PRK stands for Personnel Recovery Kit: a regional supplemental kit in the US Air Force model for personnel at high risk of isolation. It supplements general survival equipment with items for evasion and possible recovery in a particular operating area. Selection is matched to the local personnel recovery plan and the intended recovery capabilities.
Region and PR plan
The regional requirement affects the information and contact aids in the kit. The evasion chart must cover the relevant area; a prepared language aid must contain the language needed for an actual encounter. The person can then use geographical information for that area or point to a suitable statement. Night-signalling devices serve to mark the person's position or agreed contact point during an actual personnel recovery contact. Their intended use is matched to the associated personnel recovery procedures.
PRK equipment in the EPA
PRK equipment is recorded in the Evasion Plan of Action before the mission. During an actual recovery attempt, the equipment information is passed to the coordinating personnel recovery organisation. It describes the charts, language aids and signalling devices intended to be carried, and the means with which the person's prepared contact or signalling actions were to be carried out.
AMC carriage model and Personal Survival Kit
The US Air Mobility Command (AMC) carriage model provides for issuing the PRK before an overseas mission and carrying it on the person while performing operational duties. This can leave the supplemental kit with its carrier if they become separated from their main baggage. The regional chart or language aid can then be used from the kit that remains.
A Personal Survival Kit groups personal survival items; this name is also used for a separate kit in US Army SERE training. A PRK can likewise include items for basic survival needs. Its additional selection is determined by the operating area and the personnel recovery plan. As with a PRK, carrying a personal survival kit on the body helps keep its contents with the wearer if they become separated from their main baggage.