LIHU‘E — The Civil Air Patrol “rescued” a United States Coast Guard vessel Saturday as part of a state exercise, officials said. Jim Jung, commander of the USCG Auxiliary on Kaua‘i, and Coxswain Ellis Brooks, FSO-MT/OP, worked together with the
LIHU‘E — The Civil Air Patrol “rescued” a United States Coast Guard vessel Saturday as part of a state exercise, officials said.
Jim Jung, commander of the USCG Auxiliary on Kaua‘i, and Coxswain Ellis Brooks, FSO-MT/OP, worked together with the crew to find the “lost” Seabrooks 312267 OPFAC several miles off the coast of Kealia. Seabrooks Charters provided the “distress” vessel.
“They are an integral part of the exercise,” said 2nd Lt. Adam Orens of the Kaua‘i CAP. “The planes will circle the island around Hanalei and are given coordinates to a simulated Mayday call from a boat sitting off Kealia beach.”
Jung said the Seabrooks was provided coordinates with a request to remain “on stations” for two hours starting at 1 p.m.
“The sky was very cloudy with a low ceiling,” Jung said in a report for the Pacific Breeze. “The weather provided several rain squalls with trades blowing at 15 to 20 knots with an occasional 25-knot gust. Seas were six to eight feet with an occasional 10-footer, all of which lent a challenge to the mission.”
This was in stark contrast to the weather at Burns Field in Salt Pond where nine planes from the different CAP units in the state converged to meet with Kaua‘i CAP Commander Lt. Col. Ron Victorino who provided the units with details of the mission.
Although clouds punctuated the sky and the trades blew off the Kalaheo plateau at a consistent 15 to 20 knots, the sun was shining with an occasional mauka shower.
“This exercise is a great opportunity to practice vital operational procedures to improve the possibility of recovery of lost boats, aircraft and persons,” Orens said in an e-mail. “The training could, in the future, save lives and allows the air crews a real-life situation to sharpen their skills.”
Jung described the ride to the destination as a rollercoaster ride into waves, swell and wind from Nawiliwili Harbor, holding on with two hands to maintain balance while Brooks maneuvered the Seabrooks in the challenging seas.
Once on-station, Brooks set the auto pilot and Global Positioning System to travel in a 200-foot circular holding pattern while awaiting “rescue,” listening and watching for the CAP aircraft to arrive.
Orens said there is only one call from the boat before losing communications.
“Our air crews will not only train on the use of GPS and the input of coordinates, but the real-world situation with a boat that is adrift and having to do search patterns,” he said. “The aircraft would respond with the proper signaling that help is on the way.”
Using a CD to serve as a signal mirror, June signaled each plane as it converged on the “distressed vessel,” while Brooks recorded the time and attempted to sight each aircraft’s tail number, a task made impossible by the cloud cover.
All nine aircraft “found” the vessel during the two-hour on station period.
But between bobbing and waiting, Jung learned how to judge wave heights, noting the deck is about six inches above sea level, and any time a wave reached the horizon, it was six feet high. When waves went above the horizon, the additional height was added to the six feet.
Jung and Brooks agreed, after an “exhilarating” ride back to Nawiliwili, that going out to sea to be “rescued” doesn’t happen very often but is a day well spent with the satisfaction of completing a worthwhile activity.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.
