Combat Air Patrol
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Combat Air Patrol (CAP) is a type of defensive mission undertaken by Vipers protecting the fleet.
The patrols tend to use two or more Vipers flying a designated pattern in and around the fleet in order to provide an immediate spaceborne response to incoming threats. It is possible that more than one CAP may be flown at a time, with Vipers positioned at different distances from the fleet, and occupying different "orbits" around the fleet.
CAP flights may sometimes be accompanied by a Raptor, particularly if trouble is anticipated (33).
CAP flights are generally backed-up by the Alert Fighters on the Battlestar Galactica.
Notes
- On Earth, Combat Air Patrol is most frequently applied to fight aircraft patrols guarding a Carrier Battle Group, however it may equally apply to flights guarding a fixed land target, other vessels at sea and (leastly commonly) slower, more vulnerable aircraft.
- Effective Earth-based CAP patterns can include aircraft positioned at both high and low altitudes, so as to shorten response times when an attack is detected.
- It should be noted that there are two other, less common, recognised air patrols which may have parallels in Reimagined:
- BARCAP: or BARrier Combat Air Patrol: a patrol flown between the vessel being guarded and the direction from which an attack will most likely originate.
- TARCAP or TARget Combat Air Patrol: a patrol flown over or near a strike target in order to protect the attack attack aircraft from harassment by enemy fighters.