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Art

The Grand Rescue

In the early morning hours of November 21, 1980, a large fire rapidly spread throughout the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Unable to help numerous people trapped on the upper floors of the 26-story luxury hotel, civilian authorities called the contacted the command post on Nellis AFB, Nevada, to ask for assistance. Fortunately, highly skilled rescue personnel assigned to the Air Force Reserve’s 302nd Special Operations Squadron were at Nellis AFB to participate in an exercise. Having already noticed smoke on the horizon and hearing reports on the radio, the members of the 302nd SOS quickly responded. Using the hoist system on their CH-3E helicopters, the Reservists rode the sling down, climbed onto the hotel balconies, and strapped the survivors in place so that they could be hoisted into the helicopters. The 302nd SOS were joined by active-duty Air Force personnel and six UH-1N helicopters assigned to the 57th Fighter Weapons Wing, Indian Springs AFS, Nevada, and the 1st Special Operations Wing, Hurlburt Field, Florida. Together, the three units rescued 93 survivors over the course of 38 trips. Their efforts, as well the devastating impact of the fire taking the lives of 85 people and injuring another 650, received national attention.

PHOTO BY: Senior Master Sgt. Darby Perrin
VIRIN: 180423-F-AB123-002.JPG
FULL SIZE: 0.18 MB
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