A search and rescue crew from NAS Whidbey Island assisted in yesterday’s rescue of two boys trapped under snow and ice on Snoqualmie Pass.

The five-person crew, made up of two pilots, two aviation warfare systems operators and one hospital corpsman, launched from the air station at 6:30 p.m. in Firewood 2, an MH-60S Knighthawk. After a short transit, they were on scene and made a few passes through the area to locate a safe area for pickup.

“It was a challenging mission,” said Lt. Cmdr. Nelson Craig, helicopter aircraft commander, in a Navy news release. “The steep canyon walls and 150-foot trees made it a bit more difficult to locate a safe place to put down the hoist, located on the right side of the aircraft, for the litter.”

Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Greg Highfill rappelled down to the boys, secured them for travel before hoisting them back into the aircraft for transit to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

The Knighthawk is a twin-engine, medium lift, utility helicopter. Initially acquired by the Army 1979 and commonly misidentified as an Army Black Hawk, Coast Guard Jayhawk or Air Force Pave Hawk, the Navy’s Knighthawk is painted with traditional orange markings to clearly identify its search and rescue mission.