RAPID CITY - David Small, Dylan Garner and Joshua Busch could be the future of the Civil Air Patrol. The three cadets, ages 14, 13 and 12, respectively, are among the youngest members of the Civil Air Patrol's South Dakota Wing.

They have a keen interest in flying, and the CAP can help them get more time in the air. Five cadets received flight training last year through the CAP. The group's instructors give free lessons to the cadets. And the cost of operating the aircraft during lessons can sometimes be covered by CAP scholarships, according to Krisane Hineman, public affairs officer for the South Dakota CAP Wing.

Joshua Busch of Rapid City joined the Civil Air Patrol a few weeks ago, and on Saturday, he got his first CAP orientation plane ride. "My mom said something to me about (the CAP) when I told her I wanted to be a pilot," he said.

The South Dakota CAP consists of retired Air Force pilots, private pilots and people with an interest in helping the public. Gary Hewett, one of the CAP pilots in Rapid City, is a bit of all three. He is a retired Air Force pilot, and he's involved in the program because he wants to give something back to the community and to the young cadets.

The South Dakota Civil Air Patrol Wing conducted a media event Saturday at Rapid City Regional Airport. It marked the end of the group's fiscal year, and it was designed to educate the public on the organization's role in aviation.

Col. Michael A. Beason, the wing's commander, said the CAP does much more than search-and-rescue missions for downed aircraft - last year, the CAP flew only 14 hours on search-and-rescue missions. And most of those missions turned out to be due to malfunctioning emergency locator beacons on aircraft rather than actual emergencies.

"We've been lucky," Beason said.

But the state group was busy with other work. Here are some of the things the CAP did in the past year:

- Helped the South Dakota Air National Guard survey low-level air routes for Guard F-16 fighters and Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers in South Dakota. Surveying the low-level routes requires slower-than-jet aircraft, so the CAP planes were a good match.

- Conducted search-and-rescue training missions. CAP air and ground teams participated with sheriffs' departments and dog teams in the exercises.

- Conducted counter-drug training missions in Aberdeen, primarily flying photo sorties and showing local law enforcement agencies how the CAP can help fight the illegal drug business.

- Helped the South Dakota Wildland Fire Division with various fire missions. The CAP did 69 hours that included fire spotting, fire observation and transporting fire personnel to various fires. And for the first time, the CAP helped the state fire bosses control air tankers from the air.

- Supported disaster missions such as the Aberdeen flood in May. CAP crews helped photograph and document the extent of damage on the ground.

The South Dakota Wing owns five airplanes, has 202 members and 118 cadet members. Nationally, the CAP has 535 aircraft and 56,000 members.

Contact Dan Daly at 394-8421 or dan.daly@rapidcityjournal.com