The rescue operation was made possible thanks to the effective synergy between the military crew personnel and the operators of the National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps (CNSAS)
In the early afternoon of 18 September, an HH139B helicopter of the 82nd Combat Search and Rescue (C.S.A.R.) Centre of the Italian Air Force took off from the Trapani military airport to carry out a rescue and recovery operation for a hiker who had been injured in an inaccessible area of the island of Marettimo (Trapani).
The Italian Air Force crew, on national SAR (Search and Rescue) readiness duty, following a request for intervention by the CNSAS to the Sicily Region, received an immediate take-off order from the operations room of the Rescue Coordination Center of the Italian Air Force Aerospace Operations Command stationed in Poggio Renatico (FE).
The crew took off at around 14:10 and within a few minutes reached the field in Castellammare del Golfo, where they embarked the team made up of two CNSAS operators.
At 14:45, the military helicopter reached the path overlooking the sea, where it carried out the rescue operation (¹), rescuing the traumatised man, who had a suspected fracture of the left lower limb. The rescue operation was made possible thanks to the use of the winch and the close cooperation between the Italian Air Force air rescue personnel and the CNSAS team.
At 15:20, rescue operations were completed with the landing of the helicopter on the designated pad at the Sant’Antonio Abate Hospital in Trapani, where the trauma patient was immediately entrusted to medical care.
Subsequently, at around 16:00, the military helicopter returned to Trapani air base, home of the 82nd CSAR Centre, where it resumed national SAR readiness.
The 82nd Combat Search and Rescue Centre is one of the units of the 15th Wing of the Italian Air Force which guarantees, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, without interruption, the search and rescue of flight crews in difficulty, also contributing to public utility activities such as the search for missing persons at sea or in the mountains, emergency medical transport of patients in imminent danger of life and the rescue of severely traumatised patients, operating even in extreme weather conditions.
Since its establishment to date, the crews of the 15th Wing have saved more than 7,500 people whose lives were in danger. Since 2018, the Unit has acquired firefighting capabilities, contributing to the prevention and fighting of fires in Sicily.
