What do I bring with me to a mission?
See the CATSAR Personal Equipment List for gear and equipment we recommend CATSAR members have available. While there are as yet no official CATSAR requirements about what stuff you must have when responding to a call-out, the better prepared you are, the safer you and your teammates will be when out in the field. Since an Incident Commander will never send out a search team without a handheld radio and GPS, it should be the goal of every CATSAR member to eventually own and be able to operate a radio and GPS. CATSAR By-laws prohibit bringing a handgun on a search unless the member has a NM Concealed Carry permit, the Incident Commander OKs it, and other search team members uncomfortable with the presence of a weapon are able to be reassigned. As an alternative to packing heat you may wish to keep a canister of pepper spray handy.