2nd SAR group trains in snow
The Polish Air Force’s 2nd Search and Rescue Group recently held a training exercise, practising finding survivors by homing in on personal locator beacon signals.
The Polish Air Force’s 2nd Search and Rescue Group recently held a training exercise, practising finding survivors by homing in on personal locator beacon signals. A crew onboard a PZL W-3WA helicopter was tasked with locating one of the unit’s more experienced pilots, who made every effort not to be discovered, forcing the crew to rely on a thermal camera and the beacon signal.
Once the pilot was found, medical crew members were lowered from the aircraft in order to prepare him for winching onboard. The Air Force reported that the exercise was repeated several times, despite the severe cold and reduced visibility caused by snowed whipped up by the helicopter’s downwash, saying: “It’s very important to maintain the greatest possible effectiveness of the Group in the event of an aircraft accident or emergency situation, where every minute is important for saving human life.”