Canadian Armed Forces members must match their training and physical fitness with on-the-job physical demands.
Personnel Support Program fitness and sports staff help them do that across Canada and around the world; here at 14 Wing Greenwood, PSP staff had a recent opportunity to get out of the gym and weight room, and visit 413 (Transport and Rescue) Squadron search and rescue technicians in their workplace: a CH149 Cormorant helicopter.
PSP staff were invited on the Cormorant, accompanied by SAR-Techs, who were able to show them how they work through the space and with the equipment they need to do their job. PSP staff were able to gain a better understanding of the demands SAR-Techs face: this will help them create better fitness and training programs, appreciate the mental focus required for SAR roles, as well as understand the unique types of physical demands each member of a flight crew is faced with.
The 413 crew took PSP staff on a wonderful flying tour from the base to Trout Lake, and then over to Port George, along the Bay of Fundy shoreline. Some of the PSP staff got to see their childhood homes from the air – and give a big wave to some of the families standing out on decks waiting for their fly-over! Staff even got an opportunity to hang their legs from the helicopter’s interior – to the delight of some, and the pure fear of others.
The flight crew described how they complete SAR protocols and what each of the crewmember’s roles may include while in flight, and showed how the equipment required feels after wearing for even a short time. It’s incredible how technical and physical SAR and in-flight roles can be, and more than one staff member may have experienced a sore neck from the weight of that equipment!
