"BOEING377" wrote

Note the etc., I called on 2, 4, 8, 16 Mhz freqs. Back then (1980s) satcom
gear
was just too expensive for most small fishing boats. The US Albacore tuna
fleet
is comprised of small boats, usually in the 50-85 ft range. We knew we
were on
our own and accepted that risk. None of us expected the USCG to protect us
so
far from the US, but it's always worth a try. Another resource that
actually
has in some respects superior long range air rescue capabilities compared
to
the USCG is the USAF Rescue Squadrons. They have HC 130H aircraft very
similar
to the USCG planes, but with a couple of big differences. They can carry
pararescue jumpers who sometimes jump thousands of miles offshore to do
emergency medical work on a ship. Also, the USAF planes carry air
refueling
gear and can extend the range of a Blackhawk rescue helo waaay beyoind
what the
USCG can fly with their unrefuelable Jayhawks. They have helped in a
number of
civilian sea rescues. Not sure how the USCG and the USAF divide tasks, but
I
assume that the USAF is contacted by the USCG RCC since the USAF planes do
not
normally monitor marine HF SSB freqs. The USAF planes do not normally
carry
dropable pumps but they do carry dropable liferafts and can drop a very
impressive large inflatable with a big waterproof outboard which is used
by the
pararescue jumpers after they land in the water.

Mr. ____

The USAF Air National Guard is called on to make any at sea recovery which
is out of range of the USCG HH-60 Jayhawks, and no surface asset is near
enough or able to assist. That kind of effort cost the life of a pararescue
jumper after his helo team rescued the crew of s/v Satori. and required
refueling before they could commence searching for the m/v Andrea Gail. The
UH-60 was unable to air refuel, and ditched, causing the loss of the
pararescue. For the USCG's work, the HH-60 is better suited than the
Blackhawk, as the refueling probe adds so much weight that the resulting
loss of single-trip range available to the Blackhawk makes it unsuitable for
the typical USCG rescue missions. Also, the USCG HC-130's do not monitor
marine band SSB either, although both the ANG and all USCG a/c are capable
of any HF comms that a distressed vessel needed to communicate with. We also
drop VHF hh radios to a vessel that has lost power and cannot communicate
with an orbiting Hercules, Jayhawk or Falcon a/c.

73
Jack Painter
Virginia Beach

Jack Painter wrote:
Also, the USCG HC-130's do not monitor
marine band SSB either, although both the ANG and all USCG a/c are capable
of any HF comms that a distressed vessel needed to communicate with.

The USAF HC 130s do monitor VHF ch 16 more than you might think. If they are
doing exercises off the coast and dropping PJs or flares they often listen to
be sure nobody mistakes it for a distress situation. That led to a miraculous
rescue in the late 70s off Pt Reyes CA. A 129th ARS HC 130 on a training flight
(call sign King 81) picked up a desperate very short VHF mayday call from the
fishing vessel Last One that had literally broken apart in heavy seas rounding
Pt Reyes. It was getting dark and chances of finding the crew (no life raft, no
life jackets, no EPIRB everything happened too quick) was appraoching zero as
the sun set. The Herc found the crew in the water and dropped a pair of rafts
way upwind connected by a long line. The crew managed to grab the line as the
rafts drifted downwind on either side of them. In 54 degree water they would
have soon been dead not for the vigilance and skill of the ANG plane crew. The
HC 130 then dropped flares from fairly high up many miles upwind (it was
screaming NW wind) and the flares drifted right over the rafts at low altitude
allowing a USCG helo to locate and lift the survivors long after nightfall. The
aircraft commander was Ted Shindler, a real pro in my book.