Members of the California ANG’s 129th Rescue Wing, Moffett Field, are back at home after undertaking a dangerous three-day rescue effort, some 1,000 miles from the northern California coast. An MC-130 flew out to sea to intercept a Liberian tanker that had sent out a distress call. Three pararescuemen jumped from the airplane, landed in the ocean with medical gear, and boarded the vessel. Two days later, a 129th RQW HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter came to pick up the rescuers and their patients—one with two broken arms and one suffering from hypothermia after jumping overboard.
While the Pentagon has signaled its intent to scale technology, field new systems faster, and work more with nontraditional vendors, a new report identifies persistent manufacturing capacity, resourcing, workforce, and modernization challenges that could hinder its ability to deliver on those goals.