A G Company, 2-211th General Support Aviation Battalion, HH-60M Black Hawk crew chief hoists a hiker stranded on Matanuska Peak on July 2, 2026. The rescue required the hoist-capable helicopter due to the vertical terrain. (David Bedard/Alaska National Guard)
Alaska National Guard units rescued four people in remote areas over two days in early July, with six aircraft flying nearly 21 hours and using in-flight helicopter refueling twice to reach distant destinations.
The emergencies began July 2 when Alaska State Troopers called for a helicopter hoist to extract a critically ill patient from a remote residence on the Kantishna River west of Cantwell, about 212 miles from Anchorage.
The 176th Wing of the Alaska Air National Guard, based at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, dispatched an HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter and a four-engine HC-130J Combat King II plane.
The helicopter used a hoist to lower guard members near the residence, where they located the patient and hoisted him into the helicopter before being extracted themselves.
In a second request July 2, the National Park Service requested the rescue of a critically ill patient at a remote cabin near Mount McKinley, about 142 miles from Anchorage. A helicopter again lowered the airmen near the cabin, where they strapped the patient in to be hoisted to the aircraft. The patient was evacuated to Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage.
The HC-130J refueled the helicopter in-flight on both missions.
The third call on July 2 came from Alaska State Troopers, who requested the rescue of a stranded hiker on Matanuska Peak in the Chugach Mountains. The hiker had signaled an emergency using a satellite communications device.
The Alaska Army National Guard dispatched an HH-60M Black Hawk medical evacuation helicopter. The Black Hawk lowered a flight medic in a dynamic hoist to find the hiker.
During a dynamic hoist, the crew chief lowers the flight medic as the helicopter approaches the patient, preventing spinning and oscillation while reducing the time required for extraction.
McKinney said the hiker and the rescuer were hoisted back into the helicopter, which flew to Palmer Municipal Airport.
The fourth mission was on July 3, when Alaska State Troopers requested the rescue of a hiker near Gulkana who reported experiencing chest pain. The location is about 145 miles from Anchorage.
A Black Hawk crew treated the hiker on site, and hoisted the patient into the helicopter for transport to Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage.
The current medical conditions of those rescued were not immediately available.
The Alaska National Guard said the chances of rescue increase when people living or traveling in remote areas have satellite communication devices because cellphone coverage is often unavailable.
Two U.S. Air Force HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopters assigned to the 210th Rescue Squadron, 176th Wing, Alaska Air National Guard, conduct air-to-air refueling training with a 211th Rescue Squadron HC-130J Combat King II over South Central Alaska on April 2, 2026. The HH-60 is the 176th Wing’s primary platform for personnel extraction since the all-weather helicopter can land in a variety of remote locations. (Dana Rosso/Alaska National Guard)
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