PaveHawk Mountain Rescue Sets Record

[Heliport]

Two men were rescued from Alaska's Mount St. Elias this spring in a daring HH-60G PAVE HAWK helicopter mission that called for landing and takeoff at 14,500 feet from a precarious patch of snow.
The high-risk, mission was described as record setting for the H-60, beating by 100 feet a rescue at Mt. McKinley in 1991.

A PAVE HAWK and an HC-130N rescue tanker from the 210 Rescue Squadron, Kulis Air National Guard Base in Anchorage, flew to the scene after a snowboard expedition went badly wrong.
Two snowboarders perished after an accident near the mountain's summit. Two survivors stamped out a message in the snow saying "TWO DEAD TWO NEED RESCUE," which was spotted by a passing civil aircraft.

For full story (worth reading) click Sikorsky Lifeline (http://www.sikorsky.com/details/0,3036,CLI1_DIV69_ETI1265,00.html )

[S76Heavy]

While it's a very good story and an example to us all in terms of what can be acchieved by a well trained crew using good CRM, I do question the fact that apparently many people end up in trouble because of their stupid leasure activities and put the onus on Rescue workers to get them out of their predicament.

Perhaps they should be made accountable for the cost and the risc?

[Draco]

It is great to see good publicity for a successful mission after the dreadful crash of a similar machine some time ago.

Being the USA (where nothing is free) do the snowboarders have to carry insurance to cover the cost of rescue? Even in the Alps skiers have to pay for heli-rescue.

When cheap electronic devices like satellite phones, epirbs etc are available, stamping out rescue signs in the snow is stone-age stuff. Why don't people go prepared?

[SASless]

Well Duh Dude!!!

You are talking about snowboarders.....an offshoot of skateboarding! Ever listen to those morons talk on the tellie or see them doing their tricks on MTV with the skateboards and bicycles......we are not talking about the cream of society here....definitely not the brightest lights in the town!

Yes....they should pickup the costs of such activities....let the insurance companies get involved on that and you will see the decrease in such incidents as the insurers impose standards in order to obtain coverage.

Still, hats off to the crew for an professional operation.

[Nick Lappos]

Back in 1985 an Eastern Airlines 727 hit a mountain in Bolivia at about 19,500 feet, and Sikorsky dispatched a Black Hawk from the factory to attempt to look for survivors. Test Pilots Rus Stiles and Phil Pacini flew the mission (both former USAF mountain rescue and Special Operations pilots). They flew up to the crash site, and were prepared to land. After several very low, very slow passes, they determined that there were no survivors at the site, and decided not to land - soft snow, swirling clouds and threatening weather helped make the decision for them. This was the highest IGE operation I have ever heard of.

[sling load]

7 or 8 years ago I read an article in an Aerospatiale Mag. about a pilot in the Nepalese Army flying a Squirrel not sure what type, would have to be a B2 or similar, made a landing in the Himalayas at around the 20 000ft mark on two occasions to affect a rescue.

I don't have the article, but he was a well known pilot for his previous rescues in that area and it was the highest landing he ever did. Perhaps some other ppruners will have the details.

[rotorboy]

The National Park service exclusive use contract chip for the summer rescue seaosn is a Llama -the denali llama.. It make routine rescues between 14k-20k during the summer. The Contract ship belongs to Evergreen. They have a hard time finding pilots qualified for the alt.

I have heard that OAS has invited Eurocopter on several occasions to bring a 350b3 so they can evalute the ahip compared to the LLama.

The one argument I have heard as to why the llama will never be replaced by the B3 is the exposed tailboom on the LLama has several advantages at high/windy flying than the large enclosed tail boom of the B3

Any other thoughts?

RB

[Nigel Osborn]

About 30 years ago Heliservices of Singapore had a Bell 206 based in Nepal. An ex British army pilot, Alan, and others used to regularly land up to 18500 ft in the mountains.
At least that's what they told me!:D