Kadena Airmen aid injured mariners

  • Published
  • By Maj. John Hutcheson
  • 18th Wing Public Affairs
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan (AFPN) --  Kadena Air Base Airmen provided medical assistance to two injured mariners aboard a Panamanian freighter Sept. 27 750 nautical miles north of the island of Saipan in the Pacific Ocean.

Pararescuemen and members of the 320th Special Tactics Squadron left around 2:30 p.m. aboard an MC-130 flown by the 1st Special Operations Squadron to aid the people at sea. 

After a 4.5 hour flight, six Airmen performed a freefall jump into the Pacific Ocean from 3,500 feet around 7 p.m. Using two riggable alternate method zodiac packages, consisting of inflatable zodiac boats and engines, the team made contact with the freighter and boarded it around 10 p.m. local time Sept. 27. The freighter's crew was mostly Ukrainian, but the captain was able to communicate in English with the rescue team.

The pararescuemen and special tactics Airmen immediately began providing medical aid to the two injured crewmembers, one of whom was in critical condition with head injuries. The Airmen stayed in constant contact with flight doctors at Kadena AB as they worked to stabilize the critical patient. During the course of the operation, a KC-135 Stratotanker from the 909th Air Refueling Squadron refueled the MC-130, which subsequently dropped resupply bundles for the Airmen on board the freighter.

The Airmen will stay on board the ship providing medical assistance to the injured crewmembers until they can be evacuated to a hospital on Guam. According to Coast Guard officials who are coordinating the rescue operation, two Navy search and rescue helicopter crews from Guam's Navy Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron Two Five will fly to a rendezvous point near Saipan and transfer the injured crewmembers to Naval Hospital Guam for urgent care.

"This is one of the many scenarios Air Force rescue professionals train for, and I'm glad that we were able to respond and provide the medical assistance desperately required by those injured crew members," said Maj. Jason Pifer, the 31st Rescue Squadron commander. "I am proud of everyone, across Air Force commands and the other services, who came together to make this event happen."

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