A 'hawk in CG colors would be pretty, much more so than OD or battleship grey...

Along with Semper Paratus, sometimes mumbled Semper per dingalings by my bootcamp chief we used to say " You have to go out, but you don't have to come back in." This was great bravado until we lost some people on the Great Lakes in a small utility boat totally overwhelmed by conditions. Rules of course get bent during SAR missions. I was responding to a capsizing on the Tillamook Bar and just clearing our MLB shed with siren going, strobe light on and telling the crowded summer docks by loudspeaker to clear the way. From nowhere this very expensive italian racing shell crosses my bow, the owner yelling " manpowered and sailing vessels have right away over pow......" crunch and I took off @ 3' of hand laminated bow. I saw the captain of this fine vesssel was still afloat, well he was climbing out of chest high water and cursing. I returned from the SAR and my CO has this guy in the office. Chief asks what I was going to do about his boat. I cited him for failing to yield to an emergency vessel and failure to display registration stickers on his , um, bow.

"I returned from the SAR and my CO has this guy in the office. Chief asks what I was going to do about his boat. I cited him for failing to yield to an emergency vessel and failure to display registration stickers on his , um, bow."

Chris-
If that does not sound like something my Son-in-Law would do, I'll eat my hat <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />. I guess great minds think alike <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />.

Pete

"...I cited him for failing to yield to an emergency vessel..."

Attaboy!!! It used to fry me when I was running code 3 someplace and idiot after idiot would fail to yield to me, and there was nothing I could do about it. I used to love to trail along behind an ambulance or fire rig running code to something I wasn't going to be involved in. Almost always got to pick off someone not yielding to them...

Just watched it, good movie, entertained me from start to finish. I still don't understand how those guys can swim hauling all that brass around...

Hope you don't mind my bumping this thread...

*** Spoiler Warning ***

I just watched the movie – not bad. But it bugs me when they take what appears to be a fairly accurate portrayal (for Hollywood) and then force the plot to a climax by doing something stupid.

Ok, the crew chief reports that the hoist cable is damaged and in danger of failing. Step one: briskly lower swimmers back into the water (they spent the whole movie treading water, another five minutes is gonna kill them?). Access the situation, form a plan and act accordingly.

In no particular order:
Possible plan A: Hoist both swimmers at once, always maintaining an altitude that is a survivable falling distance above the water.
Possible plan B: Hoist one swimmer at a time, again at a safe altitude.
Possible plan C: Disregard hoist cable as unsafe, toss the swimmers one end of a rope and secure the other to the helicopter using an approved anchor point. Perform a “fixed-line fly away”.
Possible plan D: Kick a life raft out the door, assume that they have read ETS and know that they should erect the canopy, and rescue them later. This time use a hoist equipped with aircraft grade stainless steel cable rather than bailing wire.

Yeah, you make a great point. But of course that would not be nearly as dramatic and as poignant. Who then would be "the Guardian" that "won't ever let go" that wraps up the movie so well?

But you are right. I am not sure of the exact contingency plan in that event, gives me something to look up... but I would at least figure that the pilot would drop some altitude once the crew chief figured the cable might break.

I don't know, doing a fixed line drag through a storm is pretty hollywood heroic.