Helicopter rescue pilot helps Vita team coordinate with military
Vita Inclinata leaders understand the military can benefit the most from their innovative technology,
and
hired Carl Riedlin as VP of federal programs to
bring
helicopter rescue and federal government experience to the company.
Riedlin, who spent 31 years as a Coast Guard pilot involved in countless search and rescues, closing out his career as the Coast Guard’s chief of aviation.
“I’ve seen videos of taglines that got sucked into tail rotors and crashed the helicopter,” Riedlin related. And in combat situations, the sheer time
involved in stabilizing a litter leads to more opportunities for the enemy to shoot down the rotorcraft or attack the troops who are on the ground holding the litter lines.
“We’ve got National Guard units chomping at the bit to deploy this thing,” Riedlin said of Vita Inclinata’s invention, adding, “The great part about the National Guard is the dual purpose.” The Guard can use the system for military operations as well as local civilian rescues.
“I’ve dedicated myself to saving lives, and Vita shares this
passion,” Riedlin said.
“Their lifesaving technology transforms the way rescues are performed.”
Vita Inclinata has been working with the National Guard in 13 states to evaluate its Vita Rescue System (VRS) for operational effectiveness and suitability. An impressive video of a Montana National Guard Black Hawk exercise featuring Vita competing against a legacy rope system shows Vita finishing three hoists in the time that it takes a traditional system to complete just one hoist.
The U.S. Army bought 15 Vita Rescue Systems late last year. The VRS is undergoing environmental and operational testing at the Army’s Aeromedical Research Lab in Fort Rucker, Alabama. The Army’s National Guard units and active duty combat aviation brigades also will conduct operational user
evaluations.
The Air National Guard now has an appropriation in the books to purchase the rescue systems, Riedlin added, and the Coast Guard starts baseline testing this fall.
The civilian company Two Bear Air Rescue in Montana also has been helping to test the system.
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July/Aug 2022
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