Coast Guard careers
Coast Guard
ASTAviation/Rescue

Aviation Survival Technician

Perform search and rescue operations as rescue swimmers and medical technicians aboard Coast Guard aircraft.

ASVAB / entry requirement

ASVAB VE+AR+MK+AS: 210

Enlisted
Catalog rank range: E-1 to E-9Maximum rank: E-9Initial term: 6 years

Catalog listing, not a contract offer. Confirm with a recruiter.

Inside the AST Aviation Survival Technician job

What the job looks like

Aviation Survival Technicians are the Coast Guard's helicopter rescue swimmers, and the job is as demanding as its reputation suggests. Between cases you maintain survival equipment, pack and inspect rafts and dry suits, service hoists, and train constantly in pools, surf, and open water. When a call comes in you fly as aircrew and then deploy from a hovering helicopter into whatever the sea is doing that night. Because this is a Department of Homeland Security service running search and rescue on US coasts, the Great Lakes, and inland rivers, the people you pull out are usually American boaters, fishermen, and flood victims. Physical training is a daily obligation rather than an occasional event.

Skills you learn

You are trained to an emergency medical technician standard and practice trauma care in conditions no ambulance crew ever sees. Water rescue technique, surf entries, free diving, helicopter deployment, and survivor handling are drilled until they are automatic. You learn to rig and maintain hoists, rafts, survival vests, and aviation life support equipment to exacting standards. The rating teaches risk assessment in the water, including when a rescue attempt should not be made. Managing your own physiology under cold, exhaustion, and fear becomes a taught skill rather than a trait you hope you have.

What it builds in you

Few jobs build this kind of measured courage, the sort that keeps working while genuinely afraid. You learn to decide in seconds with incomplete information and to live with the calls that do not go well. Relentless physical discipline becomes part of your identity, because falling out of shape has consequences for somebody else. The rating produces people who stay steady when a situation turns chaotic and who reassure others by presence alone. It also builds humility, since the ocean hands it out regularly and never asks whether you were ready for the lesson.

How it pays off after service

Rescue swimmers leave with emergency medical training, real rescue experience, and a record that public safety hiring boards recognize instantly. Fire departments, paramedic programs, flight medicine, and beach and lifeguard safety services are the most direct destinations. Some move into helicopter operator crew positions, offshore energy medic roles, or contract work teaching water rescue to civilian agencies. Nursing and physician assistant programs draw a steady number of veterans from this rating using the GI Bill. The honest caveat is that nothing civilian is quite the same job, so most people build on the medical and rescue credentials instead of duplicating the role.

Service member stories

Published personal accounts with source links. Each describes an individual experience, not a typical assignment or a guarantee of your own experience.

“I have only been a rescue swimmer for about a year and fully qualified for about three months.”

“I got lucky with this rescue, but I was just doing my job!”

“It is the teamwork and leadership. When we got that call there were seven other rescue swimmers who were more experienced than I am. They trusted me and gave me the opportunity to go out there when any of them could have gone out. They took that initiative to make sure the newer person got the experience. It’s a great group of people and I could not be happier to be a part of this selfless community.”

— Petty Officer 3rd Class John "Branch" Waltonrescue swimmerCoast Guard Air Station Astoria (Advanced Helicopter Rescue School)

“The rescue was definitely one of the most challenging I have ever done, and it was the first one for me at night.”

“We flew into thick fog and strong wind, but because of the skill of the pilots I knew it would be okay. The knowledge of what was on the other end of our flight pushed us to keep going.”

— Petty Officer 2nd Class Darren Harrityrescue swimmerMH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew, Coast Guard Sector North Bend

“These cargo parachutes we are sewing and putting together are important, and it’s our goal to provide a high-quality product.”

“Our mission is to ensure the rescue gear being dropped from 250 feet at 150 mph to people in distress doesn't fail.”

— Petty Officer 1st Class Roderick Ansleyaviation survival technicianCoast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City

Quotes are from U.S. government public-domain news stories (DVIDS, army.mil and other official sources). Individuals and units are named as reported at time of publication.

A day in the life of an Aviation Survival Technician

Your morning is physical training and gear checks, laying out your wetsuit, fins, and rescue swimmer harness before mission standby. When the SAR alarm sounds you're airborne within minutes, then deploying from the cabin door on a hoist cable into heavy seas to reach survivors and package them for the litter. Off duty you maintain survival equipment, drill emergency medical scenarios, and keep your swim and dive quals current.

No suitable exact-MOS or related career-field video has been verified for this page yet. No unrelated video or search-results page is substituted.

Illustrative annual base pay

$43,902–$74,948

2026 basic pay only; the same grade and service time pay the same across jobs. Promotions are assumed, not promised. Excludes allowances, bonuses and special pays.

  • E-4 · over 4 years: $43,902
  • E-6 · over 10 years: $57,114
  • E-7 · over 20 years: $74,948
Allowances, special pays, pension and full breakdownDFAS 2026 source
Possible higher ranks and career paths

Possible higher ranks and career paths

For Coast Guard AST Aviation Survival Technician, official service-wide guidance and any exact feeder-list matches are distinguished below from unverified specialty-specific requirements. Ranks are not separate jobs, and these possibilities are not guaranteed promotions or available contracts.

Rank information for this listing

Rank Type
Enlisted
Catalog pay-grade range
Not independently verified for this specialty; no range asserted here.
Maximum Rank
Not independently verified for this specialty.

Examples of higher service ranks

E-5
Petty Officer Second Class
E-6
Petty Officer First Class
E-7
Chief Petty Officer
E-8
Senior Chief Petty Officer
E-9
Master Chief Petty Officer

These are service-wide rank names, not a verified promotion ladder for this specialty. Examples are not exhaustive; appointments sharing a pay grade are not additional promotion steps.

Official military rank reference

The October 2026 Reserve Servicewide Examination announcement makes advancement conditional on rating/pay-grade qualifications and command recommendation, with rating-specific examination exceptions. Its scope is Reserve E-5 through E-7, not every grade or active-duty cycle. It does not establish a promotion ceiling for this listing.

Coast Guard October 2026 Reserve advancement examination

Higher career paths — not verified

Service-level application reference—not a verified next step for this listing

Officer Candidate School is a separate competitive commissioning pathway open to Coast Guard enlisted members. This general program does not establish individual eligibility or a transfer to any particular officer specialty. Warrant appointments have separate requirements; no rating-to-warrant feeder match is asserted here.

Coast Guard Officer Candidate School

Specialty-specific advancement, senior assignments, and eligibility for a different personnel category have not been verified for this listing. No feeder eligibility or automatic transition to another specialty is implied.

Advancement depends on current service rules, performance, required education, qualifications, selection, and authorized positions—not simply years served. Confirm current requirements with an official recruiter or career counselor.

Related military jobs below are for exploration, not promised progression or confirmed transfer paths.

Sources reviewed 2026-10-03. This is a partial evidence review, not verification of every advancement route for this specialty. Source retrieval dates do not replace policy effective dates.

Civilian careers related to Aviation/Rescue

Firefighter$58,910 / year medianEmergency Management Director$83,960 / year medianOccupational Health & Safety Specialist$81,140 / year median

Career-field mappings, not automatic qualifications. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024 national medians). O*NET links explain each occupation; military experience does not guarantee a job or salary.

Categories & Specializations

Aviation
Search and Rescue
Non-combat

AST questions, answered

What does Coast Guard AST Aviation Survival Technician do?

Perform search and rescue operations as rescue swimmers and medical technicians aboard Coast Guard aircraft.

What can day-to-day work in Aviation Survival Technician look like?

Aviation Survival Technicians are the Coast Guard's helicopter rescue swimmers, and the job is as demanding as its reputation suggests. Between cases you maintain survival equipment, pack and inspect rafts and dry suits, service hoists, and train constantly in pools, surf, and open water. When a call comes in you fly as aircrew and then deploy from a hovering helicopter into whatever the sea is doing that night. Because this is a Department of Homeland Security service running search and rescue on US coasts, the Great Lakes, and inland rivers, the people you pull out are usually American boaters, fishermen, and flood victims. Physical training is a daily obligation rather than an occasional event.

What skills does Coast Guard AST Aviation Survival Technician develop?

You are trained to an emergency medical technician standard and practice trauma care in conditions no ambulance crew ever sees. Water rescue technique, surf entries, free diving, helicopter deployment, and survivor handling are drilled until they are automatic. You learn to rig and maintain hoists, rafts, survival vests, and aviation life support equipment to exacting standards. The rating teaches risk assessment in the water, including when a rescue attempt should not be made. Managing your own physiology under cold, exhaustion, and fear becomes a taught skill rather than a trait you hope you have.

How can Aviation Survival Technician experience translate after service?

Rescue swimmers leave with emergency medical training, real rescue experience, and a record that public safety hiring boards recognize instantly. Fire departments, paramedic programs, flight medicine, and beach and lifeguard safety services are the most direct destinations. Some move into helicopter operator crew positions, offshore energy medic roles, or contract work teaching water rescue to civilian agencies. Nursing and physician assistant programs draw a steady number of veterans from this rating using the GI Bill. The honest caveat is that nothing civilian is quite the same job, so most people build on the medical and rescue credentials instead of duplicating the role.

What entry requirement is listed for Coast Guard AST Aviation Survival Technician?

ASVAB VE+AR+MK+AS: 210. This is the catalog's listed requirement, not an individual eligibility decision. Confirm the current standard and any exceptions with the service.

Can a civilian enter Coast Guard AST Aviation Survival Technician directly?

This specialty can be pursued through an initial enlistment, subject to eligibility and available contracts. Confirm the current status of this specific classification with an official recruiter.

Related military jobs

Browse all military jobs
Sources & Review

Catalog sources consulted: 2026-09-26. This is not an entry-by-entry verification date. No record-specific verification date is recorded. Occupation audit evidence reviewed: 2026-09-26; this does not re-verify every requirement.

Official branch occupation evidence

Occupation identified. This occupation was identified in the cited source. This does not verify requirements, benefits, or a current opening.

Official occupation evidence · reviewed 2026-09-26

Confirmed. Catalog evidence is not an inventory of open contracts.

No dated public inventory confirmed a currently open recruiting contract for this role. This does not mean there are no openings. Confirm current eligibility and offers with an official recruiter.

Advertised — Coast Guard, as of 2026-09-28
Signal detailsListed as a specialty on the Coast Guard careers site. Source: Coast Guard official careers listing. This is not a statement that a contract is open for you.

Deployment likelihood: Moderate*

* Estimated. Rank progression and specialty-pay eligibility are illustrative assumptions. Deployment likelihood, when shown, is inferred from similar specialties in the branch and career field, not a published specialty deployment rate.

Descriptions may change. No military role is free from risk of injury or death, including non-combat work. Catalog review dates do not establish current openings or re-verification of every requirement.

Recruiting signals reflect what each branch published on the dates shown. They are not offers, and they do not mean a contract is open for you. Eligibility depends on your ASVAB scores, medical qualification, security clearance eligibility, and ship date. Confirm everything with an official recruiter. See our Disclaimer and Terms.

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