We Need You!

Learn/Serve/Fly 

​To the right is a brief introduction to the BEST program, as seen on December 23, 2025 on WRCB's Local 3 Plus You.  Our thanks to WRCB and Host Julie Edwards for the opportunity to share our invitation with the public.  

​Do you have an interest in flying in a small aircraft?
Do you want to serve your nation and community?
Are you ready for some training and then, an adventure?  

If you want to know more, please continue learning about the opportunity to fly with CAP.  Read on and then complete the on-line application.

EFFECTIVE January 15, 2026 - We are no longer accepting applications.  Thanks to Julie Edwards and the great people at WRCB's Local 3 Plus You, and to our local Chattanoogan on-line newspaper, we have received all the new applicants we can accept at this time.  Thank you for your interest.

B.E.S.T. Program Overview

Beginner Emergency Services Training (B.E.S.T.)   We are members of the Chattanooga Choo Choo Senior Squadron.  Like many volunteer programs, we occasionally lose members because they have aged out, moved away, or dropped out for one reason or another.  Every year or so, we need to replace these members in order to be ready to answer the call to serve. 

In 1941 Congress commissioned Civil Air Patrol (CAP) to carry out three primary programs:

1. Emergency Services,
2. Cadet Programs, and
3. Aerospace Education.

Although our squadron does focus some time and effort on mandates 2 and 3, our primary focus at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Senior Squadron is Emergency Services.   And within the Emergency Services program, our squadron specializes in training and practicing our members for an active role as an aircrew member for aerial search and rescue.  

Specifically, we are senior members (age 18 and above) who train and practice to be ready to use our CAP aircraft and our CAP aircrews to either search for downed or missing aircraft, or to take digital photographs of damage (typically hurricane, tornado, flooding, earthquakes, etc.).  CAP supplies the planes, and in the Chattanooga area, we have half a dozen CAP mission qualified pilots, but we are low on members to fill the other three mission aircrew roles:

1. Mission Scanner (who usually sits in the back seat), 
2. Airborne Photographer (who usually sits in the back seat), and
3. Mission Observer (aka: Mission Commander - who usually sits in the front right seat).

​Dec 23, 2025 - January 14, 2026, we were accepting on-line applications.

EFFECTIVE January 15, 2026 - We are no longer accepting applications.
Thanks to Julie Edwards and the great people at WRCB, and to our local Chattanoogan on-line newspaper, we have received all the new applicants we can accept at this time.  Thank you for your interest.  

​If you haven't already, please watch the video above.  This interview will give you an idea of how the program will work for you. 

Due to our room size, we can only accept up to eight new members this year.  If you are interested, we encourage you to apply before the eight spots are taken.

However, if we fill all eight spots before you apply,  you can still fill out the application.  We will keep the contact info for those applicants who will be given first choice of a seat, should we have a seat open up.

For some reason, at this point, there is often a delay that occurs when loading this web page.  The best way to proceed is to scroll down until you see the words and photos resume, and then you can scroll back up to this point where you can resume your reading about the program.

NEXT STEPS

1. ​​First, read through all the info on this site.
2. Complete the B.E.S.T. program application (see the tab at the top right of this page). 
3. Once your application is accepted, we will invite you to attend a meeting where we can get to know you a little, and you can ask questions.   If you are accepted, and you decide to move forward, we will provide you with the official CAP paper application and a fingerprint card.
4. You'll need to complete the application, get fingerprinted, and bring these, along with your CAP dues, to any of our regular weekly  meetings at the airport on one of our regular Thursday evening meetings in January (1/8/26, 1/15/26 or 1/22/26)  After our meeting on January 22nd, we will be forwarding the batch of applications to CAP Headquarters for processing, so everyone is ready to start on February 12th.  Further details will be provided along with the application and fingerprint cards.

​Then, mark your calendar! 

There will be twelve consecutive Thursday evening sessions:

• February 12 - May 7, 2026 
• 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm with a 10 minute break in the middle.
• Most of the meetings will be at Wilson Air West, (in the main building conference room, or in the hangar 11 conference room), at the Chattanooga Airport.  One of the meetings may be at an alternate location somewhere on the airport grounds, closer to where we store the CAP Cessna 182.

During the sessions, you and your fellow recruits will work with our existing CAP leadership who will be leading you through the required curriculum.

As a group, we will...

• Work through the curriculum, which focuses on two primary goals. First, the introduction to becoming a productive officer in the Civil Air Patrol, and second, to become trained as a mission scanner, one of the crucial roles of an aircrew member.
• For the first four weeks, you will be invited to wear civilian cloths to the meetings.  After week 4, you can order and begin wearing your CAP aviator shirt uniform (see the example below)

• By the end of the twelve weeks, you will have completed the Mission Scanner classroom training required to qualify you to ride in a CAP aircraft for your first two Mission Scanner training/qualification rides.  Training topics include Emergency Signals, Radio Communications, Use of Sectional Charts, Aircraft Controls and Instruments, CAP Search Patterns, and Crew Resource Management.
• You'll also complete the basic training (a series of about two dozen short on-line video modules) required for you to earn your first promotion (from "Senior Member" to "Second Lieutenant") once you have been an active member for six months.  Training topics include Equal Opportunity, CAP Customs and Courtesies, Chain of Command, Core Values, Operations Security, Uniforms, organizational structure, and more.
• Our goal is to have you qualified to participate in a SAREX (Search And Rescue EXercise), get you into the air for at least two flights (we call them sorties), and get you fully qualified as an aircrew member and present you with shiny new "wings" to wear on your CAP uniform .
• We will also guide/assist you in becoming a squadron officer in an area of your interest and/or a position that the squadron needs in order for the squadron to function effectively.

REQUIRED COSTS:
There is no charge for the training, but you must be a CAP member and be in official CAP uniform in order to complete the training by riding in the back seat of a CAP aircraft for two separate mission sorties (flights). There are some minor costs associated with membership and uniforms.  Here is an estimate of the costs you will incur:

• $66 to join, which includes your first year annual CAP dues.
• $30 to get fingerprinted.  This fingerprint card goes in with your dues and your CAP membership application.
• Approximately $100 - $150 to purchase the white aviator shirt, the CAP name plate, and gray pants or skirt that make up the major portion of the CAP required uniform.  This amount could be less if you already own medium gray slacks or Dockers or a medium gray skirt. NOTE: Female members have a choice between a skirt or slacks. The squadron will provide you the Senior Member (SM) epaulets for your uniform. You will need the SM epaulets for the first six months.  Then, when you are promoted to Second Lieutenant, the squadron will, at no cost to you, exchange your SM epaulets for the gold bar, Second Lieutenant (2d Lt) epaulets. 
• The squadron will also award you with chrome plated "Aircrew Wings" to wear on your uniform once you have completed the Mission Scanner qualifications.
• You will also need plain black shoes, a black leather belt, and black socks.  There are other optional uniforms and accessories, but these are the basic required uniform items.
• ​Although not required, most members buy a set of headphones made specifically to work with the avionics system in our CAP aircraft.  This makes in-flight communication possible.

So you can figure about $400 (plus or minus a little) for your membership, a headset, and the CAP uniform, depending on what pants, skirts, belt, socks or shoes you may already own.

OTHER COSTS:
We are a volunteer organization, and we donate our time and some resources as part of our service.  You will be responsible for your transportation costs to and from events including weekly squadron meetings held at the Chattanooga Airport, meals and personal expenses you might incur when attending SAREX events, and the purchase of other uniform items if you choose to purchase them. 

Most members find they will have two uniforms:

1. the white aviator shirt uniform (discussed above), and
2. the blue polo shirt uniform. 

This blue polo shirt costs about $75, which includes embroidering your name and aircrew wings onto the shirt.  We don't start you out with this shirt because

1. it's not a mandatory uniform, and
2. We don't want you to incur the expense of buying before you qualify for your wings, only to have to reorder another shirt after you qualify to wear your wings. 

The CAP polo shirt is our primary uniform used for weekly meetings and SAREX (Search And Rescue EXercises) events.

​Your training will be provided by other volunteer members of CAP's Choo Choo Senior Squadron. Most of our meetings will be held at our usual squadron meeting location:  Wilson Air West, 932 Jubilee Road, in the main office conference room.  

It is our intent that you attend all twelve consecutive meetings in order to complete the training with your cohort members.  We ask that you commit to attending all the meetings, so you don't get "out of sync" with the other trainees.  However, we understand that sometimes, unplanned events or illnesses can occur.  Should this happen, we will work with you, and either help you get caught up with the class, or we will catch you up in the following weeks so you can complete the training within a few weeks of the end of the twelve-week program.  But if you already know you have scheduling conflicts during the 12 week program, we ask that you don't join this year, and re-apply next year.

We plan on getting your training completed during the twelve weeks of classes.  Then, in the following weeks, we want to get you airborne to complete the qualification process in one of two ways:

1. We will meet you at a SAREX, usually held on a Saturday, or a Saturday and Sunday, somewhere within 30-100 miles of Chattanooga, where you can participate and complete your two sorties.  Or,
2. We may be able to arrange a flight with one of our Mission Pilots, who would be able to meet you at the Chattanooga Airport and conduct your flight at a time when you and your pilot are available.  This might be on a weekend, or during the week depending on your pilot's schedule.

We must disclose the following items: 

First, CAP is dependent on U.S. Air Force funding for SAREX's and/or training mission flights.  At this time, funding is available, and we anticipate it to remain available into the indefinite future.  However, there have been times past when the U.S. Congress has held up financing for CAP, as part of the Congressional budgeting process, for weeks and sometimes months.  We have no control over these events.  We don't expect delays, but you have to understand that we have no control, and we can't promise what we can't control.

Assuming we have authorized funds for flying, aviation is subject to having acceptable weather.  We don't fly training missions in unsafe weather conditions, and any flight is subject to cancellation and/or postponement, due to weather, or other unplanned circumstances (such as illness of the pilot or an aircraft that needs unexpected repairs/maintenance.)  We make plans, but we must be flexible too.

QUALIFICATIONS:
No prior aviation experience or knowledge is required.  This program is available to most adults, but there are some qualifications that we want to mention, so that if you think you won't qualify, you won't get your hopes up or feel like you wasted your time.

Here are some of the requirements:

• You must be age 18 (or will turn 18 before Jan 22, 2026).
• You must complete a fingerprint card with your application, at your expense.  You might find a small town police department to do this at little or no cost, but most members wind up going to the UPS Store on Gunbarrel Road and they charge about $30.
• You must complete a paper application and submit this, along with your completed fingerprint card, and a $66 check or money order, payable to Civil Air Patrol.
• A couple of the squadron members of the membership committee will visit with you, ask and answer questions, and assess your willingness to learn and serve, and ability to work well with other members.
• A FBI background check will be completed, which is designed to screen out those with felony convictions including, but not limited to, sex offenses, child abuse, DUIs, dishonesty, and violence.  These may be the basis for rejection of membership.   
• Once approved, you will be issued a CAP ID card with your member number, and you can access the CAP website where much of our testing and training takes place.  Then (after week 4), you can order a uniform and wear it in accordance with CAP regulations.
• At our first session, you will need to bring your laptop. We'll guide you through loggin in with your new CAP identification number and help you find the course you are going to need to complete before you can proceed with the training process.
• We will ask you to commit to attend the twelve consecutive  meetings and participate without distractions.
• We will ask you to bring your computer (a laptop is preferred, but you may be able to function on a tablet or smart phone) to each class. You'll need basic computer skills such as able to log in and take on-line classes at home, read and respond to emails, etc.
• We will be asking you to complete 60-90 minutes of homework as part of the class, which is simply watching a video training session on-line, followed by a simple, multiple choice quiz to check for understanding.  
• We'll also ask you to write down at least one question per week (could be on current material, but may also include other CAP related questions), and email it to that week's primary instructor, so+ that we can discuss your question during the following weekly meeting.
• In order to be a member of the aircrew, you must be in good enough physical condition to be able to hold your bladder for up to  two hours during normal flight.  And you must be physically able to safely climb up and into the back seat of a Cessna 172 or Cessna 182, and out again.
• NOTE:  We also have CAP members that either are unable to fly, or  choose not to be part of the aircrew.  For whatever reason, you do not have to fly to become a valuable member of our emergency services.  On-the-ground mission based roles include:
• Mission Staff Assistant (MSA)
• Mission Radio Operator (MRO)
• Mission Finance Officer (FO)
• Public Information Officer (PIO)
• Mission Safety Officer (MSO),
• Ground Team Member (GTM),
• Urban Direction Finder (UDF), and several other roles.

 

• You must have good eyesight (use of corrective lenses is acceptable).
• You must be able to effectively communicate in English with other aircrew members, including the use of aircraft headsets.
• You should have the ability to get along well with others, especially other members of the aircrew.
• You should be able to have fun when appropriate, but able to focus your attention to the mission when necessary.
• After the twelve-week training period, you should be able to either attend a SAREX which could be local, or up to 100 miles away, usually held on a Saturday, and optionally, may also be available on the following Sunday (you can attend and participate on Saturday and/or Sunday), and you should be able to have regular (frequent) attendance at our regular semi monthly +squadron meetings held on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays each month, from 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm, where we tend to squadron business and provide mentorship and training in additional programs such as Airborne Photographer, Mission Observer training, etc.

EXPECTATIONS:
Clearly, this is an invitation to get trained and have the opportunity to work with an aircrew, fly in a CAP aircraft at CAP/U.S. Air Force expense, but it's much more than that.  It's an opportunity to give your time and energy as a volunteer member of the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary, the Civil Air Patrol, to put yourself at risk in order to potentially save lives, or to provide needed materials (such as digital photos) that may contribute to a disaster declaration or provide disaster relief.  For most of us, we consider ourselves privileged to have an opportunity to combine our desire to serve our community, with our interest in aviation, and a desire to learn new skills and help others. 

That means ongoing training to keep your newly developed skills sharp, to build on those skills to make yourself more effective, and to make yourself available to serve when the need arises.  Most CAP members have careers and families, and we are not asking you to drop everything each time something happens.  However, we do ask that you post a schedule of when you can and can't be available to serve.  Many members can only serve certain days of the week, such as weekends.  Other members can only serve if called after hours (due to work, family,  or other schedules according to needs).

We also expect you to regularly attend squadron meetings; to participate in squadron discussions, plans and projects; and to serve the squadron by accepting an appointment to at least one area of service.  Squadron offices include:

• Education and Training Officer
• Historian
• Safety Officer
• Aerospace Education Officer
• Personnel Officer
• Finance Officer
• Public Affairs Officer
• Administration Officer
• Information Technology Officer
• Recruiting and Retention Officer
• Logistics Officer
• Operations Officer
• Emergency Services Officer
• Communications Officer, and more.

For any of these positions, there are training materials and mentors to assist you until you become accustomed to the position.  One way to get started is to accept a deputy officer position for an officer that is already in place, and you can assist and learn at the same time.  It's likely that you will be asked about your initial interest in one or more of these roles, when you meet with a member of the membership committee, so read through the list, and start thinking about your natural abilities, learned skills, and initial interest.  
​

How To Get Started...

APPLICATION PROCESS:
If you have read this info and can see yourself getting trained to serve as a volunteer member of Civil Air Patrol, becoming qualified to help save lives, and serving the community in times of need, then we invite you to apply to the B.E.S.T. Program, which we believe is the "Best Way to Fly".

Please be aware that we would love to accept all qualified applicants, but we only have open eight seats in the training room and therefore must limit the trainees for this 2026 session to eight.  If your application is acceptable, but the seats are already filled, you will be placed on a alternate/waiting list.  We anticipate another B.E.S.T. training program, likely the following year (2027).

APPLICATION STEP 1: The B.E.S.T. Program application is to be completed on-line and can be found at the link shown below.  The application is best completed in one 10-15 minute session, on-line, using a desktop or laptop computer.

Here's the link for the on-line application which will open if a separate window.  When you complete the application, you should receive an email confirmation of the completed application.  All applications will be reviewed, and all applications will receive a response, either by email or phone call from the Commandant within two weeks of submission.

Complete the Application Here

APPLICATION STEP 2: Once you submit your B.E.S.T. Program on-line application, the program Commandant (Lt Col Larry Stewart) will review your application and give you a phone call to discuss your interest in the program, and answer any questions you may have.  Within a couple of days of that, you will find out your status.  You will be notified that your application:

1. is being accepted, and and you will receive a call to confirm your attendance at one of our weekly meetings, or
2. is being considered, and you may receive a phone call to discuss some aspect of your application, or you may be asked to clarify one or more of your responses, or
3. was accepted - but all seats for this year's training program have been tentatively filled, and you will be placed on a waiting list, either for a seat that might open up in the coming weeks, or for another training session to be scheduled for the following year.
4. was not accepted.  The reason your application would not be accepted would be some issue that doesn't fit the criteria listed above (could be criminal background, lack of physical ability to enter and exit the plane successfully, lack of ability to attend all scheduled training sessions, etc.).

APPLICATION STEP 3:  If you are notified that your application is accepted, you will be invited to attend one of our Thursday night meetings.  This will give you a chance to meet us, and for us to meet you.  We'll conduct some weekly business, and once we break out into training, one or more of the members of the membership committee will meet with you and get to know you a little bit.  This will also give you a chance to ask more questions.  As long as we both decide to move forward, you will be provided with a paper copy of the CAP membership application, a fingerprint card, and a set of instructions.  You will be asked to bring these, along with a check or money order for your CAP membership dues to another meeting.  At this meeting we will accept your documents and at a later time, we will FedEx all the applications together to CAP headquarters, and you will be welcome to remain for the rest of the meeting if you choose to.
​

QUESTIONS? - If you want more info about CAP in general, or the B.E.S.T. program, you have a couple of options:

• Attend one of our semi-monthly squadron meetings.  Sit in on a meeting, and at the conclusion of our business, we would be happy to visit with you and answer your questions.  We usually meet on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month, at 7:00 pm at Wilson Air West, located at 932 Jubilee Drive, Chattanooga, TN.  NOTE: for the month of January 2026, we will meet on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays for our regular meetings.
• Learn about CAP in general at the national CAP website at GoCivilAirPatrol.com
• Email Lt Col Larry Stewart, the 2026 Commandant for the B.E.S.T. Program, at [email protected] - or call Larry  on his cell phone at (423) 596-3196. 

On behalf of the members at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Senior Squadron, we want to thank you for your consideration of the program and hope to get the opportunity to work with you in the near future.

Best Regards,

Lt Col Larry Stewart, CAP
Commandant, B.E.S.T. 2026
Choo Choo Senior Squadron
​Public Affairs Officer, and
Education and Training Officer

   Photos of CAP Activities

Civil Air Patrol

Learn more about CAP at
​www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com

Volunteers Serving America’s Communities, Saving Lives, and Shaping Futures

​

Memo to the Press and the Media:
For interviews and/or more information about this program, please contact the Public Affairs Officer:  Lt Col Larry Stewart, CAP
(423) 596-3196    [email protected]

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 560 single-engine Cessna aircraft and more than 2,000 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 130 lives during the past fiscal year. CAP’s 54,000 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. Members also serve as mentors to over 20,000 young people participating in CAP’s Cadet Programs.

The Chattanooga Choo Choo Squadron (TN-192) is made up exclusively of senior members (age 18+).  We meet twice monthly (except for the twelve week B.E.S.T. program).  Our focus is on training and preparation for emergency services, primarily for aircrew participation, which involves mission pilots, mission scanners, mission observers, and airborne photographers.  We also train to staff the crucial mission staff positions including incident commander, mission safety officer, public information officer, logistics officer, finance officer, air branch director, etc.

For those that have an interest in CAP's cadet program, there is another squadron in Chattanooga that you will want to investigate.  The Chattanooga Cadet Squadron (TN-187).  Capt Ed Dempsey is their squadron commander, and he can be contacted at [email protected]
You can find out more about when and where these and other Tennessee Wing squadrons meet at the wing website:  tncap.us

Webmaster for www.BestWayToFly.com :  Lt Col Larry Stewart, CAP, Public Affairs Officer and Education & Training Officer for Choo Choo Senior Squadron, Chattanooga, Tennessee.