The White Falcon - 14.12.2001, Side 11

Ey6(i6r GarOarsson is surrounded by his family as he talks with Staff
Sgt. Jay Lane (left) and Maj. Javier Casanova after a television show
in Reyjavik Dee. 10 (Plwlo by JO! Linda Pepka)
Rescue from page 15
side of the hangar to provide a
shelter to fuel the helicopter and
ready it for flight.” He added that
the Pavehawk was not complete-
ly refueled after its prior mission
because of the high winds.
The Naval Atlantic
Meteorology and Oceanography
Detachment indicated that the
forecast allowed for a 1,000-foot
ceiling, and 6,000 meters of visi-
bility en route to the site, along
with rain showers and strong
winds said Casanova.
“Weather conditions im-
proved at the base, allowing the
helicopters to launch. However,
weather conditions deteriorated
at the rescue site.
Casanova briefed his crew
who consisted of: copilot, 1st Lt.
Michael Garner; Flight
Engineer, Tech. Sgt. Darren
Bradley; Left Scanner, Staff Sgt.
Jeremy Miller; and Para Rescue
Jumpers (PJ) Staff Sgt. Jay Lane
and Staff Sgt. Scott Bilyeu.
“We knew that there was a
ship in distress on the west side
of Snrefellsnes wedged some-
where on the shoreline,” said
Casanova. “We had a set of
coordinates but really did not
have a full picture of how the site
would look or the condition of
the boat.”
However, with that bit of
information and proper equip-
ment, including night vision gog-
gles, the SAR crew arrived at the
rescue site through marginal fly-
ing conditions of showers and
strong winds. They also saw a
flood of lights from ground
teams who were already in posi-
tion at the edge of the cliff over-
looking the wreck.
“I believe that the key factors
in finding the ship so quickly
were because the area was well
lit from ground teams and from
the support of Coast Guard 25
who communicated with them,”
said Casanova. “I used the coor-
dinates that were plotted and
relayed to us while the flight
engineer and PJs guided me
toward the boat.” He added that
his crew’s directions led him
close to the plotted points. A
good set of coordinates, like the
one received, is crucial to a res-
cue team in saving valuable time
said Casanova.
Although PJs train continually
for CSAR missions, a real-life
rescue is not something that can
be recreated.
“Once we spotted the individ-
ual in the boat, we assessed the
scene and came up with a plan to
get me on the ship,” said Lane.
“It took terrific teamwork from
the crew to steady the aircraft
and gauge the waves while low-
ering me to a spot free of anten-
nas.”
He added that once he landed,
waves threw him and the sur-
vivor about on the half sub-
merged wheelhouse roof of the
boat.
“It was unbelievable to find a
man on top of the bridge who
had been holding on to an anten-
na mast for nearly two hours
while the waves crashed all
about. He looked as if he were
riding a bull,” said Lane. “If I
hadn’t seen any sign of life on
the boat, then I probably would
not have gone down to search for
any survivors.”
The pilots had to keep the hel-
icopter as steady as possible
while Lane worked down on the
boat. Since the helicopter was
positioned so close to the cliff,
Casanova used the reflective
suits of the ground crew as a
hover reference.
“There were times when the
engineer lost sight of Lane dur-
ing the mission,” said Casanova.
“Not knowing Lane’s exact loca-
tion, he let out more line to pre-
vent overstressing the cable from
the wave action.”
After a break in the waves, the
two were lifted and transported
to land in the middle of the
ground rescue team. Lane
recalled the rescue as being
astonishing.
Not only did the SAR crew
contend with the severe weather,
they also dealt with debris
thrown up from crashing waves
and sea spray whipping the nose
of the helicopter. Also, they were
racing against the clock.
“Once Lane was back in the
helicopter, the crew took another
look at the boat. It was then that
we realized just how little time
we had for the rescue,” said
Lane. “The rising tide was quick-
ly submerging the boat.”
The sole survivor, a young
fisherman named Ey^or Gardars-
son, who is married with three
children, met with Casanova and
Lane Tuesday evening during an
Icelandic television news broad-
cast. Gardarsson expressed his
gratitude to the rescue team and
looked forward to visiting the
entire squadron
“It was unbelievable to find a man
on top of the bridge who had been
holding on to an antenna mast for
nearly two hours,” Lane said.
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December 14, 2001
The White Falcon
Page 15