Saviors in the Sky
Four Coast Guardsman attempt the seemingly impossible and launch themselves into history.

Story by PA1 Tasha Tully and PA1 Danielle DeMarino, PADET St. Petersburg, Fla.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- On Jan. 27, as Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Tom Collins presented an Air Station Clearwater, Fla., flight crew with the first Distinguished Flying Crosses to be awarded for operations conducted during Hurricane Katrina, more than two hundred of Air Station Clearwater's personnel rose from their seats to give a standing ovation to these four modern-day heroes.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Four members from a Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater flight crew received the Distinguished Flying Cross Jan. 27, for rescuing three fishermen from a vessel 10 miles from the eye of Hurricane Katrina near Key West Aug. 26, 2005.   The men, from left to right:  Lt.j.g. David Sheppard, co-pilot, Lt. Cmdr. Craig Massello, pilot, Petty Officer 3rd Class Kenyon Bolton, rescue swimmer, and Petty Officer 2nd Class Robert Cain, flight mechanic.  Photo by PA1 Tasha Tully.

 

The suspenseful story unfolded when Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater received a report of an activated Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) from the fishing vessel Mary Lynn located 85 miles west of Key West, Fla., just 10 miles from the eye of Hurricane Katrina.

A Clearwater HH-60 Jayhawk rescue helicopter ready crew was alerted to the situation and Lt. Cmdr. Craig Massello, aircraft commander, began assessing the risks.

"I didn't know what to think," said Massello. "When I checked the initial information, I noticed the position of the Mary Lynn was in the middle of Katrina's radar picture. I spent about 10-15 minutes looking at the radar, thinking of how we would proceed and talking it over with our operations officer."

Before making the 210-mile trek to the Mary Lynn's position, Massello asked for feedback from his flight crew.

"I was nervous about it, but your adrenaline kicks in and you put fears aside knowing that there are people out there that need your help," said Petty Officer 2nd Class (AMT2) Robert Cain, flight mechanic.

Massello, along with Lt. j.g. David Sheppard, co-pilot, Cain, flight mechanic and Petty Officer 3rd Class (AST3) Kenyon Bolton, rescue swimmer, took to the air at about 10 p.m. in 40-knot winds, determined to at least attempt to rescue the stranded trio. 

"For the first 100 miles or so the weather was the same, scattered showers, 45-knot winds, gusty and dark.  Then things started to deteriorate," said Massello. "The winds were sustained at 75 knots with gusts up to 85 knots.  I couldn't make out the water even though we were only 300 to 500 feet high."

About a third of the way through the flight, the air crew received another distress call.  The fishing vessel Mister Natural was taking on water with a crew of two on board.  The crew diverted to the vessel's position and made contact with the captain as they hovered overhead.  Based on the weather conditions and the fact that the vessel was able to make way toward land, the fishermen opted to stay on the boat, only to be rescued later by a Coast Guard helicopter out of Air Station Miami.  Those fishermen came out of the storm okay, but the Mary Lynn rescue had become more urgent during the Clearwater crews' hour-long diversion. 

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Four members from an Air Station Clearwater flight crew stand at attention after being awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross Jan. 27 for a daring rescue they performed Aug. 26, 2005.  The crew pulled three fishermen from their distressed vessel only 10 miles from the eye of Hurricane Katrina near Key West.  Left to right: Petty Officer 2nd Class Robert Cain, flight mechanic, Petty Officer 3rd Class Kenyon Bolton, rescue swimmer, Lt.j.g. David Sheppard, co-pilot, Lt. Cmdr. Craig Massello, pilot.  Photo by PA1 Tasha Tully.

Massello was advised that the Mary Lynn crew had attempted to embark a life raft but it capsized and all three people on board were now adrift in the 40-foot seas.  This new information caused the air crew to abandon their original plan of coming in from the backside of the storm in an effort to transit the weaker portions of the rain bands and wind.  As a result, they found themselves flying through the front right quadrant of Katrina, the strongest portion of the storm.

"The sound of the rain was constant, and there was absolutely nothing that could be seen through any of the windows for hours," said Sheppard. "We had no concept of the surface conditions or if we were even in the clouds or not."

With the aircraft taking a beating and tensions running high, the crew was rewarded with a bit of good news.  A Coast Guard C-130 from Air Station Clearwater had been providing cover over the Mary Lynn and relayed that the initial report of the boat crew being in the water was incorrect.  The life raft had indeed deployed, capsized and floated away, but the boat crew was still onboard the vessel.

"We all breathed a sigh of relief," said Massello.

However, this good news was no reason to relax.  The weather conditions were treacherous and, the two-hour trudge from the Mister Natural to the Mary Lynn proved to be greedier on fuel than originally anticipated.  The air crew found themselves 90 degrees off course on several occasions due to the overwhelmingly heavy rain bands that surrounded them.

Because of the excess fuel consumption, the Jayhawk would now only have a mere 15 minutes on scene to safely hoist all three people in unprecedented conditions.  As tempting as it was to pull the survivors from the sinking boat, the crew feared a rushed job would allow someone to break free and be swept to sea with a very high potential of never being found again.  Massello concluded that keeping the people on board a sinking, but lit and therefore visible, boat was wiser than putting more lives in danger.  Massello decided to head to Key West and refuel the aircraft before attempting the rescue.

"I'll never forget the first time I saw that vessel and the size of the waves it was in," said Cain.  "It looked like a toy boat getting tossed around, and that boat was over 40-feet long!  I could see the crew on the stern of the vessel holding on and looking up at us."

As the crew headed for Key West to refuel, Massello's decision was validated by the co-pilot of the C-130.  Lt. Cmdr. Andy Delgado, a former HH-60 pilot, completely understood the situation and was able to calmly convey it to the crew onboard the Mary Lynn, a tremendous help according to Massello.

Massello found comfort in his decision to refuel as he started toward Key West.  The helicopter fought 75-knot headwinds and its computer was estimating that the 90-mile trip, which would usually take 45 minutes to complete, would now be a two-hour flight.  By Massello's estimate, the 1,500 pounds of fuel they had left translated to roughly an hour and twenty minutes of flight time.

When the aircraft initially left Clearwater the night before, it had been filled to maximum capacity with five and a half hours worth of fuel.  By the time they landed in Key West at 3 a.m., they had been in the air for about five hours.    

"The first hoist wasn't pretty," said Cain.  "When we were in position near the back of the boat we got too close; he (Bolton) swung and hit part of the stern.  Then, right before I put him in the water, I had him too low on the hook and he hit the front side of a wave."

 "The wind was blowing so hard that my fins were forced downward, and our hover was more like forward flight," said Bolton. "Miller jumped in the water and I swam over to her and wrapped the quick strop behind her back."

While Bolton prepared for the hoist, the hoist cable jerked him so hard that it wedged into his harness.  The metal V-rings of the quick strop had slipped off and the hook was jammed open.  Bolton quickly replaced the V-rings and closed the hook, making sure it was safe.  Cain hoisted the pair into the helicopter where Bolton was able to inspect the hook.  He saw that, due to the violent yank, the bail-hinge was bent slightly, making the bail tough to move, but still operable.

"During the second hoist, a life ring line that the survivors were using when they jumped into the water got tangled around the hoist cable," said Cain. "This is a very serious situation because we are attached to the boat at this point and if it starts to sink, it could pull us down with it." 

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Petty Officer 3rd Class Kenyon Bolton receives the Distinguished Flying Cross from the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Adm. Tom Collins, during a ceremony at Air Station Clearwater on Jan. 27. Four members from a Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater flight crew received the Distinguished Flying Cross for rescuing three fishermen from a vessel 10 miles from the eye of Hurricane Katrina near Key West Aug. 26, 2005.  Photo by PA1 Tasha Tully.

Moreover, the cable could snap and may spring up into the rotor system. Luckily, the last survivor had seen the entangled lines and was able to assist Cain in freeing the hoist cable.

"I began securing Gutek into the quick strop and saw a two to three-foot shark swimming between my legs," said Bolton. "I was surprised it was so close to the surface in such rough weather.  It made me think twice about what was out of sight."

The third, and final, hoist went well and soon White was safe on board the helicopter with his fellow crewmembers.  The entire operation took about 30 minutes.

"On the return flight Rob (Cain) and I had to tend to the survivors," said Bolton. "We gave them food, and I bandaged the captain's (Gutek) hand where he had been badly burned by a flare."

Although Key West was closer, the unwavering headwinds caused Massello and Sheppard to realize a transit to Clearwater would unveil a smoother ride. 

"Our ground speed was around 200 knots, which is ridiculous for a helicopter and we made record time back to the air station," said Sheppard. "Everyone was a bit giddy. Partly, I think, from disbelief in what we had just lived through, and partly because of sheer exhaustion."

At 10 a.m., 12 hours after they had departed, the crew touched down on familiar and steady ground.

Massello credits the success of the rescue mission not only to his skillful crew, but also to a well-built Sikorsky aircraft and the dedication of Air Station Clearwater's maintenance teams.  He said the aircraft performed outstandingly well, even though it is a well-known fact that water tends to leak in during heavy periods of rain.  Worse, it tends to leak right onto the flight control computer.  While correction is often as simple as taking out and drying some parts, Massello noted that of all times, this was certainly a time when a "please don't fail" plea lingers in the back of one's mind. 

There were several moments when this crew wasn't far from failure, but their dedication and devotion to duty has earned them honors among aviators and respect among shipmates.

"Just reading our names along with the names of famous aviators like Charles Lindberg and Amelia Earhart is humbling, and an incredible honor to say the least," said Massello. "We began the duty day just like any other...who would have thought it would become part of Coast Guard history and one we would never forget."

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