The Air Force’s HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter made its final flight earlier this month. The 129th Rescue Wing retired its last HH-60G with a final flight and ceremony on Sept. 10 at Moffett Air National Guard Base, Calif. The Pave Hawk is being replaced by ...
Combat search and rescue
Search and rescue Airmen from Nellis Air Base, Nev., flew more than 200 miles in two HH-60W Jolly Green IIs last week to rescue five of their Navy helicopter crew counterparts who were forced to land in mountainous terrain near Naval Air Weapons Station China ...
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach told lawmakers this week there will be no gap in the service’s close air support capabilities under its latest plan to retire the venerable A-10 Thunderbolt II at the start of the next decade.
The Air Force plans to start buying thousands of advanced new handheld radios in 2027 for downed aircrew to communicate with search-and-rescue forces, a capability spotlighted earlier this year during the recovery of two aviators shot down in Iran.
Two Air Force rescue squadrons recently received the the Presidential Unit Citation award for heroism displayed during the evacuation of Afghanistan, according to a May 10 announcement from Air Combat Command.
The Air Force is requesting more than $200 million in its 2027 budget for its new combat search and rescue helicopter, including for capabilities to protect against shoulder-fired rockets and transport VIPs around Washington D.C.
When Airmen eject, the mission is clear: America leaves no warrior behind. Airmen are trained to survive, evade, resist, and escape the enemy, and everyone from ground crew to rescue personnel and commanders are committed to doing everything necessary—and possible—to bring downed Airmen home.
The dramatic and sprawling two-day operation to save the crew of an F-15E Strike Eagle shot down over Iran on April 3 involved hundreds of personnel, dozens of aircraft—and multiple close calls.
For weeks, Operation Epic Fury showcased the breathtaking reach, precision, and persistence of American air and space power: more than 13,000 combat sorties and more than 12,300 targets struck by April 1. But numbers do not tell the most important story. What is truly important ...
In a first, the Air National Guard recently tested how its new rescue helicopter would survive against attacks from enemy fighter aircraft to prepare for a potential war in the Pacific.
Airmen from the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, flew their last mission in an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter on Dec. 18, becoming the latest unit across the Air Force to transition to the new HH-60W Jolly Green II chopper.
The Air Force will consider the Army’s freshly-chosen Bell V-280 tiltrotor as a possible combat search and rescue platform for work in contested airspace, but will also look at other technical options, including the CV-22 as an interim solution, Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q., ...
