We will get a few reminders this week of exactly what one of the key services delivered by personnel at CFB Trenton looks like in a much safer way than most who experience it firsthand.
424 Squadron (Sqn) from CFB Trenton will be hosting and conducting a Joint Search and Rescue (SAR) Exercise in the area around the base and over the lake from today until Friday.
The exercise will see 424 Squadron, Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC), Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), Civil Aviation Search And Rescue Association (CASARA), and international partners including United States Coast Guard (USGC) practice realistic overland and overwater SAR scenarios.
This will include some nighttime activity, but again, it’s an exercise so don’t be alarmed.
It’s always amazing to see aircraft from the base conducting the life-saving operations they do better than anyone else in the world.
It involves so many moving parts – detailed search grid work, SAR techs parachuting into sometimes hostile environments, setting up triage on the ground, coordination with local officials in sometimes remote locations and pinpoint airlifts to take people to safety.
The area they cover is as vast as the types of calls they respond to, at all times of the day and year, providing a lifeline for those experiencing disaster in all parts of Canada.
So don’t be alarmed when you see them in action this week. Be amazed. The skills being developed will save countless lives and keep the true North strong and safe.
I’m Paul Martin and that’s what I see looking Beyond the Headlines.
