Public Affairs lacking on all levels.

[afgeo4]

Here's an article written by a squadron PAO and posted by NHQ PA on the national website:

http://www.cap.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=display&nodeID=6192&newsID=4384&year=2008&month=6

How long will our public affairs officers continue to NOT pay attention to the content of their writing? How long will our NHQ public affairs not check articles for mistakes and false content? Don't they understand that serious damage can be done one day?

The unit in question is clearly not "ANG" or "Air National Guard".

How can we be the Air Force auxiliary if we don't even know who's Air Force and who's Army? Talk about unprofessional!

[2LTShawDSQ307]

What makes you say they are NOT "ANG" or " Air National Guard"?

http://www.minnesotanationalguard.org/units/unit_template.php?unit=P7TB1

[dhon27]

What makes you say they are NOT "ANG" or " Air National Guard"?

http://www.minnesotanationalguard.org/units/unit_template.php?unit=P7TB1

Well, this link clearly demonstrates that the unit is Army National Guard.  Plus, unless things have changed, Air Force doesn't fly Chinooks.

[Eclipse]

I don't see anything wrong with the "ANG" either. 

If you want to take exception with something:

We have CAP members in flight suits, in violation of regulations.

And the abbreviation for 2d Lt is incorrect and uses a superscript font.

But the story itself, and the photos are actually pretty good.

Edit: OK, I see - yes, no Air Guard units flying S%^hooks, well not something I would have known, either, though you're right,  the writer of the piece and NHQ should have known / checked.

[RiverAux]

What, we can't wear flight suits now?  Please enlighten...

[NC Hokie]

And the abbreviation for 2d Lt is incorrect and uses a superscript font.

This bugs me too.  I know that 2d Lt is the "correct" form, but my CAP ID lists me as 2Lt (with a different font type to boot!).  It's a small thing, but it reinforces the perception that NHQ operates under a different set of rules than the rest of us.

[RiverAux]

As I recall, CAP public affairs officers are instructed to use the Associated Press guidebook and it has different abbreviations for military rank than what CAP has in our regulations. 

[Eclipse]

As I recall, CAP public affairs officers are instructed to use the Associated Press guidebook and it has different abbreviations for military rank than what CAP has in our regulations. 

I've never heard that one before.

This is a CAP article for a CAP website, it should be correct for us and/or the USAF.

[dwb]

As I recall, CAP public affairs officers are instructed to use the Associated Press guidebook and it has different abbreviations for military rank than what CAP has in our regulations. 

I've never heard that one before.

This is a CAP article for a CAP website, it should be correct for us and/or the USAF.

He may be referring to verbal guidance from another PAO.

Besides, look at af.mil and read some of their articles.  They all use the AP style guidelines, ending rank abbreviations with a period.

When I was a PAO, I always published press releases using the AP guidelines.  The fewer revisions someone has to make to your press release to print it in the paper, the better your chances of publication.

[Eclipse]

What, we can't wear flight suits now?  Please enlighten...

I'll chalk this up to a wishy-washy CAPR 76-1 coupled with local experience.

b. While using military aircraft for travel, senior members and cadets may wear either civilian attire or any CAP uniform except flight suits or fatigues, described in CAPM 39-1, CAP Uniform Manual. Members are encouraged to wear appropriate civilian attire (no jeans, T-shirts, shorts, sandals, etc.) or either the CAP jumpsuit or blazer combination. For a military aircraft orientation flight, members will wear one of the uniforms described in CAPM 39-1, appropriate to the mission. The dress requirement for IACE airlift travel is as published in the IACE Guide for Participants.

While wear of flightsuits is prohibited for "travel" (which is defined in this case as a "different beginning and end point"), they are allowed by default for orientation rides (defined as a continuous flight with the same point of origin and landing).

I have been involved in two flights recently - a C-130 and a KC-135, and the people on the military side of the planning were explicit in that CAP members were not to wear flight suits for safety reasons to insure that in an emergency situation there would be no question of who was crew and who were civilian passengers.

I understand its a common practice by seniors, but when someone offers you a free ride in a cool airplane, you do what you are told, and there's no operational reason for seniors to be in flight suits on a military o-ride.

[NC Hokie]

As I recall, CAP public affairs officers are instructed to use the Associated Press guidebook and it has different abbreviations for military rank than what CAP has in our regulations. 

I understand that (as well as the stated reasons for alternate abbreviations on computer-generated documents) but Joe Bagodonuts might not.  Thus, he gets yelled at for signing in as 2Lt Bagodonuts since that's what he sees when he reads Volunteer and looks at his membership card.

Multiple standards cause confusion, which can lead to an unprofessional image, which is the point of this entire thread.

[dwb]

Multiple standards cause confusion

Well, there are going to be multiple standards no matter how much one may want otherwise.

The 2Lt/1Lt thing is stupid -- and should have been fixed a long time ago.  You'll get no argument from me on that.  That's not even how the AP stylebook says you should do it.

However, there will always be an internal/external difference.  It may be "Maj" internal to CAP, but all of our forward-facing publicatons should still say "Maj.", because that's what the AP style guide says, and that's what pretty much every print media outlet uses.

[RiverAux]

The current online guidance for submitting articles to the Volunteer specifies AP stylebook usage.  The old PA regulation also specified the use of the AP stylebook.  

[Pylon]

The rank abbreviations thing is not that difficult to understand and to do correctly for each circumstance.

As for the article, that's pretty bad that nobody picked up that it was Army National Guard (aka: ARNG) not the Air National Guard.  I'd be embarrassed.  Has anybody contacted National PA office to let them know they may want to change that?

[davidsinn]

As of 2130z ANG shows up one time on that whole page in the middle of the word "rANGe"

[RiverAux]

NHQ public affairs must monitor CAPTalk pretty closely and usually fixes any mistake that we bring up pretty quickly when it is fixable.  Or, if they're not doing the monitoring some helpful elf usually lets them know about it and they fix it almost immediately. 

[Major Carrales]

Ya' know, some of you that are making a big deal of this sort of thing could do their part for CAP-Public Affairs by writing acticles, taking the pics and submitting it all yourself.

Or is it far easier to critize on these forums than do anything to actually help resolve these faux pas?

[RiverAux]

I have been involved in two flights recently - a C-130 and a KC-135, and the people on the military side of the planning were explicit in that CAP members were not to wear flight suits for safety reasons to insure that in an emergency situation there would be no question of who was crew and who were civilian passengers.

Oh, I bet all those "NOMEX is critical to flight safety" folks just loved that position. 

[SarDragon]

And the abbreviation for 2d Lt is incorrect and uses a superscript font.

This bugs me too.  I know that 2d Lt is the "correct" form, but my CAP ID lists me as 2Lt (with a different font type to boot!).  It's a small thing, but it reinforces the perception that NHQ operates under a different set of rules than the rest of us.

As has been explained several times in the past, anything generated from a computer database will probably not comply with CAPR or AP Stylebook standards. This has to do with bits and bytes when they were more precious than they are today.

[NC Hokie]

As has been explained several times in the past, anything generated from a computer database will probably not comply with CAPR or AP Stylebook standards. This has to do with bits and bytes when they were more precious than they are today.

Yes, I know that, but for those who don't, it still contributes to the perception of "different rules for different folks."  In any case, I know that there is no realistic fix for this issue, so I'll just salute and drive on.