Grey Knight Search and Rescue Mission Ends with Located Mariner

Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Austin Ingram | 210909-N-ZZ999-1002 PACIFIC OCEAN (Sept. 9, 2021) A private sailing vessel floats dead-in-the-water 275 nautical miles southwest of Kauai, while a P-8A Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft assigned to the "Grey Knights" of Patrol Squadron (VP) 46 flies overhead to provide aid, Aug. 12, 2021. VP-46 has recently returned from a maiden P-8A deployment to the U.S. Fifth and Sixth Fleet area of operations (AOR) and is currently supporting Home Land Defense operations out of Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii as part of Commander, Task Force 32, while also completing an Inter-Deployment Readiness Cycle in preparation for their return to the U.S. Sixth Fleet AOR (U.S. Navy Photo, courtesy Patrol Squadron FOUR-SIX)  

HI, UNITED STATES

09.09.2021

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Austin Ingram 

Patrol Squadron 46

OAK HARBOR, Wash. – The Grey Knights of Patrol Squadron (VP) 46 located a missing mariner during a multi-day Search and Rescue (SAR) evolution out of Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, Sept. 9, 2021.

The mariner and his vessel were reported missing when they failed to arrive to their port of call, Haleiwa, Oahu after departing Nawiliwili Harbor, Kauai.

He had been missing for one week when VP-46’s Combat Aircrew (CAC) TEN onboard a P-8A Poseidon aircraft departed on the Patrol Squadrons fifth consecutive sortie in search of the vessel.

Once on station, CAC-10 commenced their search of a 9,000 square mile area oriented southwest of Kauai. On their first leg of the search pattern, the Electronic Warfare Operator detected a small radar return just outside of the assigned search area. Upon further investigation, CAC-10 visually identified the vessel, now 275 nautical miles southwest of Kauai.

CAC-10 deployed a UNIPAC II Search and Rescue (SAR) Kit. Shortly thereafter, the Grey Knights remained on station following the arrival of a Coast Guard C-130 Hercules to coordinate assistance from a nearby merchant vessel before returning to Kaneohe Bay.

Naval Aircrewman (Operator) Third Class Jordyn Sanchez noted that “being the radar operator, it’s easy to get discouraged during SAR flights after not finding anything for hours or sometimes days. But, avoiding complacency makes the difference between having a successful rescue and just another search.”

With the moniker of “The Oldest and the Best,” The VP-46 Grey Knights recently returned from a seven-month deployment conducting anti-submarine warfare operations and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance in the FIFTH and SIXTH Fleet Areas of Responsibility. VP-46 is homeported at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington with a detachment assigned to Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. They continue to prove the multi-mission capability of the P-8A Poseidon around the world.

• Date Taken: 09.09.2021
• Date Posted: 10.08.2021 15:19
• Story ID: 407037
• Location: HI, US