Moody Airmen rescue stranded boater

  • Published
  • By Capt. Erin Dick
  • 347th Rescue Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AFPN) --  Airmen here were credited with saving a civilian’s life recently when they rescued a boater from his stranded vessel in the Atlantic Ocean.

Airmen of the 41st, 71st and 38th Rescue Squadrons, along with the 347th Maintenance Group, flew the rescue mission after a request from Coast Guard Rescue Coordination Center officials.

“We were told that 52-foot sail boat had a broken rudder and was adrift with no control in the ocean about 450 miles off the Jacksonville [Fla.] coast,” said Maj. Steve Moyes, 41st RQS operations supervisor.

Four hours after initial notification, two crews and two helicopters from the 41st RQS took to the sky.

Besides the two HH-60s, seven pararescuemen from the 38th RQS flew on an HC-130 from the 71st RQS. Because the boat was so far off shore, the HC-130 crew refueled the helicopters several times to reach the offshore location and return.

The aircrews, along with the pararescuemen, developed a rescue and refueling plan to ensure the operation would be successful.

After more than three hours, the crews found the stranded boater. Captain Turner brought his HH-60 down to about 100 feet above the surface and lowered two pararescuemen into the water.

“We couldn’t get real close to the boat from the air because of the masts,” said Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Hedglin, one of the 38th RQS pararescuemen and the rescue mission team leader. “We met with the aircrew (before) launching to get all the details we could. The boater only had enough food for one more day, so the decision was made that it was time to pull him out.”

The pararescuemen were put in the water and swam to the side of the boat where they talked with the survivor. He got his personal belongings together and jumped overboard into the water, Sergeant Hedglin said.

“We swam back to the aircraft and hoisted up the survivor,” Sergeant Hedglin said. “We kept a close eye on him at first, but after we took his vitals and saw that he was going to be OK, we just let him get comfortable and sleep. He seemed relieved and happy that he had been saved, but I think he was heartbroken about his boat.”

The mission took more than 11 hours with five aerial refuelings. The stranded civilian had been floating at the ocean’s mercy for about a week. An HH-60 crew flew him to Naval Station Mayport, Fla., where he called his wife to let her know that he was safe.

“We know when we get called, someone’s day went very badly,” Captain Turner said. “We are very happy this went the right way.”

For other pararescueman who went into the water with Sergeant Hedglin, the event was somewhat surreal.

“At first, when we got the call, it seemed unreal,” said Senior Airman Tom Pearce, who said this was his first real mission as a pararescueman. “When you make a save like this, it makes the two and a half (years of training) to become a pararescueman worth the wait.”