SAR rated pilots....Why not ??

[Guest Maj Millard]

David F, Those conditions are often the case of course. However up here in the North, and remote North West where there are vast miles of nothing, an aircraft may go down in perfect flying conditions. Also search aircraft that are available at a certain time, may be few and far between. (and personal to man them) The rescue authorities and fire people have used us in the past, even to the point of presenting an aquisition warrant to use our aircraft to fly a fire guy to look at a fire, that may be inaccessable any other way at the time.

 

I certainly don't accept your discription of "self appointed part time aerial hero" as applicable. I think I laid out suitable selection criteria for acceptable pilots, and aircraft. I have personally participated in searches in the past in both UL and GA aircraft, and have been successfull in finding poeple. I was also a trained aerial observer, and participated as such in searches, (mostly over water) during my time in the RAAF, in Neptune aircraft out of Townsville.

 

My point is, that we do have people capable of contributing in our ranks, and it is a resource that at present is not being officially recognized. It is not about saving money or being a 'hero', it is about finding people quickly when they need to be found, and that person could well be you, or I one day.........I have already spent four hours laying seriously injuried in the bush waiting for rescue, and I know the sweet sound of a rescue aircraft overhead........at that point any aircraft will do thank you.....................................

 

 

[Guest Qwerty]

Maybe OK for a bit of shark spotting or ops in VFR over safe country (no tiger territory)SAR missions occour because some one has got lost the weather has turned bad,ran out of daylight or are injured (these are looked after by rescue choppers and we dont need to get in the way) There may be the odd occasion where if someone is on station they could lend a hand.

The last thing we need a bunch of self appointed part time aerial heroes being tempted to operate outside of their comfort zone and capability and bringing our sport into disrepute.

 

Dave

Why with the self deprecation, PLEASE stop it. There are plenty of knockers in the community and in the media ready to spread fear and folk tales without "one of us" adding to the misinformation.

 

Why the "(no tiger territory)"comment, If I didnt have faith that my aircraft was going to stay in the air I most certainly wouldn't takeoff. I fly in Tassie, here if you refuse to fly over anything but airfields (eg central Vic and NSW) then you would quite literally be restricted to the circuit.

 

And whats with "a bunch of self appointed part time aerial heroes being tempted to operate outside of their comfort zone and capability and bringing our sport into disrepute" do you work for the TV news, that is the sort of language I would expect from thoese brainless wannabes.

 

I would expect all pilots to carefully consider all aspects of any prospective flights and then make and informed decision about undertaking the flight. Anyone who operates differently should either hand their pilots cert back to RAAus or sign up for a refresher course with an instructor.

 

We all need to behave and believe that we are well trained pilots not a bunch of cowboys. If any one wants to show me how good a cowboy they are I am only too willing to watch......and then hand the pictures and video to Mick Poole. BTW I carry a video camera on my belt, so just try me out.

 

This is not a personal attack on you David F, I'm just having a rant against negativity about Recreational Flying.

 

 

 

[turboplanner]

Destiny Flyer probably has it in a nutshell:

 

1. Fill out the AusSAR form, being specifica about the seating capacity/freight capacity. There are plenty of incidents where the requirement will ust be some local, short term observation which cen be completed before a heavier aircraft gets on the scene.

 

2. Go and talk to the police officer in charge in your town, and give a copy to him. If there's an asset around and he knows about it there may be a possibility of saving a life.

 

Almost every town now has a Municipal Emergency Management Plan (maybe by another name)

 

These are designed for any emergency, from a major train accident to a flood to a fire to an outbreak of anthrax etc., and that's their weakness. They spell out who will take command etc. but by their nature don't include specifics for the specialised incident.

 

For example they won't usually include maps of where and how a flood is likely to affect the town - that is left to the Commander, who is usually the senior police officer.

 

If he knows before the event that he has an asset which can cover the ground quickly, he's more likely to get you involved

 

 

[David F]

Sar

 

I call it like I see it qwerty

 

Writing as a VFR recreational pilot like I said if someone is on station they can render assistance.Any aircraft is better than no aircraft and the guys that have been in the RAAF SES etc will have a much better idea than most.

 

I must admit that the self appointed aerial hero line was prompted by the display I witnessed at Narromine this year in the approaching cloud front.No worries guys just healthy debate by the way qwert I am a self empolyed welder (been off for 6 weeks with a hand injury so have spent a bit of time on here) hope to get 4178 out on sunday and if Human factors allow aviate

 

Dave

 

 

[Guest Qwerty]

David F....a self employed welder eh....that explains it all.... I am led to believe that a self employed welder is actually an employed welder with his brains bashed out.

 

Ex boily here. Let me guess, your hand got squashed under something too heavy, or you burnt it....been there :black_eye: All the best.

 

PS I would like to fly a VG Savanna one day, they are an appealing machine.

 

 

[Relfy]

This is a great topic because I think it is very relevant to the running of SAR ops. As I've previously stated, I've coordinated SAR responses for missing bushwalkers and I can tell everyone right now that if you're legally able to fly, have a suitable aircraft and on the ground and willing to give your time etc and listen to the coordinator, you will be very involved in the incident.

 

My experience involved two missing bushwalkers in the Carnarvon Gorge, overdue two nights, near freezing weather on the top of the ridge line they were supposed to be traversing and a rescue choper that was on it's way and then diverted to a cardiac case on an island off Rockhampton, with a further 4 hr delay. After jumping up and down a bit, I finally managed to convince my powers that be that we needed local assets straight away due to enclement weather on the way and the situation not looking good for the missing two. Within an hour I had two local choppers (R22 and R44) at the Bandana Airstrip near the Gorge, ready to go. One of the pilots is a pretty good mate of mine and both are only Commercial Licenced.

 

As Destiny said, AUSSAR coordinate a search and I tell you that once they are on board, you don't have any two and fro-ing about who is funding the whole thing. They do, simple. That saves so many managers of other agencies from having to make decisions based on money etc because it all comes from the central pool. Also, as Turbo stated, go and see your local police and tell them what you can do.

 

Oh yeah, we ended up finding the two missing walkers after two days of searching, using 4 choppers, a cessna and a Dornier from Cairns not to mention the numerous SES volunteers (gotta love those carrots!). One was perched on the edge of a cliff and the other was stuck on a ledge with an 80 metre drop off to the Gorge below.

 

 

[Guest Maj Millard]

I don't believe I advocated at any time 'going out and doing you'r own thing ' or 'going it alone'. Of course I would suggest it all be cooridinated with relevent controlling authorities, how else would you conduct a proper and successfull search anyway ?. I may not have made the SAR suggestion ten years ago, but I feel now we have more than capable aircraft, and pilots. Bare in mind also that many of our RAA pilots now, including myself, have a GA pilotage background as well as UL experience...........................................................................................

 

 

[Relfy]

Maj, perhaps a SAR list of available pilots and a/c with RAA that local authorities can easily access for SAR activities in that particular area might be an easy way of accessing our fantastic services should the need arise???

 

 

[David F]

Hi Qwerty

 

Hand is nearly better.The savannah is an appealing machine you would need an extra long hand grip to accommodate the six fingers.

 

Dave

 

 

[Guest Maj Millard]

RELFY, That's a great idea, and a bit of positive imput is appreciated also ................................................