California Air National Guard train so others may live

Golden Gate Bridge, California, 14 July 2000 — California Air National Guard pararescuemen of the 129th Rescue Wing, Moffett Federal Airfield, Ca. prepare to jump from one of their HH-60G Pave Hawks and plunge into the chilly waters outside the Golden Gate Bridge. Training missions such as this one, allow them to hone their skills. Hovering only six feet above the waves, Lt. Col. Thomas Laut must fly with extreme care as he deals with gusting winds, sea spray, sun glare, and sea swells, as he maintains a "low-n-slow" flight to deploy his men. The HH-60G's primary wartime mission is combat search and rescue, infiltration, exfiltration and resupply of special operations forces in day, night or marginal weather conditions. Some members of the 129th provided technical assistance for the production of the movie "The Perfect Storm."

U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Lance Cheung

Web Aircav.com