Airmen take volunteering to new heights
The Idaho Wing Civil Air Patrol held its emergency exercise Friday. Volunteers conducted test search-and-rescue missions.
“There are techniques to be used to find things and communicate what you find that are critical to be able to tell ground rescue personnel how to get there,” said CAP Col. Jim Haldy.
CAP specializes in search-and-rescue missions for lost citizens, natural disasters, and of course missing or stranded aircraft. Haldy said it may seem pretty easy to hop in a plane and take off scouting for a mission, but he said the hardest task is knowing what to look for.
“Most people think that if an aircraft crashes and they go look for it, they’ll find an airplane,” he said. “Almost never do you find an airplane. You’ll find some sort of piece of an airplane, or two pieces, or a big hole in the ground.”
The CAP said they work about 80 percent of Air Force missions. The organization has worked several high profile cases in the area, including the search for last year’s two missing women at Craters of the Moon National Monument.
