PHOTO CAPTIONS:

1. A U.S. Coast Guard rescue helicopter crewman is lowered to pick up a simulated victim in Hong Kong waters during exercise Hong Kong SAREX 98.

2. Hong Kong (HK) Search and Rescue Exercise (SAREX) 98 was coordinated by HK civil officials, the Chinese People's Liberation Army­Navy (PLA-Navy), and U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force representatives. PLA-Navy Capt. Xu Jingcai (facing, third from right) heads the PLA officers. USCG Rear Adm. Joseph McClelland (center of far left) heads the U.S. officers.

3. Mr. George Chao, Air Traffic General Manager for the HK Civil Aviation Department and overall exercise director (left), flanked by Mr. Albert Hong, exercise coordinator for the Civil Aviation Department, presides over the opening meeting.

4. The HK Government Flying Service S-76 helicopter drops a smoke marker prior to rescuing a "victim" (a Fire Services Department diver) from the sea.

5. U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong (author) poses with HK firemen of the SAR Command Boat. L to R: Chan Yiu Hung, Lt. Cmdr. Wong, Tam Hing Yiu, Chau Kit Hze, and Keung Tse Chung.

6. HK Government Flying Service pilot Benny Chen, on board an S-70 SAR helicopter, explains mountain rescue procedures to U.S. Air Force MSgt. Pat Malone.

7. Capt. Steven Newell, Commanding Officer, USCG Cutter Rush (right), presents a hat to PLA-Navy Capt. Xu Jingcai (second from left), while U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Mark F. Turner, Air Liaison Officer from the American Consulate, and another PLA officer look on.

8. The new HK Fire Services Department's SAR Command Boat is equipped with state of the art equipment and has rescue capacity for 600 persons.

9. The HK Government Flying Service S-76 helicopter drops a smoke marker prior to rescuing a "victim" (a Fire Services Department diver) from the sea.

10. HK Marine Police Launch (PL-70) lowers a small boat for the short-range SAR exercise.

11. A U.S. Navy crewman describes P-3 Orion SAR equipment to exercise observers.

12. Observers from Brunei, Singapore and Thailand, plus Macao and mainland China, monitored the exercise. Capt. Abdul Rahman, Royal Brunei Air Force, is briefed on the HK Government Flying Service's S-76 helicopter by the pilot, Capt. Cody Wong, while Aircrewman Stanley Lam looks on.

13. Mr. Kevin Lam, of the Macao Civil Aviation Department, inspects a HK Government Flying Service S-70 SAR helicopter during the static display.

14. U.S. HC-130 crewmen of the Alaska Air National Guard describe their SAR equipment to HK Government Flying Service crewmen during the static display.

15. A USCG HH-65A helicopter lands on the flight deck of the USCG Cutter Rush (WHEC 723) after picking up a dummy "victim" from the sea.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

Hong Kong has long been well known as a world class financial powerhouse, a shopping paradise, and as one of the most beautiful ports in the Far East. It is also an area of high density population, high density air traffic, and high density port operations. It was against this backdrop that Hong Kong Search and Rescue Exercise (SAREX) unfolded 1-4 December 1998. Hong Kong SAREX is an annual exercise sponsored and hosted by the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

Photo: PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

Hong Kong's participants included the CAD's own Air Traffic Control personnel, the Hong Kong Marine Police, the Fire Services Department, the Marine Department, the Government Flying Service and Civil Aid Services. It also included, for the first time, a PRC People's Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-Navy) unit. The PLA-Navy participated with a Houjian-class Missile Patrol Boat from the Hong Kong Garrison. The overall director for the exercise was Mr. George Chao, Air Traffic General Manager of the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department.

Photo: PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

United States units have participated in the exercises since 1976. In Hong Kong SAREX 98, the 220 U.S. participants included U.S. Navy and Air Force elements from U.S. Pacific Command and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG). U.S. units included the USCG Cutter Rush (WHEC 723), a C-130 Hercules from the Alaska Air National Guard, and a U.S. Navy P-3 from the Commander, Task Force 72, Okinawa, Japan. The senior officer of the U.S. contingent was Rear Adm. Joseph McClelland, Commander of USCG 14th District, in Hawaii.

Brunei, Singapore, Thailand and the colony of Macau sent observers to this year's exercise. There was also a large delegation of observers from the Guangdong Maritime Emergency Search and Rescue Center.

Photo: PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

SAREX 98 was officially inaugurated by Mr. George Chao on 1 December 1998 at the initial planning meeting of all participants. Mr. Chao welcomed all the participants and observers by stating "the goal of this exercise was to provide training and familiarization in search and rescue (SAR) techniques for SAR-qualified air traffic controllers, aircrews and other units likely to be involved in such operations with Hong Kong units." His opening remarks were followed by brief comments by Capt. Xu Jingcai, Commander of the PLA-Navy unit in Hong Kong, and by Rear Adm. McClelland.

Capt. Steven Newell, the Commanding Officer of the USCGC Rush, then hosted an official reception on board his ship. The friendly interchange by all participants was a useful prelude to the successful two-day exercise which followed.

The next day, participating units exhibited their equipment in static displays at the airport and pier side at the airport's waterfront. One of the major attractions was the Hong Kong Fire Services Department's Command Boat. This very expensive

Photo: PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

(approximately US$5.8 million) vessel is a new addition to the airport's search and rescue capabilities. It boasts a maximum speed of over 29 knots and rescue capacity for 600 persons. One of the tour guides, Fireman Chan Yiu Hung, proudly pointed out that "this boat has the capacity to rescue a downed Boeing 747 passenger jet." The Command Boat is also equipped with advanced features such as a helicopter winching platform, infra-red night vision system, Jason's cradles (water rescue ladders), underwater camera, and side-scan sonar. Its powerful 4,000 liters-per-minute fire-fighting system can spray up to 60 meters. In addition, the Fire Services Department also showed off their impressive airport fire-fighting trucks specifically designed for airport aircraft emergencies.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

Aircraft employed in SAR operations were also displayed. The Hong Kong Government Flying Service displayed their special SAR-equipped Beech King Air BE-20 aircraft, as well as their Sikorsky-built S-76 and S-70 helicopters. The U.S. Navy's P-3 and Alaska Air National Guard's C-130 were also exhibited nearby.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

The specialized equipment on display attracted a large number of staff members of other local government agencies involved with SAR. Guided tours provided them with valuable insights into how the different components of the total search and rescue effort operate. The official guides from the Hong Kong Fire Services Department were fluent in English, Mandarin and the Cantonese dialect, thus making the tours informative for all attendees.

All observers and a number of journalists were ferried out to the USCGC Rush, moored outside Hong Kong harbor. SAREX events were covered by all popular Chinese and English language newspapers in the region, as well as local TV stations. Coverage included the three exercise events: the Short-range Rescue Demonstration, the Mountain Rescue Exercise, and the Long-range Rescue Exercise, all generating considerable media interest.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

The USCGC Rush was employed for the Short-range Rescue Demonstration, which involved rescuing a man from the sea. The USCGC Rush launched a HKGFS S-76 helicopter which performed a picture-perfect rescue of a Fire Services Department diver acting as a victim in the sea, and lowered him onto the Hong Kong Marine Police Launch (PL-70). The entire evolution was professionally executed and impressed every observer onboard the USCGC Rush. Shortly after this event, the USCGC Rush launched her HH-65A helicopter which made a couple of high speed passes along the starboard side, demonstrating the helicopter's superb maneuverability. On the third pass, it efficiently picked up a "dummy" survivor. The recovery of the helicopter on the flight deck of the USCGC Rush signified the end of the daytime Short-range Exercise. The USCGC Rush then headed out to the designated operation area in the South China Sea, to be in position for the following day's Long-range Rescue Exercise.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

That evening, a separate event was conducted on land. The Mountain Rescue Exercise began at 1800 hours with two U.S. Air Force Pararescue specialists included in the Hong Kong team from Civil Aid Services.

At 2000 hours, controllers from the Hong Kong CAD and the U.S. Joint Rescue Coordination Center met to activate the Long-range Rescue Exercise, and started the mission planning for this evolution. A real-life problem arose during this phase. The mission planners found that the USCGC Rush was unable to receive their mission instructions via satellite transmitted fax. Since one purpose of the exercise was to test communication capabilities between the exercise controllers and the deployed units, this unplanned failure gave them an opportunity to find alternate ways to meet this challenge.

Photo: PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

The solution was to fax instructions to the U.S. Pacific Rescue Coordination Center in Hawaii, and then have it relayed to the ship via electronic message traffic. Instructions were also transmitted to the Hong Kong Garrison, which received them and launched the PLA-Navy Missile Patrol Boat. Meanwhile, the HKGFS Beech King Air BE-20 aircraft deployed the target successfully, allowing it to drift overnight for the next day's Long-range Rescue Exercise.

Realism was the hallmark of the long-range phase of the SAREX. Real aircraft mechanical problems and real weather problems posed challenges for the exercise planners and participants on 3 December. A mechanical problem on the U.S. Navy P-3 required revising the U.S. C-130's mission slightly to cover the P-3's absence. This added realism to the exercise, since aircraft mechanical difficulties are not uncommon. All other units arrived at the predetermined rendezvous point on schedule.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

The sea state at the operational area presented a second problem. Conditions were so rough, both the USCGC and the PLA-Navy ships were unable to locate the previously dropped target and retrieve it, despite initial sightings reported by the C-130 crew. As might happen in the real world, the exercise controller finally ordered all units to return to base after two hours of searching in rough seas.

On 3 December, the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department hosted a reception. This reception offered another excellent opportunity for all participants and observers to get further acquainted with each other. Useful cultural and technical exchanges flowed freely during the evening's gathering.

Photo: Lt. Cmdr. James C. Wong, USN

At the final meeting at the Air Traffic Control Complex on 4 December, Mr. Albert K.Y. Lam, Hong Kong's Director of Civil Aviation, thanked all participants and observers for their support. Mr. Chao concluded: "Hong Kong SAREX 98 has achieved its objective to test the alerting, coordination and communication facilities, and was the first large scale test of the SAR capabilities at Chek Lap Kok Airport since its opening in 1998." He briefly reviewed the lessons learned and asked representatives from each delegation for their opinions, feedback and thoughts.

The exchanges that followed were frank and many good ideas were expressed. Several sugestions were offered to make future exercises more successful, including a better communication plan between the headquarters and the deployed unit, dropping a larger and more realistic target (simulating a downed aircraft) for the long-range SAR effort by using the C-130 instead of the King Air, and installing a beacon on the target which could be detected by electronic means.

Photo:
PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

The foreign observers also offered valuable insights. The most notable contribution was by Mr. Uthai Sucharitkul from Thailand, who described the difficulties of overland SAR efforts, especially in hot and humid jungle regions where the terrain and weather make SAR doubly challenging.

Although this was a very serious business trip for all attendees, there were still many other aspects which made this visit very memorable. One of the most positive experiences was the friendliness and hospitality of Hong Kong. Language was never a barrier since most participants spoke English and Mandarin, in addition to the majority-spoken Cantonese dialect.

Photo: PH1(NAC) James G. McCarter, USN

During their short visit to Hong Kong, most participants noticed the lack of dramatic change in the daily lives of local residents since the turnover from Great Britain to the People's Republic of China. Other than the low-key change of flags flying above government offices, life and business go on as usual.

Also, the U.S. Navy continues to schedule 60-80 port calls per year to this beautiful "Fragrant Harbor," and continue to be well received in one of the best port facilities in the world. Through events like SAREX 98, the U.S. will continue to seek cooperation and interoperability with Hong Kong in the life-saving area of Search and Rescue operations.