Hunting Down the Hawk

Hey everyone! Today at Civil Air Patrol was totally epic because we started learning about something really important—emergency services! It’s all about how to help people when they really need it, like during big storms or if they get lost in the woods. I never thought about how much pilots and air crews have to know about saving people, but now I see it’s a big part of flying!

Our instructor for the day, Lt. Patel, introduced us to the basics of emergency services. He explained that being part of the Civil Air Patrol means sometimes you have to be a hero. We learned about search and rescue missions, how to spot signs of people needing help from the air, and even some first aid.

We did this cool activity where Ms. Carter set up a simulation of a search mission. We had to use maps to find the location of a lost hiker based on clues given to us. It felt like being real-life detectives! Ryan and I teamed up again, and we used some of the map reading skills we’ve been practicing. It was challenging because we had to think about what the best paths were for a hiker and where they might have gone off track.

After our map exercise, we learned some basic first aid, like how to bandage a wound and what to do if someone is in shock. Ms. Carter brought all these first aid kits and showed us how to use everything inside. I hope I never have to use it for real, but it’s good to know I could help if I needed to.

The day wasn’t all serious stuff, though. When I got home, I jumped online to play some "Ultimate Smash Bros" with my neighborhood friends. We usually team up or go head-to-head in this 2D platform fighting game created by Nintendo. It’s become our go-to way to chill out and have fun after a long day. Tonight was no different—we had an epic session full of crazy moves, intense battles, and tons of laughs.

So, today was a mix of learning some really serious and important stuff and just having a ton of fun. I like that about CAP—it teaches you big things but also lets you unwind and just be a kid who enjoys gaming with friends. I think being able to do both is what makes this program so special.