Use jungle experts: A smarter way forward for SAR in Guyana

Dear Editor,
In the ongoing discussions surrounding the recent ASL Caravan accident and many others before it, one idea continues to surface again and again: the role of our indigenous communities in search and recovery operations.
And it’s a conversation we can no longer treat as a passing thought.
If we look at the history of aviation incidents in Guyana, a clear pattern emerges. The majority of crashes occur in the Mazaruni, Potaro, and surrounding interior regions. These are not empty, unknown lands. These are areas where indigenous communities have lived, worked, and navigated for generations.
In many cases, it has been a villager who first heard the aircraft, a hunter who noticed something unusual, or a farmer who pointed search teams in the right direction. Before GPS tracks and satellite overlays, it was local knowledge that often broke the case open.
That reality still exists today. Our indigenous brothers are natural jungle operators. They move quickly through terrain that slows even the most trained soldier. They understand the land instinctively. They don’t need formal jungle survival training or even a compass to orient themselves. The jungle is not an obstacle to them; it is home.
At the same time, many of them choose not to be enlisted in the military, and that must be respected. Their lives are built around their communities, their farms, their hunting, and their traditions.
So instead of trying to pull them into a system that doesn’t fit, why not build a system that works with them? It is time to consider establishing a structured Indigenous SAR Support Program across key interior regions.
This would involve identifying and training a small number of volunteers, perhaps four per village, in strategically located communities near high-risk aviation corridors. These individuals would not become soldiers but trained support personnel who can be activated when needed.
The training should be practical and focused: basic helicopter safety and insertion/extraction procedures, so they can safely work around aircraft; radio communication and signaling, allowing direct coordination with GDF units; basic GPS use to complement their natural navigation skills; photography and documentation of crash scenes to assist investigators; body recovery and respectful preparation of remains; chainsaw operation for cutting access paths through dense vegetation; and basic first aid and casualty handling.
Once trained, these individuals return to their normal lives in their villages but remain part of an on-call network. When an incident occurs, they can move immediately.
In many cases, they may reach the crash site faster than any external team, especially when weather, terrain, or aircraft limitations delay the response. They can secure the area, provide an initial assessment, guide incoming military units, and in some cases, begin the early stages of recovery.
This is not about replacing the Guyana Defence Force. The Special Forces and Air Corps will always remain the backbone of SAR operations. This is about enhancing their effectiveness.
Because the truth is, there will be times when aircraft cannot land, when helicopters cannot safely insert, and when weather shuts down aerial operations completely.
In those moments, the only people who can get there are the ones who already live there.
A structured program like this can be supported through a simple funding model. A small safety levy added to charter operations, combined with government support, can fund stipends, training, and basic equipment. Annual refresher training can keep skills sharp and ensure coordination remains seamless.
This approach has been used in various forms around the world, where local populations are integrated into SAR frameworks in remote environments. It works because it respects local knowledge while strengthening national response capability.
And in Guyana, it makes even more sense. We already have the people. We already have the knowledge. We already have the need.
What we don’t yet have is the structure. If we are serious about improving search and recovery in our interior, we must start thinking beyond aircraft and equipment alone.
Because in the jungle, technology will only take you so far. After that, it’s the man on the ground who makes the difference.
And in many parts of Guyana, the best man for that job is already there, waiting, watching, and ready to move.

Sincerely,
Capt. Miles Williams
(Former GDF/Special Forces /Military Pilot)