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Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force SAR Teams Train in Hong Kong SAREX 2006

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS061101-19
Release Date: 11/1/2006 3:30:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (AW/SW) Tiffini M. Jones, Fleet Public Affairs Center, Pacific

HONG KONG (NNS) -- More than 300 personnel from the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force teamed with aviators from the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department (CAD) to successfully conduct a search-and-rescue exercise (SAREX) in the South China Sea, Oct. 25-26.

Since 1976, the U.S. military has participated in the Hong Kong SAREX, an annual exercise designed to train air crews and surface vessels on the tactics and procedures necessary to find a lost vessel at sea. SAREX underscores the Pacific Fleet's commitment to supporting ongoing cooperative efforts in the Pacific region and enhances maritime safety, increases disaster responsiveness and promotes regional security.

This year’s exercise had both a long-range search-and-rescue event, and a short-range response.

The first day of the exercise was the long-range scenario. U.S. and Hong Kong civil aviation aircraft searched from the sky for a target simulating a lost vessel, while the guided-missile frigate USS Gary (FFG 51) aided in the search from the ocean’s surface. Gary was joined by an Air Force HC-130N Hercules from the 211th Rescue Squadron of the Alaska Air National Guard, based out of Anchorage, Alaska, and a Coast Guard HC-130N from the 14th Coast Guard District based out of Barbers Point, Hawaii. The Hong Kong CAD used a J-41 Jetstream fixed-wing aircraft and an AS332 Super Puma helicopter in the search.

Although adverse weather conditions added a level of difficulty to the exercise, the Air Force aircraft located the target within 30 minutes of the evolution’s execution.

“After completing one and a half legs of the search, the load master located the target and we marked the point,” said Air Force Capt. Nicholas Miller, the pilot of the HC-130N. “The Gary came right in and picked up the target right after it was flagged.”

After speeding to the scene, Gary performed a simulated rescue, and the Hong Kong CAD Super Puma landed on Gary’s flight deck, performing a mock medical evacuation. As the on-scene coordinator for the exercise, the Coast Guard aided in the recovery by providing assistance with the search pattern and de-conflicting aircraft altitudes.

“The Air Force did an excellent job,” said Coast Guard HC-130N Aircraft Commander, Lt. Brust Roethler. “Finding it very quickly was a huge testament to their equipment capabilities and skill.”

In addition to the joint training conducted by the Air Force, Coast Guard and Navy units, the ability to work with the air controllers and aircraft from Hong Kong’s CAD was an integral part of the exercise. The rare landing of a civil aviation helicopter on the decks of Gary was a key component of the training and could help save lives in the future, said Cmdr. Thomas Bellit, one of the exercise planners from Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

SAREX provided continuation training and familiarization in search and rescue techniques for newly trained search-and-rescue qualified air traffic controllers, air crews and other search and rescue units likely to be involved in SAR operations in the Hong Kong search-and-rescue region.

“The ability to operate our ships and aircraft together extends capabilities,” Bellit said. “In the event of a real-world emergency, training together like this makes our responses to mariners in distress easier to plan.”

“Anytime we work together to help save lives is a step forward,” said Aviation Electronics Technician 1st Class (AC) Adam Dangleman, the navigator of the Coast Guard HC-130N.

The long-range SAR evolution took place on the first day, and was followed up by a short-range exercise involving the People’s Liberation Army (Navy) and the Hong Kong CAD. Civil aviation and military personnel from China, the United States, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand observed the two-day exercise.

“We treasure the international participation in this exercise,” said P.F. Wong, chief engineer for Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department. “The experience that our air crews and the visiting air crews exchange builds cooperation that will help carry out potential rescues in the future.”

The two-day event culminated in successful rescues in both the short-range and long-range scenarios, as the exercised enhanced cooperation and fostered understanding between the participants.