MART Vol. II MO/MP - NESA - Civil Air Patrol

Objective is here.SAR• Aircraft action: Aircraft circles one geographic place.• Desired team action: Proceed to the location where the low wing of theaircraft is pointing; that is the location of the target.Remember: Air-to-ground coordination is an art that should be regularlypracticed, both during daylight and at night.2.2.4 AirdropsAirdrops are an uncommon event. As such, they should be trained andpracticed before attempting. Follow FAA rules when training for airdrops.Dropping objects from a CAP aircraft is only authorized to prevent loss of life.The ability to drop a message or emergency equipment such as a radio ormedicine is a valuable skill. An airdrop is not inherently dangerous. Beingfamiliar with this procedure will allow an aircrew to conduct an airdrop safely.An airdrop offers an alternative way of communicating with someone (e.g., asurvivor or a trapped fire crew) on the ground. Your message needs to be clearand concise, and you should always spell out what kind of response you expectso that you will know your message was received and understood. For example,"if you need medical assistance, lay flat on the ground," or "help is on the way andwill arrive in three hours; wave your arms if you understand."The message airdrop should be a light object that is safe to drop, and anequipment airdrop should be a small, padded bag. You should attach a roll ofbrightly colored tape (e.g., a roll of florescent surveyor's tape) to the airdrop; thetape will unroll and provide a trail to the airdrop in case it lands in a tree, brush orsnow.Some safety concerns for the pilot are:• Fly the aircraft and don't worry about what the observer is doing.• Do not pull back hard on the yoke or go negative 'G' after the release,because this could cause the airdrop to hit the tail.35