Marines receive crash course in helo egress training

Photo By Pfc. Franklin Mercado | Lance Cpl. Ken Lu, a motor vehicle operator with Combat Logistics Battalion 26, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, prepares to be submerged during helicopter egress training at the Water Survival Training Pool aboard Camp Lejeune, N.C., June 26, 2012. During the training, Marines learned safe and efficient ways to evacuate a submerged helicopter through hatches, windows and the rear of the simulated aircraft.  

CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, UNITED STATES

06.26.2012

Story by Pfc. Franklin Mercado 

II Marine Expeditionary Force   

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Marines with Combat Logistics Battalion 26, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, in preparation for an upcoming deployment, participated in helicopter egress training at the Water Survival Training Pool here, June 26.

The trainer simulates a rotary aircraft crash-landing in water and capsizing once completely submerged. It gives participants a chance to escape from the sunken helicopter using hatches, windows and the back of the aircraft.

Approximately 24 Marines participated in this event. Several Marines in attendance could, during a deployment, ride an aircraft over water while afloat with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which makes the training ideal for a unit like CLB-26.

When the battalion deploys in March 2012, its personnel will be divided among three ships while overseas, which gives this training a sense of realism and meaning, mentioned Staff Sgt. Manuel D. Murin, the training chief for CLB-26.

“Since we won’t all be together, the possibility of [moving from ship to ship] is high,” he said. “The Marine Corps prepares you for every scenario and this is definitely training we can use.”
The egress trainer is not a requirement for deployment, but for certain units it is training well worth the time.

“The Marines are saying how tough this training is,” Murin said. “They are doing great and pushing through.”

As the training came to an end, Marines like Lance Cpl. Ken Lu, a motor vehicle operator with CLB-26, were visibly tired but not deterred from the mission at hand.

“The training was disorienting,” he said. “Once you got the hang of it, it was pretty much finding your hatch and escaping as fast as you can. It sounds farfetched to train for a helicopter crash because you don’t expect it, but then again a lot of things happen that we don’t expect.”

Whether expected or not, CLB-26 is preparing their Marines for any obstacle that might present itself as they support the 26th MEU abroad.

• Date Taken: 06.26.2012
• Date Posted: 06.28.2012 10:44
• Story ID: 90761
• Location: CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, US