Capt_BJ
So Many Times
- Joined
- May 17, 2005
not exactly right . . .
up to a point you've got it. the ultimate decision on the cruise ship will be made by a Master and the Dr but if they believe a medivac is warranted they would then contact the nearest rescue coordination center, and for the US and much of the Carib that means the USCG. Cutting out the many additional steps, the USCG is going to get a USCG Flight Surgeon on the line (CG gets their doc's from US Public Health Service btw) and the FS will make the call on if the medivac is warranted and if so with what level of expedience.
At this time the case goes back to the RCC who must then look at available assets and the ship's location and weather. And then once again working with the Master a plan is established as to the best method of getting the victim to appropriate medical care. Appropriate is an important term at times as a helo to an island hospital is sometimes less desirable then keeping the person on board...location, location, location as they say. And often there just isn't a helo available...not within range by hundreds of miles.
I was fortunate during my years as Captain to on several occasions be in the right place at the right time and able to launch a helo from my ship, to a cruiseship for a hoist and transport to a hosp' - often Guantanamo - where, had we NOT been around, there would have been no medivac for another 24 hours or more. In this scenerio the cruse ship contacted the RCC and the FS advised the RCC this was a "no -sh*****" and they would pull out the stops. Sometimes we happen to have a ship with a bird on board in the right place at the right time. That's what we do . . . on the other hand while sitting with the fisherman in the Bearing Sea, altho we had a helo there was no hospital....often no land, within range of the helo
So far as USCG, I am not aware of a case in the last 30+ years where CG has landed on a cruise ship. From a flight perspective it is much safer to hoist then it is to land on an unfamiliar ship. Heck, a flight deck cutter needs dozens of landings a year to retain flight deck qualifications and regular recertification of all people and equipment. Landing on an 'unknown' is very very rare. A helo on deck with the rotor spinning is very unstable...they want to be tied down fast and doing that takes experience and specific training to the airplane. What is also a MAJOR concern is landing and having ANYTHING go wrong on the helo such that they can't take off agian. A VERY undesirable situation....we carried parts and mechanics... And God forbit there was an accident . . the pilots tend to appreciate a trained extraction and firefighting crew.
Has a private company ever done a hoist from a cruise ship? Well NEVER is a strong term but I'll just say that in my years doing that work I never saw or heard of it nor even heard of an entity other than USCG or USN, or another counties similar entity that would/could do it. If there's an air amb' company that does it that's news to me. Air amb' with fixed wing to move patients, absolutely ... ship evac's, nope can't say I've ever seen one of those. Outside of the US & Carib & Mexican Riveria & Bearing Sea, can't speak to those areas.
And if there's a place to land a helo on Magic or Wonder you've got to show it to me . . . those ships aren't even particularly hoist friendly IMO but I'm a ship driver and not a pilot. Yes I've seen cruise ships with "helo pads" .... I've just never seen anything actually land on one. I've see CG land on oil rigs and 'super tankers'; fairly stable platforms.
And btw .... if medivaced by USCG, be it helo or small boat, you don't get a bill so no insurance is required. Just smile as you pay your taxes. Now if we transported you to a hospital in Grand Cayman that's not our problem . . .
