CSAR Series Part 4: America to the Rescue

Our final installment on the history of modern combat search and rescue...

By the time American air units arrived in England in 1942, British air-sea rescue services were well developed. British officials urged the Americans to form their own rescue program, using the proven Royal Air Force model. The RAF strongly recommended that the U.S. Eighth Air Force assign one senior officer in each command to serve as a full-time rescue officer. But the Army Air Forces preferred to emphasize escape and survival rather than rescue.

The modern American SERE system, as we know, is now second to none. During World War II, however, the survival and escape training, without the added components of evasion and resistance - and a dedicated rescue mission - were not enough. British rescue crews completed many spectacular missions. But when the Americans tried to recover their own imperiled servicemembers, too many missions turned to tragedy. Time after time, American aircrews died.

The legendary American commander, General H.H. "Hap" Arnold, was outraged. He demanded a rescue service. He faced off against penny pinching bureaucrats, and argued that troop morale improves when service members believe they will be rescued if taken captive or lost behind enemy lines. The relentless Gen. Arnold got his way. He was granted a search and rescue mission, modeled after the British system. American rescue personnel soon began training with their counterparts in the Royal Air Force.

The American mission got off to a rough start. Despite intense training, many early rescue attempts failed horribly. In one instance, rescue planes searched frantically for a lone pilot struggling to stay afloat in a turbulent North Sea. The search planes were shot down, and all were lost.

Eventually, though, the Americans learned the drill. On June 29, 1944, an Australian fighter pilot was spotted adrift in a dinghy 10 miles off the coast of Holland. Four American aircraft went after him. Again, the seas were rough and the mission enormously difficult. The search pilots worked doggedly to find the downed pilot. They were under intense pressure, hoping to avoid attack while aiming to complete their mission before dark. The dinghy kept vanishing into the waves, and reappearing in unexpected places. More rescue aircraft were called in to help with the search. Eventually 15 aircraft participated in the mission to retrieve a single man. After seven long hours, the search aircraft placed a fix on the man, and directed a high-speed launch to pluck him to safety. They brought him home alive.

The American rescue mission evolved from there. Over the course of that war and others, the United States military developed the most successful and efficient CSAR capability in the world. American troops are known for their dedication to one another. We have an unshakeable mantra: We leave no one behind. We are willing to risk many in order to recover even one lost servicemember. Why? Because we value our troops. And because it's the right thing to do.