A group of U.S. Marines rescued a wounded civilian stranded without food and water in the middle of the California desert last month, according to a service release.
While conducting a routine flight aboard a CH-53K King Stallion helicopter near Twentynine Palms, California, on Feb. 11, a crew of Marines assigned to the Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron One, or VMX-1, spotted a green flag waving from a boulder below.
“At first, I wasn’t sure what it was, but I asked the rest of the crew if they saw it,” said crew chief Sgt. Conrad Kerr. “When they didn’t, we decided to take another pass to confirm.”
The crew spotted a stranded off-road motorcyclist and quickly realized a swift intervention was needed. They landed their helicopter 500 meters from the individual’s location.
“We train for scenarios like this, and everyone in the crew knows their role to execute the rescue efficiently,” said pilot Maj. Dale Metcalf.
Once landed, Kerr and Gunnery Sgt. Theodore Young, the lead crew chief, walked up the hillside toward the injured individual to assess the situation.
“He had been out there for almost two days, completely out of water and food,” said Young. “When we reached him, he was conscious but clearly exhausted and in pain. He told us he had been hoping someone would see him before it was too late.”
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The man had broken his leg after flipping his motorcycle on an incline and as a result, he was unable to move himself to safety.
The Marines stabilized the man’s injuries and called range control at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, but were told by their chain of command that there were no available search-and-rescue personnel to assist.
So the Marines took matters into their own hands, loading him into their King Stallion and flying him to the Marines Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona.
The motorcyclist was transported to the Yuma Regional Medical Center, with the station’s Yuma Fire Department assisting in the medical efforts.
The man is expected to make a full recovery, according to the release.
“This mission reinforced the importance of vigilance and teamwork,” said co-pilot Capt. Ryan Hogan. “From spotting the distress signal to executing the rescue, the entire crew worked seamlessly to bring this individual to safety.”
The Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron One is tasked with the “operational testing and evaluation” of the King Stallion, the Corps’ newest heavy-lift helicopter, according to the release.
The King Stallion, first delivered to the Marine Corps in 2018, is capable of lifting 36,000 pounds and can move up to 27,000 pounds up to 110 nautical miles.
In 2023, a King Stallion and its crew recovered a downed MH-60S Seahawk Navy helicopter in the Inyo National Forest, California.
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.
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