Photo By Senior Airman Alexis Redin | A U.S. Air Force HH-60W Jolly Green II assigned to the 33rd Rescue Squadron carries...... read more read more
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KADENA AIR BASE, Japan -- Members of the 31st and 33rd Rescue Squadrons planned and executed a maritime combat search and rescue training at Ie Shima Island and its surrounding waters, Sept. 4, 2024.
The training was a “full mission profile” meaning it encompassed all the elements of a real-world rescue scenario. Participants included pararescuemen from the 31st RQS, HH-60 pilots and aircrew from the 33rd RQS, as well as parachute riggers, independent duty medical technicians, and vehicle maintainers.
“To run an FMP, it takes anywhere between 50-100 people,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Danny Fischer, 31st RQS combat rescue officer. “Because it’s not just PJs. We have maintainers, the isolated personnel - there’s a lot that goes into it.”
So while these trainings are primarily to hone the skills of pararescuemen and other rescue personnel, they are supported by multiple different AFSCs and platforms.
“We couldn’t do what we do without support,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Michael Lindsay, 31st RQS pararescuemen and out-going chief of standards and evaluations.
Full mission profiles are often used in conjunction with pararescuemen upgrades; this one focused on upgrading a pararescueman from element leader to team leader.
“It’s a huge jump in responsibility,” said Fischer. “You’re trusted to lead and to keep your calm in high stress scenarios. This upgrade is as high as you can get on the team level.”
In this FMP, there were two isolated personnel on land and one in the water. The upgrading pararescuemen do not know the finer details of the scenario, but that helps to fully immerse them and prepare for real-world combat search and rescue.
“Obviously, it’s important to make this as real as possible for future conflicts,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Joseph Brady, 31st RQS pararescueman and in-coming standards and evaluations chief. “But our mission extends beyond combat. We can rescue people at sea right now, so our training has to be effective.”
As of Oct. 3, 2024, that training has resulted in two pararescuemen successfully upgrading from element leader to team leader. The 31st and 33rd RQS continue to train effective and efficient maritime CSAR in the Pacific to fulfill their ultimate calling summarized in the Air Force rescue motto: "that others may live."
| Date Taken: | 10.02.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 10.03.2024 03:01 |
| Story ID: | 482301 |
| Location: | KADENA AIR BASE, OKINAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 63 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 31st, 33rd Rescue Squadrons execute maritime CSAR full mission profile, by 1st Lt. Mary Turpin, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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