THIS STORY COURTESY OF BEVON DOWELL CH-3B Open Ocean Rescue Otis AFB, MA. 09 April 1962 Our CH-3B open ocean rescue mission took place on a Friday afternoon. I had just finished a post flight on an H-21 and was about to leave the hangar when I heard the phone ring. I figured it was an irate wife wanting to know when her husband would be home. The longer the phone rang the more urgent it seemed to me so I ran upstairs and answered it.
had a ruptured appendix and that we need to launch in a hurry. Number one engine was started and the blades were spread into flight position then number two was started. After all of the pre-taxi checks were completed we lifted out of the chocks and were boring a hole through the wind at 140+ knots.
As we got "feet wet" Op's informed us the little fishing boat did not have an operational radio but we could identify the vessel with the inverted American flag on the stern. Not the best news but better than none at all. The further out we flew the more small fishing boats we saw especially as we flew past one of the Texas Towers. Most of them were Soviet vessels around the mother ship. So now it was "guess where the little boat is".
After about 20 to 30 minutes we spotted the boat bobbing up and down in rather high waves flying the inverted flag. The patient was already on the lorry stand on the stern ready for pick-up. As we maneuvered over the boat the mast was a huge obstacle and eventually wound up between the sponson and fuselage. I was calling out directions the best I could with changing conditions. I had a handful of hoist cable as well as the *"joy stick" which was all but useless in the high winds so I let Capt. Winden take control of the aircraft.
Martha's Vineyard the forward fuel tank low level light came on and I'm thinking we might have to swim home before this is all said and done.
About 30 miles out the aft tank low level fuel light came on, by now there was a small bubble of fear right behind my belt buckle. We still had not seen dry land and at 150 knots we were bring fuel as if there was no tomorrow. When we did finally touch down at Otis on a single engine, the remaining engine flamed out so the ambulance had to come to us on the active runway to retrieve the patient who was not is the best of shape by any means.
About two weeks later MSgt McDowell, the helicopter Section NCOIC was giving my name, home town, rank and Wife's name to someone on the phone. I asked him who he was freely handing out my information to. He told me the man we rescued was claiming we had given him a bad case of Amnesia and was suing me and the crew for a million dollars! Talk about pucker time!!!! He let me stew and fume for an hour before he told me that was the base historical office wanting to know the details of the mission.
Unfortunately I do not remember the co-pilots name or the medics name but will do some research and if I locate the names I'll pass them on.
We did receive the Wing "S" award from Sikorsky in a ceremony in the Wing Commander's office complete with coffee and cake then back to work. Our certificates were signed by Igor himself as well as Mr. Lee President of Sikorsky Aircraft.
For years we held the record for a rescue mission, non in-flight refueling, some 300+ miles. I would imagine by now that record has been broken which is fine with me, let someone else have the fun.
Bevon
*"Joy Stick" - The "fun part" of the new aircraft (CH-3B) was the "joy stick" on the left side of the cargo door that would give the hoist operator 11% authority to maneuver the aircraft during a rescue mission.
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"FREEDOM ISN'T FREE" ~SOMEONE PAYS FOR YOU AND ME~ "HELICOPTERS" - THE ONLY WAY TO FLY ~NEVER FORGOTTEN~ |
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