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Don't worry if the rescue helicopter disappears for ten minutes after finding you. It will be making an automatic letdown to your exact position after locating your overhead at height. This is where the temptation to use speech is very strong, but should be resisted because this is when the homing signal from the ELT/SARBE is most needed. Speech should only be used as a last resort as, not only will it wear your batteries down, but also take priority over the homing signal used to fix your position. If you feel the need to do something, fire off a few mini-flares instead. Or scream.
Finally, once in the winch strop, don't grasp the hook, because of the possibility of shocks from static electricity.
Equipment
This needs to be for aviation use.
Rafts
Aviation liferafts are designed to vent to atmosphere in case of a problem, rather than into the liferaft itself, as is the case with marine ones (they could inflate in the cabin).
As it will float before it's fully inflated, tie it to the airframe (unless it's actually sinking), or a person, before inflating (in fact, it should be tied to at least one person as much as possible). Do this downwind, so it doesn't get damaged against the aircraft. To turn it upright in the water, get downwind, and place the cylinder, which is heavy, towards you. This weight, plus the wind, will help it to flip over. Once inside the raft, protect yourself as much as possible with the canopy, and get the sea anchor out. Buoyancy chambers should be firm, but not rock hard.
Lifejackets
An unconscious person needs 35 lbs of buoyancy to keep afloat, so make sure they are so capable, especially taking a fair bit of wear and tear. Automatically inflated types activate when a soluble tablet gets wet, which is no good in a water-filled cabin, as you will be unlikely to get out of the cabin entrance. Purloining them from airlines is also not a good idea, as they use one-shot jackets. The reason CO2 is used to inflate them is that it doesn't burn.
Immersion Suits
Immersion suits are useful, but they are not necessarily to keep you warm long-term, that is, to delay hypothermia, although that is part of their function - a good majority of deaths with a suit on occur well within any time needed for hypothermia to even set in. The real danger is inside the first two or three minutes, from cold shock response, which will reduce your capacity to hold your breath, and possibly set off hyperventilation, aside from contracting blood vessels and raising the blood pressure. At temperatures between 5-10°, the average capability for holding the breath reduces to about 10 seconds, if at all.
From 3-15 minutes, the problem appears to be keeping the airways clear – it can be quite frustrating trying to breathe while you're continually being splashed. It's not till 30 minutes have passed in average conditions that hypothermia starts to rear its head, and if you're not wearing a lifejacket, it will reduce your ability to use your arms to swim. Even the method of taking you out of the water can be dangerous if it causes the blood to pool away from the cardiovascular system – whilst in the water, its pressure against your body helps return blood from the lower limbs back to the heart – this support is removed once you are out.
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