In 2016, US Coast Guard aviation celebrated its 100th anniversary. This service has an illustrious history helping with everything from war efforts to bolstering US borders in homeland security. Below, a closer look.
Article: Heather Couthaud - Photos: US Coast Guards
Article adapted from Rotor magazine.
They changed to orange for missions in the Arctic. Traditionally, US Coast Guard aircraft bear the distinctive “racing stripe” paint scheme – a white body marked with a red and blue stripe. Aboard ice-breakers in the Arctic, someone realised the Coast Guard needed a helicopter livery that would be visible against the snow. Today, its fleet of 100 MH-65* helicopters are painted a bold orange, a sign of the Coast Guard’s versatility in the face of need. Versatility serves in good stead; the Coast Guard is tasked with ensuring the United States’ maritime safety, security and stewardship. A military service and a branch of the armed forces, its missions include search and rescue, homeland security, environmental protection, the interdiction of illegal drugs and migrants, and the enforcement of fisheries laws.
A high volume of missions
It is a visibly huge service. With a total workforce of more than 87,000 – 40,000 of whom are on active duty – the Coast Guard’s presence is recognisable to nearly anyone who has seen its helicopters pass overhead or its boats buzz harbours. The huge ice breakers and cutters – 243 in total – are perhaps its most iconic symbols, yet its 2 groups of smaller “assets” – boats and aircraft – are more ubiquitous, accomplishing a high volume of varied missions. “The Coast Guard is a phenomenal service because we adapt to what is needed,” says Commander Scott Sanborn, operations officer and chief pilot of Air Station Houston. “Depending on the mission requirement, the Coast Guard is always ready to respond with an aircraft, a boat, a cutter, or a combination of assets. We will find a way to make it work.”
201 planes and rotorcraft comprise its airborne fleet. In 1985, the Coast Guard began procuring Aerospatiale HH-65 helicopters* and assigning them to air stations— bases serving a particular geographic region. As the Coast Guard’s primary short-range rescue aircraft, they are equipped with a rescue basket, hoist and sling, and, if necessary, a litter or dewatering pump. A SAR crew comprises 2 pilots, a flight mechanic, and an EMT rescue swimmer.