by Ian Elliot
Northern News Services

NNSL (Nov 26/97) - You don't have to have the eyes of an eagle, but they certainly wouldn't hurt.

Yellowknife's Civil Air Search and Rescue unit is offering a training session beginning tonight for people who want to be spotters -- the volunteers who look out the windows of search planes to locate crash sites and survivors.

The unit is looking to recruit a few more people to bolster its ranks and is holding an introductory session this evening at the Northern United Place auditorium.

David Taylor of the unit says they only have about 25 certified spotters, a strength which would quickly be exhausted in the event of a major search.

Search planes are normally staffed by four individuals -- pilots, navigators and two spotters -- plus a search manager.

"Spotters take the least amount of training but they are definitely the most important position," he said. "Without them, you don't have a search."

The annual sessions usually attract about 40 people, he said. Tonight, volunteers will take in an overview of the organization, then in a follow-up session next Wednesday, participate in spotter ground training.

Certified spotter must take part in three training flights, he said, and a person must maintain their rating by taking two training flights each year. The number of spotters available to the unit is reduced when people do not maintain their qualifications or move away, he said.

Training for spotters consists of things studying techniques of looking for crash sites and the procedures followed in searches, he said.

There is no cost for someone taking the spotter course, but the actual work is unpaid, he noted.