WINK News gets a look at Coast Guard search and rescue training

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CLEARWATER, Fla.- It’s your money and tens of thousands of dollars are spent each and every hour while the Coast Guard searches for a missing person or a missing boat.

Many times, searching for one person in a large ocean is tough, especially when crews have no idea where to start. Only WINK News went to Clearwater for some exclusive search and rescue training.

“It is expensive, the nature of aviation is expensive in itself,” said Lt. Casey Corpe.

There is a big price tag for the Coast Guard’s C-130 Hercules every time it gets deployed: $21,205 per hour.

“It is important that ‘maydays’ be held to those times when the boater is in distress,” Lt. Corpe told WINK News.

Other planes in the Coast Guard fleet range from $8,000 to $28,000 an hour in a search.

“It is extremely challenging, day time or night time, depending on what we are looking for.”

Searching for a missing person or boat by air, especially at higher altitudes, can be tough.

“At 500 feet, we are taught to things the size of a basketball, that’s what a person’s head looks like bobbing in the water,” said Corpe.

Once they spot something, the plane gets lower. For this mission, we got as low as 50 feet above the water, flying at 140 miles per hour.

“That’s intended for one purpose and that is to get the boaters attention, rightly so flying that low.”

But, often times when someone calls for help, they don’t have enough information to tell Coast Guard where to begin searching. Officials label this an uncorrelated mayday.

Corpe recommends, “file a float plan. A float plan can be something as simple as letting a loved one, relative or friend know where you are going.”

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