Civil Air Patrol is urging the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration to grant CAP members a waiver from new requirements that officials believe would seriously hinder the members’ ability to perform the vital missions they carry out daily.

The new requirement, issued Dec. 10 and now scheduled to take effect June 1, would require Security Threat Assessments for all general aviation owners and operators using commercial airports. Aircrew members would also be required to obtain special photo IDs.

In seeking a waiver for Civil Air Patrol, CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Amy S. Courter has advised TSA that applying the new requirements to the organization would curtail its performance of emergency operations missions for the Air Force and other agencies, which include:

Flying more than 70,000 hours in fiscal 2008 in support of Air Force missions;

Providing 60-80 percent of scheduled daily flights in support of Air Force North’s air defense and defense support to civil authorities; and

Carrying out daily flights for search and rescue, disaster response, homeland security and counterdrug missions.

Members performing those missions routinely use commercial airports, Courter said, because those facilities offer advantages that smaller airports and military bases do not.

Individual members’ costs for the security screenings and ID cards outlined in the TSA directive would vary by airport but are expected to range from $15 to $100 or more, for each airport where access is needed.

The organization’s budget cannot cover that expense, Courter said. Expecting the members to pay for access cards to any commercial airport(s) they may use is “unreasonable,” she added, given the hundreds of hours they volunteer each year in service to their communities and the nation.

In addition, she noted, all CAP adult members go through an FBI Criminal Justice Information Services background check in order to become a member. They are able to gain entry to military bases by showing appropriate CAP and photo identification card(s) - a process that could also be used to meet the upcoming TSA security requirement, she said.

CAP officials are continuing to work with federal officials in response to the requirements of the TSA security directive. Members should take no action at this time in regard to the waiver initiative; however, any member wanting to personally apply and pay for a TSA special photo ID may do so, as those applications are now available.


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