MiG Killers | Wings over Vietnam

If you want to support our channel, I will be very grateful. PayPal: viktor3177@inbox.lv
Friends! If you liked this video, be sure to like and subscribe to the channel!Show more

Combat air patrol (CAP) is a type of fighter flight mission. Combat air patrol is the patrol of aircraft over an objective, defended force, critical area of a combat zone, or air defense area with the goal of intercepting and destroying enemy aircraft before they reach their target. Combat air patrol applies to both land and water operations, protecting other aircraft, fixed and mobile assets on land, or ships at sea.

Known by the acronym CAP, it typically involves fighters flying in a tactical pattern or covering a defended target while searching for incoming attackers. Effective CAP schemes can include aircraft positioned at both high and low altitudes to reduce response times when an attack is detected. Modern CAPs are monitored by either the GCI or the AWACS system to provide the earliest possible warning of a defensive response.

The first CAPs were specific to carrier operations, where CAPs were used to protect a carrier battle group, but the term has become generic to both land-based and naval-based operations. Containment operations differ from fighter escort in that CAP forces are not tied to the group they are protecting, are not limited in altitude or speed, and have the tactical flexibility to counter the threat. Escort fighters typically remain close to the objective they are supporting and at the speed of the supported group as a last resort force to respond to an immediate threat. When an escort enters combat, the supported forces are left unprotected.