Combat Rescue Officer

Combat Rescue Officer (CRO) is a commissioned-officer career field within United States Air Force Special Warfare. The specialty was established on 8 December 2000 to strengthen the officer leadership and command-and-control component of Air Force personnel-recovery operations. Its purpose was to provide officers whose operational abilities paralleled the field capabilities of enlisted pararescuemen while adding responsibility for planning, directing, coordinating, and evaluating rescue missions at strategic, operational, and tactical levels. CROs specialize in combat search and rescue (CSAR) and the wider military personnel-recovery mission. Their work covers the six principal personnel-recovery tasks: preparing forces and plans, reporting isolated personnel or materiel, locating them, supporting them during the recovery process, recovering them, and reintegrating them after return to friendly control. A CRO may command rescue forces directly, coordinate aircraft and ground elements, advise a combatant commander or joint battle staff, and manage rescue activities across a theater of operations. The career field combines command responsibilities with demanding operational qualifications. CROs plan and lead missions involving rescue aircraft, pararescue personnel, Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape specialists, and joint or coalition partners. Depending on the mission, they may coordinate air, ground, and maritime recovery operations, including terminal-area control, tactical insertion and extraction, airborne operations, amphibious activity, technical rescue, and aviation support. They also assess force readiness, inspect and evaluate rescue organizations, and ensure that personnel and equipment are prepared for the full range of joint personnel-recovery tasks. The selection and training pipeline is designed to test endurance, judgment, leadership, and performance under sustained physical and psychological stress. Applicants first undergo a professional review emphasizing military experience, academic performance, and leadership. Candidates selected for the next stage complete demanding assessment activities that have included running, swimming, and loaded marches. Successful candidates then proceed through a sequence of Air Force, Army, Navy, and joint courses covering physical conditioning, parachuting, combat diving, underwater aircraft escape, survival, military free fall, advanced SERE, ground-force command, aviation employment, and joint aerospace command and control. The specialty's formal Air Force Specialty Code is 19ZXC. CROs are trained to command and control rescue assets rather than serving merely as mission administrators. Their responsibilities include developing personnel-recovery plans, coordinating the reporting and location of isolated personnel, directing recovery and evacuation, managing debriefing and reintegration, and advising commanders on the readiness of rescue forces. They may also serve as subject-matter experts within theater personnel-recovery structures and battle staffs. The first three CROs were assigned in 2001. Among them was Vincent Savino, who later became the first commander of the 38th Rescue Squadron, activated that year. The career field remains associated with the Air Force rescue and Special Warfare enterprise and supports conventional, special-operations, joint, and coalition personnel-recovery missions. It is not a consumer brand or commercial product line; rather, it is a specialized military occupational and leadership designation operated by the United States Air Force.

The Combat Rescue Officer specialty was created by the United States Air Force on 8 December 2000. Its creation reflected the need for commissioned officers who could provide operational leadership and command-and-control expertise within personnel-recovery missions while possessing a practical skill set aligned with the work of enlisted pararescuemen. The specialty was assigned Air Force Specialty Code 19ZXC. The first three Combat Rescue Officers were assigned in 2001. That year also saw the activation of the 38th Rescue Squadron, whose first commander was Vincent Savino. The new officer field gave Air Force rescue formations a dedicated command track for planning and directing complex recovery operations, rather than relying exclusively on leadership drawn from other officer specialties. CRO responsibilities span strategic, operational, and tactical activity. Officers organize, train, and equip assigned personnel; advise commanders and battle staffs; develop theater personnel-recovery plans; coordinate rescue aviation and ground forces; and direct missions to locate, support, recover, and evacuate isolated personnel or materiel. After a recovery, they also coordinate debriefing and reintegration into friendly control. Their work can support conventional military operations, special operations, and joint or coalition missions. The training pipeline is deliberately broad. Candidates first pass a selection process based on professional qualifications, academic achievement, leadership, and performance under severe physical demands. Follow-on training has included Air Force combat-rescue and pararescue indoctrination at Lackland Air Force Base; Army airborne training; Air Force combat-diver instruction; underwater egress training; basic survival; military free-fall parachuting; advanced SERE; the Air Force Combat Rescue Officer Entry Level Course; Joint Personnel Recovery instruction; and joint aerospace command-and-control education. The sequence is intended to produce officers capable of controlling ground and aviation support during dynamic recovery operations while understanding the technical and environmental conditions faced by rescue personnel. The entry-level course develops ground-force commander competencies, including leadership, weapons, small-unit tactics, communications, mobility, technical rescue, and field craft. It also covers employment methods such as fast roping, rope ladders, hoists, rappelling, amphibious operations, static-line parachuting, and military free fall. Graduates are qualified as non-rated officer aircrew on designated rescue aircraft, subject to the requirements of their assigned units and subsequent training. Combat Rescue Officers continue to support the Air Force personnel-recovery enterprise as commanders, planners, evaluators, and operational advisers. The field is a military profession rather than a commercial brand, and its public description focuses on mission responsibilities, selection, training, and integration with the wider Air Force rescue and Special Warfare structure.

• 2001

  First CROs assigned

  [1]United States Air Force Combat Rescue Officeren.wikipedia.org

  The first three Combat Rescue Officers entered assignment, establishing the initial officer cadre for the new specialty.

• 2001

  38th Rescue Squadron activated

  [1]United States Air Force Combat Rescue Officeren.wikipedia.org

  The 38th Rescue Squadron was activated, with Vincent Savino identified as its first commander.

• 2000

  Combat Rescue Officer specialty established

  [1]United States Air Force Combat Rescue Officeren.wikipedia.org

  The United States Air Force created the Combat Rescue Officer career field on 8 December 2000 to provide commissioned-officer leadership for personnel-recovery and combat search-and-rescue operations.

A specialized United States Air Force officer career field combining combat rescue leadership, personnel-recovery expertise, and command-and-control responsibility across strategic, operational, and tactical levels.

• Military officer specialty · 2000

  Combat Rescue Officer career field

  The core Air Force Special Warfare officer specialty for commanding and managing combat search-and-rescue and personnel-recovery operations. CROs plan missions, coordinate rescue assets, advise commanders, assess readiness, and direct recovery and reintegration activities across tactical, operational, and strategic levels.

• Military training

  Combat Rescue Officer Entry Level Course

  The initial qualification course at Kirtland Air Force Base that develops ground-force command and rescue-employment competencies. Instruction includes leadership, weapons, tactics, communications, technical rescue, mobility, aviation integration, hoist and rope operations, amphibious skills, and precision parachuting.

• Military selection and training

  CRO and Pararescue Indoctrination Course

  A physically demanding introductory course at Lackland Air Force Base that selects and prepares Combat Rescue Officer and pararescue candidates. Training includes swimming, running, strength and conditioning, water confidence, obstacle courses, rucksack movement, and academic preparation for advanced rescue instruction.

• Military qualification

  Advanced personnel-recovery training pipeline

  A sequence of joint and service-specific courses covering airborne operations, combat diving, underwater egress, survival, military free fall, advanced SERE, joint personnel recovery, and aerospace command and control. Together these courses prepare CROs to lead recovery operations in complex air, land, maritime, and hostile environments.

1. 1United States Air Force Combat Rescue Officeren.wikipedia.org
2. 2Combat Rescue Officer fact sheetaf.mil