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NEWS | Aug. 27, 2025

Alaska Air Guard Rescues Individual With Facial Laceration Near Knik Glacier

By Alejandro Pena, Alaska National Guard

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — Alaska Air National Guard members with the 176th Wing rescued an individual with a facial laceration Aug. 25, about 40 miles northeast of Anchorage in the vicinity of Knik Glacier.

The Alaska Rescue Coordination Center opened the mission in response to a request for assistance from the Alaska State Troopers.

The Alaska Air National Guard accepted the mission and dispatched a 210th Rescue Squadron HH-60G Pave Hawk with 212th Rescue Squadron Guardian Angels on board from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

The HH-60 crew spotted the injured individual with a companion and identified a suitable clearing for landing. Once on the ground, Guardian Angels controlled the patient’s facial bleeding by packing the wound. The two individuals were then transported and released to Providence Alaska Medical Center.

The Alaska Air National Guard’s 176th Wing rescue personnel are trained to respond anytime, anywhere, to save lives across Alaska’s vast and austere terrain.

 

 

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