CAP members nationwide are ready to support the country in response to the federal government’s “Orange” alert status. Selected CAP members nationwide who form rapid response teams for both ground and air missions have been placed on “High” alert by CAP in order to be immediately available when tasked. All CAP resources, including emergency operations centers, aircraft and ground vehicles, have been inspected for readiness, and CAP radio networks are conducting regular communications tests. Civil Air Patrol performs 95% of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. Its volunteers also perform missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. Most recently, CAP members flew security over the launch site of the space shuttle Columbia and later assisted in the Columbia shuttle recovery.(CAP PR)(3-21-2003)
