C295/CN235 service experience: downed pilot recovered by the U.S. Coast Guard’s Ocean Sentry
April 1, 2008
The operational capabilities of EADS CASA’s C295/CN235 multi-role aircraft family were demonstrated in a recent U.S. Coast Guard at-sea recovery mission, which was coordinated by the service’s new HC144A Ocean Sentry.
This rescue of a downed U.S. Air Force pilot took place in the Gulf of Mexico, and used the second of three HC144As delivered to date by EADS CASA. The HC144A is based on the CN235 – the shorter-fuselage derivative of the C295/CN235 airlifter product line.
During the rescue operation, two important milestones were achieved for the twin-engine turboprop aircraft: its first operational Coast Guard search and rescue (SAR) deployment, and the Ocean Sentry’s initial use as an on-scene SAR coordinator platform.
Capabilities highlighted during the rescue – including the aircraft’s excellent visibility, the dash and loiter speeds, and its integrated systems – are directly applicable to EADS CASA’s C295 proposal for the new Canadian Fixed-Wing Search and Rescue (FWSAR) aircraft.
The mission began while the HC144A was on a local training flight from Mobile, Alabama’s Coast Guard Aviation Training Center. Reports of a mid-air collision involving two USAF F-15 fighters resulted in the Ocean Sentry’s diversion to the search area off Panama City, Florida. .
The aircraft assumed on-scene coordinator responsibility after becoming the first Coast Guard asset to arrive. In parallel to initiating its own search, the HC144A communicated with an Air Force aerial tanker and two F-15s orbiting the area, helping manage their own efforts to locate the missing pilots.
Crewmembers aboard the HC144A visually located a parachute and life raft in the water, and pinpointed a fishing boat in the area using the Ocean Sentry’s Automatic Identification System (AIS). After establishing radio contact with this vessel, the HC144A vectored it to the parachute and life raft, but the F-15 pilot was not found.
Continuing with its aerial search, the Ocean Sentry then sighted the floating pilot and redirected the same fishing vessel for a pickup. Using information from the rescued crewman, the HC144A continued its on-scene coordinator duties in searching for the other USAF pilot – directing the three Air Force aircraft, two Coast Guard jets and a pair of helicopters, as well as a 41-foot Coast Guard vessel on the water.
The Ocean Sentry subsequently handed search responsibilities over to another Coast Guard aircraft, flying back to Mobile where it joined two other HC144As currently based at the Coast Guard Aviation Training Center.
On their return, crewmembers said the Ocean Sentry proved to be a highly capable search platform during the mission. Excellent visibility provided by its bubble observer windows were important design features, enabling the aircrew to more carefully to observe the search area – including directly below the Ocean Sentry (something that is not possible with the Coast Guard’s current HU-25 aircraft, which will be replaced by HC144As).
While flying out to the designated area and during its actual search efforts, the HC-144A’s onboard mission system collected Automatic Identification System data from vessels in the region – including ships’ names, position, course, speed and other information. This helped the Ocean Sentry to identify and communicate with civilian vessels, including the fishing boat that subsequently was vectored to pick up the downed airman.
The HC144A is the only Coast Guard aircraft with AIS capability today, providing positive identification of assisting vessels while eliminating confusion often associated with hailing unknown boats or ships.
Another advantage for this mission was the aircrew’s enhanced situational awareness – a result of the HC144A’s Flight Management System, which displays real-time position maps, including an active surface plot with information collected from other assets and sources in the area.
The HC144A’s ability to sprint to a scene and then fly slowly through a search pattern also were important factors in the SAR deployment, as were its long endurance capabilities that enabled aircrew coordination of search and rescue operations at slow speeds – ensuring excellent visual coverage of the area.
In addition to the three HC144As already delivered by EADS CASA to the U.S. Coast Guard, five more Ocean Sentries are on contract, and the service has identified a total requirement for 36 of these multi-role maritime patrol aircraft.
- To review previous feature stories, see the archive page.
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