Air crews train for grim scenarios in unfriendly territories

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Posted 7:38AM on Monday, January 7, 2002

VALDOSTA, Ga. - In a field cut in the Georgia pine woods near Valdosta, an Air Force helicopter swoops down and lands with machine guns ready. A stranded airman kneels on the ground as two pararescue jumpers hop from the HH-60 Pave Hawk, collect him and hurry back to the aircraft. With the downed airman recovered, the training mission is complete. The Air Force 347th Rescue Wing air crews in this Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape refresher course at Moody Air Force Base say the training ensures they'll be prepared if they're shot down behind enemy lines. The crew conducts combat rescue and is currently supporting the U.S. military operation in Afghanistan. In the past decade, its aircraft have been on call as U.S. planes patrolled the no-fly zones over northern and southern Iraq. In peace, the unit helped rescue flood victims in Mozambique. These exercises are for the air crews in case the rescuers ever become the rescued. The helicopter recovery finished a day that began in the classroom and took six active-duty pilots and crewmen on a half-mile trek through the Grand Bay Bombing and Gunnery Range's Georgia pine woods and cypress swamp. Capt. Dave Hamby, who on another day would be piloting a Pave Hawk, said the training keeps him sharp, although he hopes he'll never have to use it. ``A lot of it is just repeating the process. There's always something that comes up that didn't happen before,'' Hamby said. Air crews are taken into the woods and broken into teams. They are HC-130 crewmen, who normally fly planes in support of the rescue helicopters. On this day, they're pretending they've been shot down behind enemy lines and must survive and evade capture until rescued. As jets fly training missions overhead, the class is reminded that people are hunting for them. ``Turn yourself into an enemy searching for the enemy in front of you,'' Staff Sgt. Chane Burk said. ``Your best bet is to observe and see him first. What I want you to do today is practice moving quietly.'' Finally, the conclusion to the training arrives as the helicopter appears over the trees, door gunners ready. The helicopters practice picking up the pilots using different landing techniques, rappelling from the helicopter and using a harness. Lt. Col. Tom Lutz, an HC-130 pilot, said the training was a good opportunity for him to reacquaint himself with the principles of evasion. It's the same thing Air Force air crews everywhere go through. ``We've been at war for the last 10 years. We've had crews in the Northern or Southern Watch (on Iraq),'' Lutz said. ``Basically, for us, it's a way to maintain our capability.''