Dim future for CA aircrew?`

[BillB]

Paul
Look out the window. let me know if you see a black CAP van

[SarDragon]

They're all white here in CAWG. 

[bosshawk]

Yes, Rob, I am, but with good reason.  With 12 days left in this mess, I have trouble caring.

And Dave, I doubt if the white van can find my house, I am so far off the beaten track and such a minor player in this terrible drama.

[JeffDG]

They're all white here in CAWG. 

The ones you know about are.

[Eclipse]

Eclipse: if you have the nerve(and I think that you do), email the Wing CC of CAWG and ask him that question.

My GAS factor would need to be a lot higher, or it would need to involve one of my people.

I'm sure there are other people in the CAPverse who have standing to make that call who might be interested.

[a2capt]

"One guy"?  Since when does CAP allow "one guy" to do anything?

Allow? LOL. He says, "the regulations, those are just guidelines". It's not a question of allow.

[Flying Pig]

Without naming names, I hear that National is not keen on continuing to fund the CA program and that CAWG is not willing to scout out other business for their aircrew outside SAR. Since the 121.5 satellites have stopped listening I think we can all agree that the number of callouts has dropped significantly. O-Rides have also been off the cards due to budget constraints.

This begs the question: How many hours will the average CA plane fly in 2011? How will aircrew stay proficient other than through a couple of SAREX's per year and paid proficiency?

It all seems very quiet.

So aside from the vans....
What mission should we scout? Lets hear some ideas? Considering the aviation assets that are present in CA in regards to Fire, LE, Fed LE, etc.  I think we do pretty good. 

[FW]

With the state drowning in red ink, there may be a greater need for our aircraft/crew in CAWG.  We do work a lot cheaper and, some don't mind working week days...

[Spaceman3750]

Without naming names, I hear that National is not keen on continuing to fund the CA program and that CAWG is not willing to scout out other business for their aircrew outside SAR. Since the 121.5 satellites have stopped listening I think we can all agree that the number of callouts has dropped significantly. O-Rides have also been off the cards due to budget constraints.

This begs the question: How many hours will the average CA plane fly in 2011? How will aircrew stay proficient other than through a couple of SAREX's per year and paid proficiency?

It all seems very quiet.

So aside from the vans....
What mission should we scout? Lets hear some ideas? Considering the aviation assets that are present in CA in regards to Fire, LE, Fed LE, etc.  I think we do pretty good.

From what I've gleaned from other posts, you could probably spend some time fixing your relationships regarding ground teams.

[Flying Pig]

Yeah,....I think they'll be OK

[Thrashed]

My wing has similair problems.  No funding for anything. No orientation flights, no F5's, no F91's.  Everything is now self-funded.  The planes are getting dusty sitting in the hangars.

[Larry Mangum]

Welcome to the old CAP. When I joined in January of 1996, if you wanted to become a mission pilot or observer you paid for the flights out of your own pocket.  And you know what, the members who had aeronautical ratings tended to be more dedicated to the mission as they had skin in the game.  Once we started paying for all of the training, we got a lot more of the people who were just in it for the free flying and while the number of Form 5 pilots went up, the number of form 91 pilots went down.

[Flying Pig]

^Aint that the truth.

[Eclipse]

My wing has similair problems.  No funding for anything. No orientation flights, no F5's, no F91's.  Everything is now self-funded.  The planes are getting dusty sitting in the hangars.

Recurrent 5's and 91's should be funded, and O-Ride money is generally a matter of having the pilots and asking for the money.

Is this because of the overall issues with the continuing resolution, or doesn't your wing request an annual budget?

[bosshawk]

Eclipse: this happens every 1 Nov, when the NOC runs out of money from the last fiscal year and has no authority to spend any money that might be approved in the as-yet unapproved appropriation.  They typically bumble along until Feb or March, when the AF budget is finally approved and then the money starts to flow.  With a continuing resolution, I am not sure that anyone knows what funds are going to be available.

I did see recently that some O Ride money had become available: have no idea where it came from and really don't intend to ask.

I mentioned in another post that while I was CAWG CD Director, we went into hiding from Nov through Feb every year: no money.  Our customers finally took onboard that this was going to happen and they made other plans.

My sense is that CAP goes from paycheck to paycheck every year and that is unfortunate.  An operating reserve might be nice.   Ned: hint, hint, hint.

[Eclipse]

^I understand, my wing's in the same boat, we all are, as are a lot of my friends who work for government agencies and even Fermi - we got a few buckos
recently for o-rides, and all but the big SAREx's are self-funded, or locally funded, as are encampments, etc., so the CR situation is typical and
not really that big an impact on operations.

But Thrash's comment had the tone of no money being status quo in his wing.

[ol'fido]

From what I hear all CA SAR teams are being redesignated as solely "RESCUE" units. Apparently, there is no need for "SEARCH" units as Gov. Moonbeam(V 2.0) will be locating lost persons, vehicles, aircraft, etc. by TMT(Transcendental Mental Telepathy).

[Major Lord]

Sign me up for the Astral Projection Ground Team! You won't even have to get wet, dirty, or tired, and no forms to fill out! "Men who stare at Cessnas" Awesome dude!

Major Lord

[SARPilotNY]

Eclipse: if you have the nerve(and I think that you do), email the Wing CC of CAWG and ask him that question.

When you talk to the CAWG Wing King ask him why CAWG puts out numerous repeated pages for resources.  This includes locating an IC as well as aircrews and ground resources.  Seems like just a few in California Wing  run and handle almost all the missions for the Wing.  Do you really want to argue and complain about success?  Seems like CAWG handles more missions than any other wing, more finds which to me means these few are producing most of the Wing's results and has earned CAWG the "BEST OF THE BEST" award for their ES program.  I know the "one guy" you are referring to.  It is not just him but a few just like him.  There are a few people who's lives they saved that would argue that they would not be alive today had it not be for them.  Period!  They are able to execute their missions without much air support, quickly and professionally, and are a target of many for not needing or using aircraft.  Many have felt that this is a threat to our aircrews and culture...so what!  They get the job done, get results and get criticized.  But if you ever need help, these are the guys you want to come and find you!
They have placed a 121.5/243.0 df receiver atop one of the southern California repeaters.  As far as I know outside of one other site, it is the only  one of two and as I understand it has yielded numerous finds for CAP as well as distress finds and numerous saves.  But as par for the course, we must complain about their success.  It is not "his" success, but our success as well as those that we search for.  At the end of the year, those numbers yield needed results that is good for CAP as a whole.  Good for them!

[Eclipse]

The inability to compose a team is not "success".    Making up your own rules is not "success".

Yeah, yeah, I know.  "It's an emergency and lives are at stake so I must go alone!"

Interesting how the same state has members complaining about "no ground activity" because of issues with the
local agencies, then we hear that members are being sent alone to do ELT hunts.

But of course there's no correlation.