Photo By Matthew Ryan | Paratroopers carry a “patient” on a litter up the ramp of a C-130 Hercules during...... read more read more
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FORT BRAGG, N.C. - As bodies lay on litters secured by straps, paratroopers wait for commands from airmen to load the patients into the aircraft. A thumbs-up is given, and paratroopers hurry up the ramp of a C-130 Hercules to secure the patients inside the aircraft.
Paratroopers assigned to 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, conducted patient loading procedure training on a C-130 Hercules on Pope Army Airfield, Aug. 14-15.
Paratroopers involved in first aid and transportation of causalities conducted hands-on training loading and unloading patients into a fixed wing aircraft. For many soldiers in attendance, this was the first exercise of its kind they had participated in.
“This was the first casualty evacuation training I have received,” said Pvt. Brandon Sano, a medic assigned to Headquarters Battery, 2nd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd BCT, from Seattle, Wash. “The training was very educational, and it was good to get hands-on training.”
Having been in the unit less then a year, he said he has been trained to transport patients by a Humvee. Sano said the most interesting thing he learned was the C-130 could hold up to 72 patients at one time, compared to a UH-60 Black Hawk that can only sustain about six patients.
Paratroopers in medical fields commonly train on rotary wing aircraft because of their maneuverability and ability to gain access to remote areas.
“Rotary wing aircraft can land almost anywhere, that is why we get more training on them,” said Sgt. Dustin Bell, noncommissioned officer in charge of evacuation, assigned to HHB, 2-319th AFAR. Fixed wing aircraft need an airstrip to land and takeoff. “I have conducted rotary wing aircraft training before but never fixed wing aircraft.”
He said the training was different in many ways, including the way they approach the aircraft, the way the litters are loaded and the amount of patients the aircraft can hold. When loading a Black Hawk, medics must approach from the side and be cautious of the moving blades overhead, whereas a C-130 is loaded from the ramp at the rear of the aircraft. Space limitations can also make loading procedures on a Black Hawk difficult, and the small size of the aircraft only allows a few patients to be transported at a time. The C-130 has room for dozens of patients to be transported in one trip, potentially allowing them to receive more acute medical attention faster.
The brigade medical planner, Capt. Jennifer Wilson, said the training is necessary for the upcoming Joint Readiness Training Center rotation where the medics might have to load patients into a fixed wing aircraft during training. She said the training is also necessary in case of an airfield seizure, which is an event paratroopers continually train for in the 2nd BCT.
With the completion of the exercise, paratroopers assigned to the 2nd BCT learned new techniques for properly loading and unloading patients into a fixed wing aircraft. The 2nd BCT is continually training its paratroopers to increase their, technical and tactical proficiency ensuring they are prepared for rapid deployment to anywhere in the world for any type of mission.
| Date Taken: | 08.15.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 08.20.2012 17:17 |
| Story ID: | 93543 |
| Location: | FORT BRAGG, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 366 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Hercules Training: The 2nd BCT conducts casualty evacuation exercise on C-130 aircraft, by Matthew Ryan, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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