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U.S.A.F.
Para-Rescue
Para-rescue began in August of 1943, when 21 persons bailed out of a disabled C-46 over an uncharted jungle near the China-Burma border. So remote was the crash site that the only means of getting help to the survivors was by
Para-drop. Lieutenant Colonel Don Fleckinger and two medical corpsmen volunteered for the assignment. This
para-drop of medical corpsmen was the seed from which the concept of
Para-rescue was born. For a month these men, aided by natives, cared for the injured until the party was brought to safety. News commentator Eric Severeid was one of the men to survive this ordeal. He later wrote of the men who risked their lives to save his: "Gallant is a precious word; they deserve it".
From this event the need for a highly trained rescue force was found; thus,
Para-rescueman was brought into being. Rescues since then have occurred in virtually every corner of the world. Since that first rescue, many
airmen, soldiers, sailors, and civilians have had first hand experience that when trouble strikes,
Para-rescuemen are ready to come to their aid.
Some of the most inspiring stories originate from the conflict in Southeast Asia involved heroic deeds performed by
Para-rescuemen. They risked their lives flying over hostile territory to find friendly forces needing aid. Daily,
Para-rescuemen volunteered to ride a rescue hoist cable into the Vietnamese jungle to aid wounded infantrymen and injured pilots, whose aircraft had been shot down. The Air Force awarded nineteen Air Force Crosses to enlisted personnel during the South East Asian conflict; ten of the nineteen were awarded to
Para-rescuemen.
Para-rescuemen provided medical treatment for injured and wounded men picked up from the jungles. These deeds are still performed daily, even in time of peace. Distinctive recognition came to
Para-rescuemen in early 1966. General John P. McConnell, then Air Force Chief of Staff, approved the wearing of the maroon beret. The beret symbolizes the blood sacrificed by
Para-rescuemen and their devotion to duty by aiding others in distress. To
Para-rescuemen living up to their motto, "That Others May
Live" is a daily reality. Over 170 Para-rescuemen have
given their lives in the line of duty in peacetime search and rescue
operations.
Para-rescue Creed
It is my duty as a Para-rescueman to
save a life and to aid the injured.
I will perform my assigned duties quickly
and efficiently, placing these duties before
personal desires and comforts.
These things I do,
"That Others May Live."
U.S.A.F.
Civilian The Air Force search and rescue mission originated in the Air Rescue Service, established on March 13, 1946, with the purpose of conducting peacetime search and rescue and disaster relief in the United States. This was prior to the establishment of the United States Air Force by the National Security Act of 1947. The Air Rescue Service conducted hundreds of combat saves during the Korean War (which began in June 1950), and at one point evacuated over 9,898 United Nations personnel using both helicopters and airplanes.
Civil Air Patrol
Semper Vigilans
(Always Vigilant)
Civil Air Patrol was conceived in the late 1930s by legendary New Jersey aviation advocate Gill Robb Wilson, who foresaw aviation's role in war and general aviation's potential to supplement America's military operations. With the help of New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, the new Civil Air Patrol was established on December 1, 1941, just days before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
CAP initially planned only on liaison and reconnaissance flying, but the civilian group's mission expanded when German submarines began to prey on American ships off the coast of the United States and CAP planes began carrying bombs and depth charges."
A CAP crew first interrupted a sub attack on a flight out of Rehoboth Beach, saving a tanker off Cape May, N.J.
Since radio calls for military bombers were often unproductive, unarmed CAP fliers dived in mock attacks to force subs to break and run.
The CAP coastal patrol flew 24 million miles, found 173 submarines, attacked 57, hit 10 and sank two. By Presidential Executive Order, CAP became an auxiliary of the Army Air Forces in 1943. A German commander later confirmed that coastal U-boat operations were withdrawn from the United States "because of those damned little red and yellow airplanes."
In all, CAP flew a half-million hours during the war, and 64 CAP aviators lost their lives in the line of duty.
The U.S. Air Force was created as an independent armed service in 1947, and CAP was designated as its official civilian auxiliary the following year.
On May 26, 1948, Congress passed Public Law
557 which permanently established CAP as the Auxiliary of the new U.S. Air Force. This law also gave the Secretary of the Air Force the
authority to provide financial and material assistance to the organization.
Perhaps best known for its search and rescue efforts, CAP now flies more than 85 percent of all inland SAR missions directed by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center (AFRCC) at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. Overseas, CAP supports the Join Rescue Coordination Centers in Hawaii and Puerto Rico.
PSAR &
HUG-A-TREE
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On a Saturday, in February of 1981, three brothers were together on Palomar Mountain, 60 miles from San Diego. They were walking on a popular nature trail a half mile from the camp where their parents were preparing lunch.
Two of the brothers believed that the nine year old was racing them back to camp, but Jimmy Beveridge never arrived.
The family spent one hour searching on their own, then contacted the Park Ranger, who notified the Sheriff's Department. By late afternoon, the sheriff's helicopter arrived, Sheriff's Reserve Search and Rescue personnel were beginning to assemble and members of the San Diego Mountain Rescue Team arrived. The official search had begun and quickly rolled into high gear as the afternoon and night wore on.
As often happens during February in southern California, the weather was unpredictable. Saturday had dawned beautifully clear. It was warm in the sun and cool enough for a jacket in the shade. There were still patches of snow in the areas the sun didn't reach. As nightfall approached, clouds and fog moved in and the temperature steadily dropped.
By Monday it was raining almost continuously and fog continued to shroud the mountaintop. One by one, the fine tools of the search and rescue specialists lost effectiveness. The helicopters could fly only when the cloud ceiling retreated enough to permit them to take off. The wind and rain had neutralized Jimmy's scent, so tracking dogs were of no use. The only hope was to systematically search the entire area, and pray for a sign of the boy.
Tuesday morning the weather broke and the sun came out. There were about 400 searchers on the scene, including 200 Marines. That afternoon the boy's jacket and one shoe were recovered and his direction of travel was finally established. Wednesday morning Jimmy's body was found, curled up next to a tree in a ravine, about two miles from the campground. He had died from hypothermia.
A great anguish overcame many of the searchers, for this lost boy and his family. It was a deep and personal feeling that you could see in many faces, on the mountain and for months afterward. There was grief in it, for a young boy who had lost his life, and also a feeling of a great wrong that had occurred, with nobody at fault to blame.
Many people were affected by this tragedy and had a desire to prevent it from occurring again. This desire was the beginning of "Hug-A-Tree and Survive", a slide presentation and demonstration designed to teach children aged 5 -12 basic survival principles. It is designed for their level of understanding and with respect for them as persons. Ab Taylor, Tom Jacobs, Jackie Heet and Dorothy Taylor developed the program in March of 1981.
Once the program was together, it was presented to a group of fifth graders at Marvin Elementary School, who shared their candid comments and criticisms. Several slides were eliminated at their urging, and the script rewritten. Three weeks after the first discussion of this project, the first assembly was presented and approved for presentation in San Diego schools. The first few presentations were followed up by critiques from students, teachers, and principals; and their suggestions incorporated. The result was a polished and effective program.
Hug-A-Tree has received documentation of several official searches where lost children were found safe because they had seen the program. Many agencies have reported that in areas where the Hug-A-Tree program is available there has been a significant decrease in the number of searches for lost children.
Following an article in the August 10, 1982 issue of Woman's Day magazine, several thousand letters were received requesting further information and expansion of the program to their areas. Hug-A-Tree has also been featured nationally on P.M. Magazine and in several national as well as international magazines. As a result the Program has expanded to the 49 North American states and other countries.
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