# SAR Griffs in Action...



## Bandit1 (20 Sep 2007)

The guys from 424 had to leave in a hurry....


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## midget-boyd91 (20 Sep 2007)

Those things look great. I had a picture of one flying under us taken by me in a Cessna over the woods by Greenwood, but the picture didn't turn out. Some double exposure film didn't like me very much.


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## Mike Baker (20 Sep 2007)

Those are awesome. I got to see one a few years ago that was in St. John's, an was amazed at how cool it really is close up.


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## Loachman (22 Sep 2007)

uncle-midget-boyd said:
			
		

> Those things look great.



Looks can be deceiving.


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## midget-boyd91 (22 Sep 2007)

> Those things look great pretty.


  
That better?


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## Sf2 (22 Sep 2007)

> Looks can be deceiving


 :


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## Bandit1 (23 Sep 2007)

One of a 424 Griff in action at the CNE Air Show...they really do kick up a lot of mist....

Second of a CH-124 Sea King crew from 423 Maritime Helicopter Squadron, 12 Wing Shearwater, Nova Scotia putting some smiles onto some kids down in Niagara Falls ARB.


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## Thompson_JM (30 Nov 2007)

Apologies if its been covered, but why are we using them for SAR anyways? didnt we buy the Cormorant for that exact purpose? 

or is this an issue of "we didnt buy enough EH 101's and we need the Griff's to augment...."

also, without getting into OPSEC (if it even applies)

how quickly can the Griff, and the Cormorant go from sitting on the pad waiting for a call, to Rotors spinning taking off?

my buddy is a Flight Paramedic with ORNGE (in ontario) and was curious to know.

Cheers


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## karl28 (30 Nov 2007)

Tommy  

I think the  Comerants are responsible for  the east and west cost  SAR  and the Griff's are  for every thing else .  
Trenton used to  have a  I think 4 comerants  but after they discovered the problem with the tail they redeployed the Trenton Comerants to the east and west cost .    I think there is still one comerant here in Trenton as I have seen it in  the SAR Hanger  undergoing maintenance from time to time .      I am by far know means an expert  but that's what I have read in the local paper when it first happened  and also see on a  daily biases when driving by the base to work .


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## Bandit1 (30 Nov 2007)

Tommy said:
			
		

> how quickly can the Griff, and the Cormorant go from sitting on the pad waiting for a call, to Rotors spinning taking off?  Cheers



The team was in Hamilton on a lunch break after doing some training with the Toronto Police Marine Unit in the Toronto Harbour that day.  While eating lunch, the crew chief received a call about a situation up around Lake Simcoe, and within 7 minutes they were airborne and heading towards their target location.  That being said, I didn't hear anything about the incident on the news that night so I don't think that it was a serious one at all.  

The fastest reaction time I've ever seen by a SAR team was back when the Nimrod incident occurred in Toronto, with a team on location less than 2 minutes after the accident.

Bandit


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## Sf2 (30 Nov 2007)

With an experienced crew and 1st start of the day checks completed - about 2 and a half minutes from starters to airborne.

1st start of day, about 3-4 minutes.


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## Nfld Sapper (30 Nov 2007)

SAR Griffons are used with 444 SQN Goose Bay.


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## Sf2 (30 Nov 2007)

Not to nitpick, but the Griffons at Goose Bay are CS (Combat Support), not SAR.


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## Zoomie (1 Dec 2007)

SF2 said:
			
		

> Not to nitpick, but the Griffons at Goose Bay are CS (Combat Support), not SAR.



They are SAR  - they are painted yellow, have RESCUE painted on the side and they carry SARTechs.  Same goes for Bag-town and Cool Pool.  They are tasked with CS as a filler role - as they don't get too busy on the ranges recovering pilots.

You are right that they are officially designated as a CS unit - but to say that they are not SAR would be incorrect.


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## Good2Golf (1 Dec 2007)

I think SF2 was referring to the fact that 417, 439 and 444 are all officially named Combat Support Squadrons (CSS) as opposed to 413, 424 and 442 Transport and Rescue (T&R) Sqns and 103 Rescue Unit (RU).  Technically per the Air Force Planning Guidance, their primary mission (at least on paper) is combat support to their parent wing.  That they are all manned with SAR Techs is something that has morphed into the role in recent years (by recent, I mean after Cold Lake, Moose Jaw and Bagotville Base Rescue Flights (BRFs) -- which were not manned with SAR Techs in the 80's or early 90's)

G2G


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## Sf2 (1 Dec 2007)

Yeah, what he said^^^^ ;D


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## WingsofFury (7 May 2009)

Hey there folks, 

Just wrapped up a SAR Tech EX here in Ontario and I've put some Griff photos into the EX thread:

http://forums.air-force.ca/forums/threads/85958/post-839869.html#new


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