Image via WikipediaOn this date, the Civil Air Patrol's Coastal Patrol program along the Gulf and Atlantic Coasts was deactivated.An excerpt from Virginia Wing of the Civil Air Patrol:
CAP planes got bombs and depth charges after a crew watched in vain as a grounded sub off Cape Canaveral, Florida, escaped before the military arrived. CAP Coastal Patrol flew 24 million miles, found 173 subs, attacked 57, hit 10 and sank two. By Presidential Executive Order, CAP became an auxiliary of the Army Air Forces on April 29, 1943. The military had resisted "those country-club pilots" and their "toy planes," but 21 CAP Coastal Patrol bases from Maine to Texas had soon deterred close-in submarine operations. By August 31, 1943, it was time for Coastal Patrol to stand down. A German commander later confirmed that coastal U-boat operations were withdrawn "because of those damned little red and yellow airplanes."--Want to learn more or join the Civil Air Patrol? Browse http://gocivilairpatrol.com
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