New Ways to Serve: Paddles and Drones
Two Auxiliary programs our district is developing
At recent flotilla meetings, flotilla leaders shared updates on two programs the Northwest District is developing: one that puts Auxiliarists in kayaks, and one that puts them behind the controls of a drone. Both are established national Auxiliary programs. Here is what they are and what it takes to take part.
AuxPad: Meeting Paddlers Where They Are
Paddlers are now a large share of the boaters who get into serious trouble. In Washington, paddlesports accounted for 61% of reportable boating deaths in 2023 and 2024, and most of those who died were not wearing a life jacket. Many paddlers never visit a marina, take a boating class or ask for a Vessel Safety Check, so the Auxiliary's usual outreach often misses them.
The Auxiliary Paddlecraft program, AuxPad, was created to close that gap. Its handbook describes it as safety outreach aimed specifically at paddlers, showing them through instruction ashore and example on the water how to recognize, avoid and handle dangerous situations. The program promotes life jacket wear and the Coast Guard's required safety equipment, and it was built in partnership with the American Canoe Association.
AuxPad has two parts:
- AuxPad Ashore is the foundation of the program: vessel safety checks of paddle craft, public education classes such as A Paddler's Guide to Safety, program visits, and informal talks at launch ramps, docks, shops and events. Members who are already instructors or vessel examiners can do this work with the qualifications they have, and any member with an interest in paddling can help.
- AuxPad Afloat puts qualified AuxPad Operators in kayaks, on the water, alongside the paddlers they are trying to reach. To qualify, a member must be basically qualified and demonstrate a set of paddling and rescue skills, including a five-mile paddle, deep-water capsize recovery and towing another boat, assessed by an AuxPad Qualifier. Operators also pass the Navigation Rules exam, complete the radio tasks from boat crew training and the annual Surface Operations and Team Coordination Training refreshers, and requalify every three years. Sit-on-top, pedal-drive and decked sea kayaks can be accepted as facilities; canoes, paddleboards and inflatables cannot.
Afloat patrols are run as carefully as any boat patrol. AuxPad Operators always paddle with a second vessel in sight, normally stay within half a mile of shore, keep a radio guard with 30-minute checks, and go out only in daylight with winds under 15 knots and seas under a foot. In waters as cold as ours, they also dress for immersion: a dry suit or wetsuit whenever the water is 65°F or colder, and a dry suit, hood and gloves at 50°F or below.
The safety message is simple and familiar: wear a life jacket, carry the right equipment, and know your limits and conditions. September's Parker Reef rescue shows why it matters.
Drones: Eyes in the Sky for Coast Guard Units
The Coast Guard has been adding small drones to its units since 2023, and its own short-range drone program has qualified nearly 500 pilots. The Auxiliary began bringing drones into its air program the same year, mainly to support search and rescue over the water.
Under the Auxiliary Short-Range Unmanned Aircraft System Remote Pilot program, qualified Auxiliarists can be designated to fly drones in support of Coast Guard units. To qualify, a member must:
- hold an FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate
- complete Incident Command System courses ICS-100, ICS-200, ICS-210 (or ICS-300) and ICS-800, and be current in Auxiliary core training
- pass a security background investigation
- be current in risk management training
Auxiliarists in several other districts already fly in support of their local Coast Guard units, and the program is now taking shape in Puget Sound. Sector Puget Sound has assigned an officer to work with the Auxiliary on setting it up, and Auxiliary leads have been named for the Northern Area and for Division 1. Here at Flotilla 11, Manny Eusebio has offered to lead the program's administration.
The Auxiliary also has a letter of intent with the Civil Air Patrol, which runs one of the largest volunteer drone programs in the country. One early idea is joint training in which a Civil Air Patrol crew brings and flies one of its drones from an Auxiliary boat.
Interested? Both programs are still taking shape in our district, and details will follow as they firm up. If either one interests you, now is a good time to start. A Part 107 certificate or the AuxPad skills qualification takes some preparation. For either program, talk to Manny Eusebio, FSO-OP.
Sources: Auxiliary Paddlecraft (AuxPad) Safety Program Handbook 16794.11A, January 2023; Auxiliary Response Directorate and HSToday (drone program); Washington State Parks, April 2025.