Local CAP Cadet Attends Cyber Event at the US Air Force Academy

Carmel, N.Y. (July 14, 2022) – The Civil Air Patrol (CAP), which is an auxiliary of the US Air Force, offers cadets and adult members training programs on flying, aerospace, emergency services, drones, plus many others on various topics which follows the US Air Force philosophy of the importance of training. A local cadet, C/SSgt Eric Song, a member of the Putnam County Composite Squadron, recently attended the inaugural year of the Cyberspace Advanced Administration Course held at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado. The program was held the week of June 13-18 and provided housing at the Academy Prep School with meals in Mitchell Hall dining facility at the US Air Force Academy giving the CAP cadets a strong feeling of being at the academy. With an opportunity to talk with current AF cadets, this program really gave a nice college perspective to the high school students.

According to C/SSgt Eric Song, the program touched on many aspects of computing that a high school student interested in computers would be hard pressed to find out about. The program covered application stacks, Domain Controllers and distributed security policies and configuring an email server with all the necessary protocols and programs.

Cadet Song also felt that in addition to the courses and the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, he was able to meet cadets from Puerto Rico to Idaho, opening his eyes to how different squadrons around the nation operate and the unique experiences various cadets have with CAP and computers. Cadet Song went on to say that “Learning from the course was a part of this program but learning from my peers was another.”

One prerequisite for attending this event is the National Youth Cyber Education Program, sponsored by the Air and Space Force Association to educate the next generation of patriotic cyber defenders of our nation’s security and infrastructure. This annual event is called CyberPatriot and is held in the fall with teams now beginning to form. The highly competitive event is training a new generation to ensure America is prepared to defend its national security from the air, land, sea, space and cyberspace. Details can be found at www.uscyberpatriot.org.

The CAP Putnam County Composite Squadron is forming teams starting in August. It is free to all cadet members. The curriculum is college and collage graduate materials taught on a high school level.

More information about this program and other programs within Civil Air Patrol can be found on the website gocivilairpatrol.com. You are also free to contact the Putnam County Composite Squadron directly.

Established in 1941, Civil Air Patrol is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and as such is a member of its Total Force. In its auxiliary role, CAP operates a fleet of 555 single-engine aircraft and 2,250 small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) and performs about 90% of all search and rescue operations within the contiguous United States as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. Often using innovative cellphone forensics and radar analysis software, CAP was credited by the AFRCC with saving 108 lives last year. CAP’s 56,000 members also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. As a nonprofit organization, CAP plays a leading role in aerospace education using national academic standards-based STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education resources. Members also serve as mentors to over 23,000 young people participating in CAP’s Cadet Programs.

For further information about Civil Air Patrol or cadet activities, log on to the squadron website www.NY033.CAP.GOV or the national website www.Gocivilairpatrol.com

Local CAP Contact Info:

Maj. Elena MacDermant– elenamac@aol.com (845)216-5433