Combat rescue officer takes command of pararescue squadron

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Leslie Forshaw
  • 920th Rescue Wing Public Affairs
PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Maj. John Fish assumed command of the 308th Rescue Squadron Sunday in an open-air ceremony during the 920th Rescue Wing's Unit Training Assembly. The 308th RQS falls under the 920th RQW which is an Air Force Reserve combat search and rescue unit dedicated to rescuing downed service members behind enemy lines as well as providing rescue support to civilians in distress.

Fish replaced Lt. Col. Kurt Matthews who has served as the 308th RQS commander since July 2010. Matthews has taken the position as the HH-60G Pave Hawk functional area manager and personnel recovery subject matter expert at AFRC Headquarters, Robins Air Force Base, Ga. He will be responsible for coordinating between helicopter crews and the Guardian Angel Weapon Systems (GAWS).

Fish moved up to commander from the director of operations of the 308th RQS. He has been with the Guardian Angels here since April 2006. He graduated from the Citadel Military College of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering. He cross-trained into the combat control career field as a special tactics officer where he eventually became flight commander of the 24th Special Tactics Squadron. While at the 24th STS, Fish led numerous joint operations to include the first U.S. combat parachute jump in 12 years. He also led a second combat parachute jump just two months later when he led special operators into an austere desert landing strip in Afghanistan. After a five-year break in service, Fish returned to the Air Force Reserve as a combat rescue officer at the 308th RQS.

Fish is a combat veteran who has participated in numerous joint special operations missions and tactical deployments to include Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom and various other classified operations worldwide.

"Over the last year, Maj. Fish consistently impressed me," said Col. Mark Blalock, 920th RQW operations group commander. "So the choice to make him commander was very easy."

As commander of the 308th RQS, Fish is responsible for approximately 90 personnel, including pararescuemen, combat rescue officers, survival evasion resistance escape specialists (SERE) and support personnel. When mobilized, the squadron is assigned to Air Combat Command.

"Rescue is a noble mission," said Fish. "You put yourself in harm's way to save another."

The Guardian Angel Team is an elite group of Air Force Reservists. According to the pararescue fact sheet, they are the only team in the Department of Defense specifically trained and equipped to conduct conventional and unconventional rescue processes, making them the ideal force to handle personnel recovery and combat search and rescue operations.

To accomplish this mission, PJ's deploy around the world via the air, land and sea into a wide range of environments to extract, treat, stabilize and evacuate injured personnel. Additionally, PJs are among the most highly trained emergency trauma specialists in the U.S. military and they must earn and maintain an emergency medical technician paramedic qualification throughout their careers.

Their medical and rescue expertise, along with their deployment and combat capabilities, allows PJs to perform life-saving missions anywhere in the world, at any time. Their motto, "That Others May Live," reaffirms the PJ's commitment to saving lives and self-sacrifice. Without PJs, thousands of service members and civilians would have been unnecessarily lost in past conflicts and natural disasters.

"Fish is truly a national treasure," said Blalock. "He's a family man and a military man. We are excited to have him as commander of the 308th Rescue Squadron."

For more information on the 920th Rescue Wing, visit their website and "Like" their Facebook page.