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File: 123096_sep96_decls2_0032.txt
Subject: MEDICAL OPERATIONS DURING OPERATION DESERT STORM 9 NOV 91
Unit: VAR. BUMED
Parent Organization: BUMED
Box ID: BX303801
Folder Title: VARIOUS BUMED DOCUMENTS FOLDER 6
Document Number: 2
Folder Seq #: 10
re.mi-lating. Staffing for sub-area II JMRO was provided by a Navy medical regulating
team and additional Army and Air Force personnel provided by CINCCENT.
The Air Force aeromedical evacuation concept of operation promulgated in
August gave each component responsibility for medical evacuation from the point of
injury to initial treatment sites and from forward sites to designated interface points
with aeromedical evacuation aircraft. Each service was responsible for transfer of
patients within the component forward area of operations. Medical battalions with
Marine Corps forces have organic transportation (ambulances) to transport patients
from battalion aid stations to echelon III facilities or evacuation sites. After the
ground war began, however, Marine Corps forces were deployed so far forward of
echelon III facilities, tactical lift using C-130s was required.
In early August, CINCCENT tasked ARCENT with providing air ambulance
support to the hospital ships. Twelve Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters deployed
to the CENTCOM AOR to support ship-to-shore patient evacuation for USS Mercy
and USS Comfort and, as a secondary mission, to provide logistics support to theater
medical facilities. Because of reduced hospital-ship patient transportation require-
ments before hostilities, two of the Blackhawks were used to transport FH-5 pa-
tients to strategic medical evacuation hubs or the hospital ships. The Blackhawks
remained under ARCENT command and control, which led to some disputes over
their best use during the period before hostilities. The use of dedicated helicopters
proved to be the best method of transporting patients to and from the hospital ships.
rrent limitations of equipment usually preclude trnn-fer to the
hospital ships at sea, dedicated helicopter lift for the hospital ships is required.
The Air Force provided evacuation assets for patient transfer to Europe and
CONUS using both dedicated aeromedical evacuation missions and retrograde
C-141 aircraft. The p@ sites for intertheater patient evacuation were located in
Bahrain, Dhahrqn, Riyadh, and Al Jubayl. Each strategic evocation site was sup-
ported by an aeromedical staging facility (ASF) or a mobile ASF (@F), an
aeromedical evacuation liaison team (AELT), an aeromedical evacuation control
element (AECE), and aeromedical evacuation (AE) crews. ASFs and @Fs pro-
vided supportive medical care to patients awaiting transportation. The AELTs
initiated requests for aeromedical evacuation from the AECC. The AECES, a compo-
nent of the AECC, exercised operational control over AE crews, assisted in staging
the crews, supervised ground handling and onloading and offloading of casualties,
ensured proper aircraft configuration, and performed other functions.
-23-
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Document 57 f:/Week-37/BX303801/VARIOUS BUMED DOCUMENTS FOLDER 6/medical operations during operation desert storm:1217961126393
Control Fields 17
File Room = sep96_declassified
File Cabinet = Week-37
Box ID = BX303801
Unit = VAR. BUMED
Parent Organization = BUMED
Folder Title = VARIOUS BUMED DOCUMENTS FOLDER 6
Folder Seq # = 10
Subject = MEDICAL OPERATIONS DURING OPERATION DESERT STORM
Document Seq # = 2
Document Date =
Scan Date =
Queued for Declassification = 01-JAN-1980
Short Term Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Long Term Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Permanent Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Non-Health Related Document = 01-JAN-1980
Declassified = 17-DEC-1996