Meritorious Service Cross

• Awarded on: February 20, 1989
• Invested on: May 03, 1989

In 1987, Master Seaman Goodwin was a member of a diving team working to salvage a Sea King helicopter which had made an emergency landing at sea. The aircraft sank in 240 feet of water, and the team had to contend with violent seas, strong underwater currents, the continuous cork-like motion of its diving tender and numerous setbacks in order to accomplish its mission. In early November, Master Seaman Goodwin and others operated a remote Deep Access Reconnaissance Television (DART) to gain the first positive contact with the aircraft. During a storm contact was lost, and initial relocation attempts from the surface were unsuccessful in the cold, rough seas. Contact was finally re-established and manned dives commenced 28-29 November, with Master Seaman Goodwin leading the third dive. On the sea bottom, a quick assessment based on his DART experience caused him to abandon an unproductive circle search and follow a magnetic compass bearing from the marker line. An un-scalable rock cliff blocked his way and he was forced to move around it, freeing his umbilical line from the rocks and sea current, before he could sight the aircraft and reach and mark the wreck. Both finding and marking the aircraft required great determination and physical effort, and exceeded the optimum bottom time. Diving and decompression time, with specialized breathing equipment which accelerated body heat loss, were almost doubled in extremely cold water. Although the marker was lost again during a subsequent storm, Master Seaman Goodwin's success provided positive knowledge that the aircraft was accessible and recoverable, and strengthened the spirit of the entire salvage team. Storms and shifting currents continued to complicate the operation, but, throughout, Master Seaman Goodwin's cheerful and positive attitude despite the adverse conditions, his unquestioning acceptance of all tasks and his position at the forefront of all activity, provided leadership and direction to the more junior divers. Under very difficult and dangerous conditions for all involved, his performance far surpassed that normally expected. Master seaman Goodwin's outstanding professional performance during the salvage operation was at a rare high standard and has brought great credit to himself, his unit, and the Canadian Forces.