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AFNORTH’s AFRCC coordinates SAR for downed aircraft

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Andrew Scott
  • 601 AOC
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla --  Air Forces Northern's Air Force Rescue Coordination Center here assisted in saving three lives early Monday morning as it facilitated the rescue response for a downed aircraft near Fresno, Calif.

The Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center contacted the AFRCC to pass information of a Beech A38 aircraft which went missing while attempting to land at New Coalinga Municipal Airport. California Civil Air Patrol was requested to assist the Fresno County Sheriff and Coalinga Police Department search for the missing aircraft.

Local law enforcement and California CAP located the crash site and three survivors. The pilot and one passenger sustained minor injuries, while the other passenger, who is listed in critical condition, was immediately transported to a local hospital for further treatment.

"Due to heavy fog in the area, visibility was zero," said Fresno County Sheriff's Deputy Chris Curtice. "With the assistance of one of the passengers on her cell phone, using sounds in the area, deputies and fire personnel were able to locate the wreckage in a nearby oil field. This was a perfect example of local, state and federal authorities working together to save lives in extremely poor conditions."

As the United States' inland search and rescue coordinator, the AFRCC serves as the single agency responsible for coordinating federal SAR activities in the 48 contiguous United States.

The AFRCC operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The center directly ties in to the Federal Aviation Administration's alerting system and the U.S. Mission Control Center. In addition to Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking information, the AFRCC computer system contains resource files that list federal and state organizations which can conduct or assist in SAR efforts throughout North America.

On any given day, the AFRCC operates with one watch supervisor and three to four SAR controllers. AFRCC personnel work 12 hour shifts, 24 hours a day, year-round. Each controller may handle up to eight incidents or missions at any given time.

Civil Air Patrol is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and is a nonprofit organization with more than 56,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions and was credited with saving 103 lives in fiscal year 2007. 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 the nearly 22,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions in America for more than 66 years.