Photo By OR-5 Mark Doran | Royal Australian Air Force Cpl. William Gill from Security Force Two at Multi National...... read more read more
TARIN KOT, Afghanistan - Australian and United States military personnel in Afghanistan reestablished a historic friendship which was kindled during the war in Vietnam.
U.S. Army medics from Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st General Support Aviation Battalion (2-1 GSAB), conducted medevac training for airfield defence guards from Security Force Two (SECFOR 2) at Multi National Base – Tarin Kot (MNB-TK).
Formerly known as the 82nd Medical Detachment and activated as a helicopter ambulance unit which deployed to South Vietnam in 1964, ‘Boomer Dustoff’ based its call sign and unit patch on the close relationship formed with Australian forces during the war.
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) personnel with SECFOR 2 are responsible for providing protection and safety for the personnel, infrastructure and assets on MNB-TK and during October made time to familiarize themselves with US medevac procedures and equipment.
Flight medic Staff Sgt. Michael A. Longhenry, 2-1 GSAB, said the training started with basic medical interventions as first responders for emergency care of the battle casualty and included intravenous cannulation which the Australians practiced on each other.
“We also showed the airfield defence guards the aero-medical configuration of the UH-60 Black Hawk and concluded the training with a flying demonstration of the jungle penetrator which is used for rescue hoists,” he said.
“Because the Australians and Americans are working so closely together it’s important to know what skills, equipment and training each other has so we are on the same page if we have casualties.
“There is not a big difference between our medical procedures and we had a lot of fun working with Australians.”
Section Commander Cpl. William Gill, SECFOR 2, said while his section were improving their medical skills by training with the US Army medical evacuation team, they were also developing courses of action in case of an air crash in the MNB-TK ground defense area.
“Practicing cannulation skills on each other has built on our skills as well as our confidence in performing this procedure which can save lives,” he said.
“As this is a multinational base it is vital for us to be familiar with the US procedures and equipment.
“The US Army is fairly advanced in their medical procedures and by knowing how they operate makes working with them easier for us.”
SFC Andrew S. Meyer, 2-1 GSAB, said the training with the RAAF personnel was a good opportunity to demonstrate international cooperation.
“As SECFOR are the quick reaction force at MNB-TK it makes sense for them to be aware of how we operate and interact with the medevac services the US Army provides,” he said.
“From my interaction with Australian troops I have found our militaries to be similar, but it is important where we are different to understand each other’s procedures in order to support each other.
“I enjoyed working and training with the Australian airfield defence guards – they were very attentive and asked lots of questions, which is very important in this environment.”
| Date Taken: | 10.13.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 10.15.2013 10:18 |
| Story ID: | 115157 |
| Location: | TARIN KOWT, AF |
| Web Views: | 955 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, SECFOR medevac training in Uruzgan, by OR-5 Mark Doran, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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