Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmer

Must be 30 years of age or younger.
America's Navy is always looking for the best and brightest to join our ranks. We offer competitive salaries, bonuses up to $40k and other benefits including a complete family healthcare package, tuition assistance, loan reimbursements, 30 days paid vacation annually, travel and much more. Careers in the Navy run quite the gamut.

When lives are on the line, Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmers (AIRRs) are exceptionally adept at answering the call. These brave men and women embody the courage of America's Navy - readily going into harm's way to complete their rescue missions in some of the most extreme environments imaginable.

Aviation Rescue Swimmers are a tightly knit group, dedicated to being the top helicopter emergency response unit in the world. They routinely put the safety of others before their own - applying intense physical and mental training to save lives in and out of the sea.

As an AIRR, you must be prepared to enter the most treacherous conditions to provide recovery and relief for rescue missions, humanitarian assistance and operational support.

AWS's belong to a diverse advanced technical community that is highly specialized to the platform they are assigned. AWS's operate various aircraft systems to support Surface Warfare (SUW), Search and Rescue (SAR), Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), Naval Special Warfare (NSW), Airborne Mine Countermeasure (AMCM), and Logistic missions onboard MH-60S aircraft. Members also serve as Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) pilots and payload operators.

Depending on your role, duties may include:

• Working as an aircrewman aboard a Seahawk helicopter, where the primary duties are to coordinate with the pilots to ensure success of various fleet missions
• Saving the crew of downed aircraft, people aboard stranded or capsized vessels at sea, or hikers and mountain climbers in danger
• Rescuing civilians during natural disasters and collaborating with other forces, such as the Coast Guard
• Delivering aid and supplies to other countries in humanitarian operations
• Providing support to Naval Special Warfare Operations
• Conducting surveillance in anti-submarine warfare and drug interdiction operations
• Operate radar, Forward Looking Infrared sensors, missile systems and door guns in anti-surface operations.
• Transporting troops and cargo to and from ships

Aviation Rescue Swimmers must be prepared to operate in any challenging environment. AIRR training is realistic and one of the most demanding, life-altering training programs in the Navy.

AIRR candidates undergo almost two years of training in advanced swimming/lifesaving techniques, helicopter mission equipment and crew-served weapons systems before reporting to their first squadron. Throughout training, candidates will be continually tested, mentally and physically, as they advance to more rigorous and challenging scenarios. Training includes:

• Water and land survival and flight safety (4 weeks at Aircrew Candidate School in Pensacola, FL)
• Search and Rescue Swimming Skills (5 weeks at Rescue Swimmer School in Pensacola, FL)
• Basic skills in Naval Aviation (14 weeks on average at Class "A" Technical School in Pensacola, FL)
• Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) techniques (2 weeks at SERE School in North Island, CA or Portsmouth, NH)
• Aircraft systems (28 weeks on average at a Naval Air Station)

Air Rescue Units

After graduation, an AIRR may be assigned to a helicopter command at sea or on shore duty in various locations throughout the U.S., including San Diego, CA; Norfolk, VA; Jacksonville, FL; China Lake, CA; Whidbey Island, WA; Key West, FL and many others.

Advanced Education & Training

Based on performance and the needs of the Navy, you could potentially be eligible to receive additional training in:

• EMT training
• Advanced Rescue Swimmer School (includes swift water, high seas, cave and cliff rescue training)

No college degree is required to become an AIRR, but a high-degree of difficulty and satisfaction come standard with nearly everything you'll do. Training is tough and ongoing.

To qualify for Rescue Swimmer Training, both men and women must:

• Meet specific eyesight requirements: uncorrected vision no worse than 20/100; correctable to 20/20 in both eyes with normal depth and color perception
• Meet the minimum Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) score: VE+AR+MK+MC=210 or VE+AR+MK+AS=210
• Pass a PST in DEP/Boot Camp
• Pass Class 1 Flight Physical
• Be 30 years of age or younger
• Must be a U.S. citizen and eligible for security clearance