LOUISVILLE, Tenn. — A hiker suffering a medical emergency was rescued Wednesday afternoon by a Tennessee National Guard helicopter in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
The Tennessee Army National Guard’s 1-230th Assault Helicopter Battalion responded after the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency notified authorities shortly after 3 p.m. that a hiker was injured along the False Gap Trail, near the North Carolina border.
Task Force Smokey quickly assembled a UH-60 Blackhawk crew, which included pilots Chief Warrant Officer 4 Thomas McKnight and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andre Salas, crew chief Sgt. Gabriel Weston, and flight paramedics Sgt. 1st Class Giovanni DeZuani and John Sharbel. The helicopter departed Joint Base McGhee-Tyson at approximately 3:40 p.m. and arrived at the rescue site in about 12 minutes…