Ask a Naval Aircrewman

[kforbs126]

Originally Posted by Haasino

There's only two Rescue Swimmer Schools that I'm aware of... the 5-week Aviation RSS in Pensacola, and the 4-week Surface RSS here in Jacksonville. Sure you're not thinking of the Water Survival training centers that are located on multiple bases?

If you are talking about rescue swimmers that are ship personnel then that is it, unless they've changed the course recently. They are on ships for man overboard and all small boat ops.

[LT Guppy]

Originally Posted by kforbs126

If you are talking about rescue swimmers that are ship personnel then that is it, unless they've changed the course recently. They are on ships for man overboard and all small boat ops.

As of September, it as still just a week.

[Haasino]

Originally Posted by Guppy2010

As of September, it as still just a week.

That's weird... there is definitely a 4-week RSS here in Jax, and it's not for Aviation Rescue Swimmers. Now I'm curious how many types of Surface Swimmers there are...

[Haasino]

Here's an article from last year when the pool reopened following storm damage:

Rescue swimmer students returned to the NAS Jax Rescue Swimmer School (RSS) for the first time in months on Jan. 8, after debris from an old ceiling had fallen into the pool and caused a safety concern, shutting the building down for repairs.

The rescue swimmer course is a rigorous four-week endeavor, subjecting students to all types of mental and physical stress in a water environment. The end goal is to create a group of rescue swimmers who are at home in a water environment with calm, collected heads and good decision-making skills.

According to AWR2 Lyle O’Dell, instructor with the NAS Jax RSS, “We like to think of this course as: Would I trust this person to be able to save my mother or grandmother if she was drowning? We purposely subject these students to rigorous tests and harsh conditions, because in the real world, they could be the difference in life or death for an overboard Sailor.”

The students are selected by their respective ships to attend the course in either Jacksonville or San Diego, as all ships must have a minimum of two certified rescue swimmers before they can get underway. After arriving at either site, students attend both classroom courses and exercises in the pool designed to strengthen their lifesaving knowledge and swimming skills. Typical classroom training includes first aid and CPR, while pool training encompasses advanced swimming, use of all types of water gear, and rescuing a drowning victim with multiple injuries. The course progressively gets harder as the weeks go on, and the instructors never let up in trying to mold the students into experts in the water.

“We stress a crawl, walk, run mentality. This course is extremely challenging, and while I never like to see anyone drop on request, there can be no mistake that we need to weed out the students who just aren’t suited to do this job,” commented O’Dell.

“We will do everything we can to push these students to their mental breaking points, and the ones who cope and keep their heads in the game are usually the ones who make it. It’s a lot like the stress of basic training, but in a water environment, which is already uncomfortable for most.”

In addition to the indoctrination course described above, designated as CAT I, the RSS also offers a two-week CAT II “refresher” course and an aviation search and rescue course, the latter designed to teach senior enlisted how to document training and evaluations of rescue swimmers in their helicopter squadron or wing.

With the repairs to the RSS ceiling completed, the staff was enthusiastic about getting back to business.

“It’s great to have this facility back up and running, and we will remain committed to providing the best training to these students that we possibly can,” said NAS Jax RSS Officer in Charge Lt. Kevin Harrington. “The lifesaving skill sets we teach these Sailors are invaluable to the fleet.”

^ So it looks like there is a second school in San Diego... probably one for West Coast and one for East Coast.

[LT Guppy]

I've never really looked into it, just know that one of our SAR swimmers went to a school for about a week to either certify or recertify before we could get underway this summer.

[Haasino]

Originally Posted by Guppy2010

I've never really looked into it, just know that one of our SAR swimmers went to a school for about a week to either certify or recertify before we could get underway this summer.

Probably CAT II... that's a refresher.

[mmm3]

Thanks so much for answering all of these questions. It's very helpful! I wanted to ask if you know what the pipeline looks like for a reservist (non-FTS). Are the same jobs and platforms available? Does it depend on where you drill?