Air Force Fixed-Wing Rescue: A Multifaceted Approach for Full-Spectrum Personnel Recovery

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Air Force Fixed-Wing Rescue: A Multifaceted Approach for Full-Spectrum Personnel Recovery

K. J. Porter

The US Air Force has a rich heritage of highly effective rescue forces supporting global operations. In the past decade, the political and economic landscapes have changed significantly, requiring a retooling of both equipment and tactics for Air Force rescue. Imagine, for example, that an expeditionary rescue squadron located in the Horn of Africa (HOA) receives word that a remotely piloted aircraft carrying a sensitive payload has gone down in central Ethiopia. The Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) commander requests recovery of the payload, but he is under political pressure to prevent any show of military presence in the area. These concerns eliminate the possibility of dispatching a Guardian Angel (GA) team via CH-53 helicopters or via HC-130 airdrop to carry out a recovery. Thankfully, the squadron commander has a solution. In 30 minutes, one pilot and two pararescuemen take off in a less-conspicuous light aircraft. Touching down on a dirt road near the incident site, it garners no special attention because the locals have become accustomed to bush pilots delivering hunters, scientists, medicine, and other services to remote areas. In a matter of minutes, the pararescuemen return to the aircraft with the sensitive equipment and depart into the African sky mission accomplished. This scenario is notional, but the concept is entirely plausible. Present-day personnel recovery (PR) operations involve a spectrum of use neither envisioned nor embraced by the current aircraft and tactical construct in Air Force rescue.