A crew of 22 personnel and one CC130 Hercules represented 14 Wing Greenwood in this year’s Advanced Search and Rescue Exercise (ASAREX), hosted by the Portuguese Navy out of Ponta Delgada July 8 to 12.
“Our search and rescue (SAR) region extends all the way out into the Atlantic, so it intersects with theirs,” says 413 (Transport and Rescue) Squadron Captain Sofia King, a member of the headquarters staff on scene. “Working together with our Portuguese partners is a good exercise in case we ever need to collaborate on a mission.”
Though rare, missions that bring Greenwood SAR crews to the mid-Atlantic archipelago do happen, says SAR-technician Sergeant Calvin Slute, which is where collaborative training with Atlantic partners becomes so important.
“They have different equipment, different procedures; but we potentially work the same cases,” says Slute, who attended ASAREX for the first time this year.
As part of the training, the Hercules crew performed a pump drop to the Navio da República Portuguesa Sines ship, two SAR-Tech water jumps to a Portuguese Navy rigid inflatable boat and a night boat illumination.
“They were really impressed by that capability to use flares,” says King. “From my understanding, they don’t really do very many nighttime operations.”
Since Canadian Armed Forces capabilities both in night operations and the deployment of SAR-Techs are industry leading, the training also benefits the Portuguese Navy with the opportunity to learn about CAF SAR assets.
“It helps them understand our capabilities,” says Warrant Officer Shane Blandin, another member of the ASAREX HQ staff, “so that Portugal’s Rescue Coordination Centre can learn to best use the assets that are available to them as our partner in the Atlantic.”
The distinguished visitors’ day on the final day of the exercise also provided the CAF crew with an opportunity to showcase Canada’s SAR capability.
“The last day was pretty cool,” says King. “It was like a big presentation of the different assets and partners that were involved: the coast guard, us, the Spanish Air Force Super Puma helicopter.”
The event was even broadcast for spectators on the beach.
“There were people speaking as the scenarios were happening, and there were tons of people watching,” says Blandin.
With the increase in requests for oceanic operations 413 Squadron has experienced, the exercise provides an essential insight into the logistical and meteorological complexities of oceanic and international flight operations.
“The weather moves in fast here,” says Blandin. “You can see it coming. It’s over the Atlantic, so it changes constantly.”
The archipelago’s unpredictable weather patterns can have an impact on SAR operations, making training on location valuable for the preparation of future missions that could take SAR crews as far east as the Azores.
“The challenge for us during ASAREX was the weather,” says Slute. “The super low clouds – we have to have at least 2,000 feet above ground for us to be able to jump.”
In addition to the mutually-beneficial training, the yearly exercise strengthens the relationship between Atlantic SAR partners.
“It’s good networking,” says Blandin. “We also exchange contact information in case we’re ever in need, and they are just so friendly. They welcomed us in and were like, ‘tell us if you ever need anywhere to stay.’ They’re there for us as partners.”
