Combat search and rescue
Combat search and rescue (CSAR) are search and rescue operations that are carried out during war that are within or near combat zones.[1][unreliable source?]
A CSAR mission may be carried out by a
History
The
In the opening fluid stages of the
In 1915, during the First World War, Squadron Commander
It was during the Mesopotamian campaign that British and other Commonwealth forces began to use similar tactics on a larger scale. Shot down aviators in hostile Bedouin territory were often located by search parties in the air and rescued.[5]
Other nations also contributed to the development of modern-day CSAR. During World War II, the Luftwaffe (Seenotdienst organization) operated armed camouflaged air-sea rescue aircraft.[6]
In the First Indochina War French physician, pilot and parachutist Valérie André pioneered MEDEVAC tactics, a precursor to what we[who?] know as CSAR today,[when?] by flying helicopters into combat zones to retrieve (or sometimes treat) injured soldiers.[citation needed]
In August 1943 a wing flight surgeon, Lt. Col. Don Flickinger, and two combat surgical technicians, Sgt. Richard S. Passey and Cpl. William G. MacKenzie, parachuted from the search planes in the Naga area of Burma to assist and care for the injured.[7] At the same time, a ground team was sent to their location and all twenty walked to safety.[citation needed]
Although parachute rescues were not officially authorized at the time, this is considered by PJs to be the birth of United States Air Force Pararescue. Eric Sevareid said of his rescuers: "Gallant is a precious word: they deserve it". A few short months later, Capt. Porter was killed on a rescue mission when his B-25 was shot down.[citation needed]
During the
As a result of the Vietnam CSAR experience, the US military also improved the night capability of helicopters and area denial munitions.[8]: 36
During the Vietnam War, U.S. SAR forces saved 3,883 lives at the cost of 71 rescuers and 45 aircraft.[8]: 46
Notable missions
World War I
On 21 April 1917, Captain Richard Williams of the Australian Flying Corps landed behind enemy lines to rescue a downed comrade during World War I.[9][10]
Vietnam War
In 1972, Lieutenant Colonel
Others
The United States Air Force (USAF) 24th Special Tactics Squadron was involved in the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu.[13] Timothy Wilkinson, a Pararescueman, was awarded the Air Force Cross for his heroic actions during the battle.[14]
Air Force
During the opening moments of
On June 2, 1995, a USAF
In 1999, members of
See also
- Joint Personnel Recovery Agency
- United States Air Force Pararescue
- Special warfare combatant-craft crewmen
- Israel Air Force Unit 669
References
- ^ SPG Media Limited/Army-Technology.com (2009). "Term: Combat Search and Rescue". Archived from the original on 2008-05-10. Retrieved 2009-06-03.
- ^ Combat Aircraft (European Edition) (magazine), Ian Allan Publishing, September 2003, page 28
- ^ Combat Aircraft (European Edition) (magazine), Ian Allan Publishing, September 2003, page 29
- ^ "No. 29423". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 1916. p. 86.
- ^ Leave No Man Behind: The Saga of Combat Search and Rescue. pp. 5–6.
- ^ Feltus, Pamela. History and the Headlines. "Air-Sea Rescue." ABC-CLIO, 2008. Retrieved: 23 April 2011.
- ^ Sevareid, Eric (28 August 1943). "Burmese Headhunters Saved Lives of Stranded Fliers". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
- ^ a b Busboom, Lt. Col. Stanley (April 2, 1990). Bat 21: A Case Study (PDF). Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania: U.S. Army War College. Archived from the original on March 20, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2011.
- ^ Cutlack, The Australian Flying Corps, p.63
- ^ "No. 30234". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 August 1917. p. 8353.
- ISBN 978-0-312-38467-8.
- ^ Darrel D. Whitcomb, The Rescue of Bat 21 (Naval Institute Press, 1998)
- Global Security. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
- ^ "The Air Force Cross For Actions in Somalia in 1993". Archived from the original on November 4, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2012.
- ^ "Hawg Driver Coordinates Desert Storm Rescue Mission! - Fighter Sweep". 1 February 2016.
- ^ "One Amazing Kid - Capt. Scott O' Grady escapes from Bosnia-Herzegovina". Archived from the original on 2011-05-29.
- ^ Valdet (17 February 2020). "U.S. F-117 Stealth Fighter Is Downed in Yugoslavia".
- Leave No Man Behind: The Saga of Combat Search and Rescue. George Galdorisi, Thomas Phillips. MBI Publishing Company, 2009. ISBN 978-0-7603-2392-2.