Livermore, California Jan 14, 2022 (Issuewire.com) - Major Katherine Brown of the California Wing’s Tri-Valley Composite Squadron 156 was presented with the Civil Air Patrol’s Certificate of Recognition for Lifesaving Ribbon with Silver Star today for actions she took during a Civil Air Patrol Mission.
In May 2021, Brown was a member of a team that was coordinating the in-air actions of three Civil Air Patrol aircraft as they began their return to the mission base. Suddenly her operations team was alerted by the U. S. Customs and Border Patrol that there was an injured person in the desert who had sustained leg injuries and who needed rescue. The subject was unable to move, had no provisions for desert survival, and did not know their location. Major Brown and her team were asked to initiate an airborne search for this person with little more than an approximate location originating from a cell phone signal.
Major Brown and her team immediately diverted one of the aircraft to initiate the search for the injured person while the other two aircraft quickly returned to base to refuel and relaunch in support of the effort. The first aircraft to find the injured person was low on fuel but quickly relieved by a second aircraft which began orbiting over the injured person. Meanwhile, the mission staff and third aircraft coordinated activities with the requesting agency. Major Brown and her team developed plans to extend search operations for as long as necessary to ensure this individual would be rescued.
The injured person was located in rugged terrain as daylight waned. Ground Rescue personnel were unable to see the individual but traveled on foot toward the circling CAP aircraft until they finally contacted the person in distress and affected the rescue.
Later correspondence from the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol made a statement which included “… Luckily Civil Air Patrol came to the aid of this woman in need. The U.S. Border Patrol would like to thank you for the assistance, and the overall work Civil Air Patrol does for the community.” and “… If you could send this out to advise them of the appreciation and gratitude of the U.S. Border Patrol expresses for their assistance.”
Civil Air Patrol is the longtime auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force and as such is a valued member of its Total Force. In its auxiliary role, CAP operates a fleet of 560 single-engine aircraft and more than 2,100 small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS). It performs about 90% of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 82 lives annually. CAP’s 56,000 members also perform homeland security, disaster relief, and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state, and local agencies. Operating as a nonprofit organization, CAP also plays a leading role in STEM/aerospace education, and its members serve as mentors to more than 23,000 young people participating in CAP’s Cadet Programs.
Visit www.CAP.News or www.GoCivilAirPatrol.com for more information
Media Contact
Tri-Valley Composite Squadron 156 *****@gmail.com https://tri-valley.cap.gov/
