Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
New Orleans Times-Picayune
September 13, 2008
After Ike, air crews will survey, rescue
By Paul Purpura
Coast Guard Cmdr. Tim Schang pointed to a map of the northern Gulf of Mexico on Friday, explaining the details of what promises to be a trying mission in the days after Hurricane Ike plows through the Houston area today.
There's the operations plan, the fueling plan and the communication plan, he said. There are the safety concerns, such as ensuring crews get enough rest, their helicopters maintain proper distance when flying westward in the strong wind and, when over Texas, that they steer clear of other military and civilian helicopters cluttering the skies.
Three years ago, scores of helicopters cluttered the skies of New Orleans in the hours after Hurricane Katrina stormed ashore, breaking levees, flooding the city and stranding thousands of residents. Coast Guard aviators from across the country rescued a record 6,500 people, according to the agency.
If Schang got any rest Friday night, he knew it would be the last he'll get for a while.
"I'll probably not get too much sleep for the next week or so," said Schang, operations officer for Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans.
This morning, Coast Guard air crews from New Orleans, Michigan, New Jersey and Florida are converging at the Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base in Belle Chasse, on a mission to help in Ike's wake.
Ten Coast Guard helicopters, HH-65 Dolphins and H-60 Jayhawks, will muster at the Coast Guard air base at the station.
"And then we'll all go out, heading to the west," said Schang, who will fly but primarily will oversee operations from the "forward operating base" at Southland Field near Lake Charles.
For their mission targeting the Galveston, Houston and southwest Louisiana areas, Coast Guard aviators will fly from Belle Chasse to Southland Field, inspecting along the way "critical infrastructure" that might be damaged in the storm.
Crews at the Coast Guard air station in Houston evacuated to Corpus Christi and will attack from the south, Schang said. Crews launching from Belle Chasse will cover western Louisiana and Texas, he said.
"We're just going to saturate the area, looking for people to help," Schang said.
September 13, 2008
After Ike, air crews will survey, rescue
By Paul Purpura
Coast Guard Cmdr. Tim Schang pointed to a map of the northern Gulf of Mexico on Friday, explaining the details of what promises to be a trying mission in the days after Hurricane Ike plows through the Houston area today.
There's the operations plan, the fueling plan and the communication plan, he said. There are the safety concerns, such as ensuring crews get enough rest, their helicopters maintain proper distance when flying westward in the strong wind and, when over Texas, that they steer clear of other military and civilian helicopters cluttering the skies.
Three years ago, scores of helicopters cluttered the skies of New Orleans in the hours after Hurricane Katrina stormed ashore, breaking levees, flooding the city and stranding thousands of residents. Coast Guard aviators from across the country rescued a record 6,500 people, according to the agency.
If Schang got any rest Friday night, he knew it would be the last he'll get for a while.
"I'll probably not get too much sleep for the next week or so," said Schang, operations officer for Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans.
This morning, Coast Guard air crews from New Orleans, Michigan, New Jersey and Florida are converging at the Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base in Belle Chasse, on a mission to help in Ike's wake.
Ten Coast Guard helicopters, HH-65 Dolphins and H-60 Jayhawks, will muster at the Coast Guard air base at the station.
"And then we'll all go out, heading to the west," said Schang, who will fly but primarily will oversee operations from the "forward operating base" at Southland Field near Lake Charles.
For their mission targeting the Galveston, Houston and southwest Louisiana areas, Coast Guard aviators will fly from Belle Chasse to Southland Field, inspecting along the way "critical infrastructure" that might be damaged in the storm.
Crews at the Coast Guard air station in Houston evacuated to Corpus Christi and will attack from the south, Schang said. Crews launching from Belle Chasse will cover western Louisiana and Texas, he said.
"We're just going to saturate the area, looking for people to help," Schang said.