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Boost Human External Cargo Systems Inc., a leading provider of fixed line equipment for aerial rescue, will supply Parks Canada search and rescue (SAR) teams with the most advanced human external cargo (HEC) systems for light helicopters.
Parks Canada is currently transitioning to the Class D Fixed Line, HEC system provided by Boost Systems and as of March 2017, the following locations and programs will be fully operational with the new system:
- Jasper National Park (Alta.): Visitor Safety and Wildfire Management programs;
- Banff National Park (Alta.): Visitor Safety and Wildfire Management programs;
- Yoho and Kootenay National Park (B.C.): Visitor Safety and Wildfire Management programs;
- Mount Revelstoke-Glacier National Park (B.C.): Visitor Safety and Wildfire management programs;
- Waterton Lakes National Park (Alta.): Visitor Safety program; and
- Kluane National Park (Yukon): Visitor Safety program.
“Our HEC system is designed to place more rescuers in the field at one time and to evacuate more people to safety with fewer trips,” said Derek Thomas, president, Boost Systems. “The equipment dramatically improves personnel safety and helicopter utilization, aspects of aerial rescue operations that have not changed measurably for over a decade.”
Boost Systems specializes in HEC kits that handle a payload of up to 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms), effectively doubling the payload of most systems in use with the AS350/355 and the Bell 407. Boost Systems holds both Transport Canada and Federal Aviation Administration-issued supplemental type certificates (STCs) for the equipment (Bell 407 FAA STC pending), which is easy to install, does not use a bellyband and allows use with the helicopter doors on or off. The system has two independent releases, with the primary release on the cyclic giving the pilot full control of the system eliminating the need for a spotter.
