State Helicopter Rescue Team Trains on Pa. Farm

April 18--In 1944, Paul Gilbert was at the helm of a B-17G -- known as the Flying Fortress -- when his plane was shot down over German skies.

The World War II bomber pilot survived the crash, and later escaped safely during a nighttime drive to France, his family said.

On Friday, Gilbert, now 92 and the proprietor of a 65-acre wheat and soy bean farm in West Manchester Township, got a glimpse of the military again as the U.S. Army's primary troop and cargo hauler, a 10,000-horsepower, double-rotor Chinook helicopter, touched down on what is technically his backyard.

Helicopter rumblings could be heard from miles away as it approached a field at Gilbert's Farm, which has also been a private airport since the 1970s, after a 15-minute flight from Fort Indiantown Gap.

Friday marked the second year that the Pennsylvania Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team (PA HART) conducted training exercises at the York County farm. PA HART is a joint partnership between the state Army National Guard, the Fish and Boat Commission and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency. It formed within the last two years in part because of natural disasters involved with water like floods or hurricanes, said Scott Grahn, a HART senior team leader.

Grahn said PA HART is prepared for any disaster, or emergency, like a hunter stuck in a tree or rescuing people from a roof during a flood. The group is even preparing for Pope Francis's September visit to Pennsylvania when he said millions of people will descend upon Philadelphia.

The plan for the day was to land the Chinook and two Black Hawk helicopters, unload inflatable boats and perform a dryland simulation of a hoist rescue. Two PA HART members would act as "victims" and be pulled up to the Black Hawks.

Typically, PA HART would be called in during a natural disaster to provide more assets to a local fire or rescue department, Grahn said.

But because of the weather -- there were lingering clouds and some wind Friday morning -- the Black Hawk helicopters didn't fly from Johnstown, said Ryan Walt, a strike team leader with PA HART.

Already on scene were a fire engine and ladder truck with West Manchester Township Fire Department, a West York ambulance and a water rescue vehicle from the Goodwill Fire Department in Jacobus. They were there to provide backup in case anything went wrong, for example, if a fire broke out in the Chinook. They were also there to get some experience around a helicopter and gain situational awareness in case they ever had to handle a natural disaster.

"Every day is a new learning day," said Brad Tracey, a water rescue instructor with the state Fish and Boat Commission and volunteer firefighter with Goodwill.

Tracey said the training exercise was all about safety.

"We need to educate the public about what these guys can do," he said of PA HART. "When you have a bad night with a lot of rain and you bring in the HART guys, you know what's to come and expect."

After landing at about 11:30 a.m., PA HART members poured out of the back of the helicopter. Pilots shut down the engines.

Team members then rushed out of the back, carrying three inflatable boat "packages," along with motorized engines. The boats were then transferred to the back of a trailer, which could then be used for a real-life situation.

"We couldn't do this without the support of the community," Grahn said during an "after action report" standing in a circle of HART members and firefighters. "We don't bring a lot of equipment. We depend on you for transportation as training moves forward."

Grahn described PA HART as an "all-encompassing" group that relies as much on the training of its members, many of whom work for Fish and Boat, as it does on volunteers with local fire companies. After all, "it starts at the local level," Grahn said, adding PA HART is there to provide any needed assets during an emergency as opposed to controlling a scene.

As the helicopter was prepared for takeoff, Grahn walked across the street to Gilbert's home.

Gilbert, who lives there with his wife Joyce, accepted a coin and PA HART patch and shook Grahn's hand, Grahn said.

The family said he was really happy to see the training and the Chinook. He hadn't been outside in some time, his grandson Paul Hurlbert said. Once the helicopter began taking off, the younger generation of the Gilbert family stood on the grassy field, taking videos and pictures with their cellphones, their grandparents sat on their front porch with a front row seat to it all.

What: Pennsylvania Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team (PA HART)

Who: Partnership between the state Army National Guard, the Fish and Boat Commission and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency

What: Responds to natural disaster or emergency, like rescuing people from a roof during a flood

Learn more: Watch videos of the team on its YouTube page Pennsylvania HART.

Copyright 2015 - York Daily Record, Pa.