Go Bold #102: Major Dan Faux on the First Operational Night Rescue with the CC-295 Kingfisher

In this episode of Go Bold with Joetey Attariwala, we take listeners inside a historic Search and Rescue (SAR) mission that underscores the evolving capabilities of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).Our guest is Major Dan Faux, a Royal Canadian Air Force pilot who was part of the crew which executed the first-ever operational nighttime parachute rescue from Canada’s new Airbus CC-295 Kingfisher fixed-wing search and rescue aircraft.The mission spanning from July 14 to 15 was to rescue a person who was critically injured when crushed by his horse.The response was led by 442 Transport and Rescue Squadron from 19 Wing Comox. They launched a CC-295 Kingfisher and a CH-149 Cormorant helicopter at approximately 9:45 p.m. for what would become a 16-hour round-trip mission to an austere area roughly 185 kilometres west of Fort Nelson, BC.Shortly after 1:00 a.m. on 15 July, two SAR Technicians parachuted from the Kingfisher into a remote canyon about one kilometre from the casualty location. They navigated challenging terrain along a river to reach the injured person, delivered urgent medical care, and coordinated a successful helicopter extraction roughly two hours later.Following the extraction, the patient was transferred from the Cormorant helicopter to the Kingfisher in Fort Nelson and then flown onward to Prince George for higher-level medical treatment.The CC-295 Kingfisher entered operational service on 1 May 2025, replacing the legacy Buffalo and Hercules fleets and representing a generational shift in Canada’s fixed-wing search-and-rescue capability.You will hear Maj. Faux speak about the rescue, how the technologies in the Kingfisher is revolutionizing search and rescue in Canada, and how the platform continues to evolve.This episode, with its historic significance and first-hand perspective, is a great example of what we do best at Go Bold.For additional context on the RCAF CC-295 Kingfisher’s operational debut, I encourage you to listen to Episode #99 of Go Bold which covers the aircraft’s first operational rescue!Our thanks to Maj. Faux for his time and perspective on this milestone event in aviation and RCAF history.GO BOLD!