For KISAR’s February training, we were invited to participate in an international and interagency SAR exercise (SAREX) involving the USCG Kodiak and Sitka Air Stations, the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the Alaska State Troopers. A SAREX is a training event designed to test and refine the coordination between various agencies during a search and rescue mission. The purpose is to:

1) Maintain a state of preparedness for low-frequency, high-risk events like major natural disasters or aircraft crashes.

2) Ensure that different organizations can communicate effectively using shared radio frequencies and standardized procedures.

3) Test specialized maneuvers such as ground search, hoist operations, maritime and inland search patterns, parachute drops, and medical evacuations.

4) Identify ‘gaps’ in the Incident Command System (ICS) or internal protocols before they occur in a real-world life-or-death scenario.

The training covered 3 days and many scenarios, culminating in a simulated mass casualty event due to a hypothetical landslide cutting a large number of subjects off from road or maritime access. For this, USCG rescue swimmers and members of the Royal Canadian Air Force and SAR team spent the night at the ski chalet, and the next morning responded to multiple missing and injured subjects distributed across the valley and hillsides around the chalet. After all subjects were located, medically assessed, packaged and triaged, dispositions of the subjects were communicated to the HQ at the pass and evac priorities were determined. The Canadian’s Kingfisher CC-295 flew a pattern over the search area and provided data on searcher and subject movements with truly impressive sensing and camera data. An MH-60 from the Kodiak Air Station arrived on scene around noon and performed multiple hoists at each extraction point, ultimately ferrying 9 injured subjects back to the base. The weather was lovely and after a slight delay in the helo operations, the scenario culminated with alacrity.

KISAR would like to offer our heartfelt thanks to all the agencies involved for allowing us to participate in the 2026 Alaska SAREX. An especially big thanks to KISAR’s VP and State Trooper, Josh Boyle, for being the coordinator between KISAR and the other agencies. Every group brought a slightly different skill set, equipment package, and organizational culture to the scenario. It was gratifying to witness obstacles identified and overcome, effective communications develop between IC, airborne assets, and ground crews, and to recognize the deep sense of professionalism, mutual purpose, and public service on display. Cheers to all who were involved.