A four-man crew from the 36th Rescue Flight at Fairchild AFB, Wash., saved a 77-year-old man injured in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness in Idaho last week, and they say it was the most difficult rescues of more than 600 made by the flight. SSgt. Connie Bias reports that they faced several problems: heavy cloud cover, steep and jagged rock surrounding the rescue area, the man’s extensive injuries, lack of fuel, and a failed hoist. The steep terrain made the hoist necessary. TSgt. Patrick Hunt, an independent-duty medical technician, worked on stabilizing the man so he could be hoisted, and TSgt. William Wren, flight engineer, worked on the hoist to get it operating at a low speed. The crew and the injured man, Lloyd Johnson, flew at maximum speed to Lewistown, Idaho, where Johnson could be hospitalized.
Boeing received a $2.47 billion Air Force contract Nov. 25 for 15 more KC-46s, bringing to 183 the number of Pegasus tankers on contract to all customers, foreign and domestic. The new contract—for Lot 12 of the initially planned KC-46 buy—is to be completed by 2029.
