06/18/2026
Search Tactics and FTL courses.
Last night, members participated in an in-depth session on search tactics, patterns, and techniques. Topics included hasty searches, grid searches, contour searches, perimeter searches, purposeful wandering,sound sweeps, attraction and confinement methods, clue awareness, and matching the appropriate search pattern to the situation. Effective searching is far more than simply walking through the woods. It requires planning, discipline, communication, and an understanding of how lost persons behave.
We also completed the classroom portion of our new Field Team Leader (FTL) course, which was delivered over Tuesday night and Wednesday night. Combined with practical scenario evaluations and previous Field Team Member experience, this training will help us add up to 8 new FTLs to our roster, strengthening our operational capacity and leadership depth.
A huge thank you to the instructors who volunteered their time to develop and deliver this training. The continued growth of our team depends on members who are willing to share their knowledge and experience with others.