Civil Air Patrol Cadet named 2nd Lieutenant after receiving Mitchell Award

Cadet 2nd Lt. Callaway, a Civil Air Patrol member since May 2018, is a Senior at Ramapo High School in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. Upon graduation, Callaway will be seeking an Engineering Degree at either Georgia Institute of Technology or Carnegie Mellon University.

Asked about his promotion, he said, “I will take with me, the countless leadership lessons that have been passed down to me by previous leaders as well as the little things that make a proper leader that cannot be taught through a book.”

Callaway was a past member of the Squadron Color Guard as well as held the positions of Deputy Cadet Commander as well as squadron Color Guard member.

The Gen. Billy Mitchell Award has existed since 1964. This award honors the late Brigadier General Billy Mitchell, aviation pioneer, advocate, and staunch supporter of an independent Air Force for America. The award is earned after completing the first eight achievements of the cadet program. In addition, the cadet must pass an arduous 100 question examination testing leadership theory and aerospace topics. Since its inception over 30 years ago, more than 42,000 cadets have earned this honor.

Being such an important milestone in the CAP cadet program, the Mitchell Award is normally presented by a CAP group commander or higher, the wing director of cadet programs, or a state or federal government official. Once the cadet earns the Mitchell Award, they are promoted to the grade of Cadet 2d Lieutenant. These cadets, who later enter the CAP's Senior Member program, are eligible for immediate promotion to CAP 2d Lt at age 21.

Those cadets who receive the Mitchell Award are also eligible for advanced placement in the grade of E-3 (Airman First Class) should they choose to enlist in the US Air Force. They are also eligible for advanced credit in the Air Force ROTC program. Mitchell Award cadets may also apply for a variety of scholarships and CAP special activities.

Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 57,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the AFRCC with saving 90 lives in fiscal year 2008. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counter-drug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to more than 22,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 67 years.

For More Information:

LT RICHARD JONES, CAP

Public Affairs Officer

Email: Richard.Jones@njwg.cap.gov