Air Operations

The United States Coast Guard has long been involved with aviation. Beginning in 1915, the Coast Guard used a Curtiss flying boat as the test of whether aviation was practical for search and rescue. Today, air is one of the major components of the Search and Rescue missions of the Coast Guard.

Members who are private pilots volunteer their services and planes just as other members volunteer their boats and boating skills. Air Operations is new in the Charleston area with one pilot, one air observer and one operational air facility pictured here.

Air Operations involves many aviation related missions. Here is a list of the missions that our pilots might normally fly:

• SAR Mission - Search and Rescue call out or the air equivalent to a vessel safety patrol. During a SAR mission, aircraft fly predetermined search patterns based on complex algorithms. These algorithms are based on last known or assumed position, wind, current, and type of vessel that is missing.

• Enforcement of Laws and Treaties - Air support of a Coast Guard mission to monitor major fishing areas.

• MEP Mission - Air support in the area of Marine Environmental Protection. Missions include support of locating and estimating sizes of oil slicks, and other environmental accidents.

• Logistics Mission - Transportation of personnel and equipment. Auxiliarists transport individuals for all types of Coast Guard support and humanitarian support.

• Training Mission - Training missions involving air operations and coordination with land and surface vessels to hone skills needed to support the aims and missions of the United States Coast Guard.

• VIP transportation and Area Familiarization for Coast Guard personnel.

There is a new concentration on Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA). The objective is to spot and report unusual activities, commercial vessel movements and environmental problems. Missions are conducted with one or two pilots and an observer. The pilot concentrates on flying the aircraft and the observer reports and coordinates mission activities with the Coast Guard Station.

During an emergency call-out, Auxiliary pilots and crews are available to lift off from their airfields on short notice on weekdays.  On weekends during boating season they are normally either in the air or at the airfield ready to fly. These men and women, like their boating counterparts, volunteer their time and energy, and aircraft to assist the Coast Guard.

Click here to find out more about Air Operations (article from SITREP, the Auxiliary's on-line newsletter)