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Fixed wing rescue fills essential lifesaving role

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Stacia Zachary
  • AFCENT Combat Correspondent
CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan --  The 76th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron here responds to emergency calls for every regional command within Afghanistan.

The detachment covers the dual role of providing casualty evacuation and personnel recovery/combat search and rescue. Based in the Helmund province, they respond to calls to rescue U.S. and coalition forces as well as Afghan National Security Forces and local nationals.

"As Air Force rescue crews, we use our personnel recovery and combat search and rescue skill set to conduct CASEVAC quicker and better than anyone in theater," said Lt. Col. Michael Guischard, 76th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron detachment commander.

The rescue team is comprised of the 76th ERQS, the 76th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Unit and the 46th ERQS/Fixed Wing. Within the Fever operations, there are three rescue crews, maintenance personnel and two HC-130P Hercules, or "King," aircraft. The rescue team consists of a pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer, navigator, radio operator, two loadmasters, three-to-four pararescuemen and/or a combat rescue officer as well as a flight doctor and critical care nurse. The aircrews and maintenance personnel are assigned to Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., while the PJs and doctors deployed from Nellis AFB, Nev. The critical care nurses are on loan from the Army.

"We have a doctor and nurse aboard so that we can provide a full continuum of care during transport. The PJs and CROs serve both as additional medical assets as well as provide security if the airfield we fly into is hostile," said Colonel Guischard. "We can pretty much handle any medical situation; our only limitation is infectious diseases."

The rescue forces are flying under the call sign Fever, a moniker used for the Air Force fixed wing rescue aircraft flown in Vietnam, and holding true to the name more than 30 years later. After six years of conducting medevacs and personnel recoveries without dedicated fixed wing assets, the Air Force decided this was an integral part of the mission that needed to be reestablished.

"There was fixed wing rescue in 2005 but for whatever reason, it wasn't considered an asset needed here," Colonel Guischard said. "But in April 2010, the Fever detachment stood back up."

The Air Force rescue teams hold true to their motto: Those things we do so that others may live. They are often identified through patches seen worn on their right shoulders. For Fever ops, theirs depicts an angel shielding the world.

"There are folks out there from every branch of service, every nationality that's alive today because of what they do," said Capt. Paul Boackle, 451st Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron Detachment 1 Aeromedical Evacuation Operations Team flight nurse. "They don't require thanks and that's a rare thing. Their reward is saving a life."

The area has steadily seen an increase of insurgent activity as more coalition forces move throughout Afghanistan and gain more foothold in insurgent territory. As such, more calls come over the radio requesting rapid recovery of injured servicemembers or innocent bystanders in locations that are extremely hostile. This type of mission demands a response team trained to rapidly respond to a 9-line medevac request usually in environments that are bare bases or in hostile terrain.

"Leadership decided that there was a crucial element missing in providing airborne medical care and decided to bring fixed wing rescue back into theater," the colonel said. "Fever brings with it a flexible dynamic transport vehicle to take care of the worst case scenario."

The rescue crews are trained to extract personnel in any environment. Recently, a coalition helicopter suffered a catastrophic malfunction and a Fever crew was launched to recover them. Since Fever stood up in April 2010, there have been nine personnel recovery missions.

"The Fever mission balances (combat search and rescue) and PR with aeromedical evacuation," Colonel Guischard said.

The rescue flights carry Guardian Angel teams consisting of pararescuemen and combat rescue officers who are highly trained in battlefield medicine and tactical operations.

"We carry PJs in the back of the plane so that we can land in any environment, hostile or otherwise, and be able to get to the wounded or downed personnel," the colonel said. "They not only provide protection for the crew, but also bring medical expertise when tending to multiple patients."

The Fever mission does not distinguish between American, coalition or local national. In keeping with esprit de corps and the "all in" concept, if a medical request comes through, the crew is ready to respond. The team works with both critical care air transport teams and British critical care air support team to attend to the wounded.

"We also fly emergency medical resupplies, like blood, to forward operating bases; do missions with critical care air transport teams and British critical care air support teams," Colonel Guischard said. "CCAST shows the integration into the coalition medical system and how we're able to support various people and missions all under the premise of one team, one fight."

"We have the same ethos as the Americans," added Royal Air Force Sgt. Mal Gristock, medic. "So we are both pushing to get the patients to their destination as rapidly as possible. In this aspect of war, it's about saving lives, not taking them."

Because Fever establishes a dedicated airframe medical assets can tap into, the burden of finding airlift or space on an aircraft has been eased a little.

"Working with the Americans allows us to be quite flexible," said RAF Senior Aircraftsman Shane Williams, medic. "Since this is a dedicated aircraft, it's a lot better for the patients as we don't have to contend for space on an aircraft that is full of personnel and cargo."

The rescue teams must remain on high alert during their 24-hour shifts. When a 9-Line medevac request drops, the teams need to be ready immediately.

"By having a consistent alert for a 24-hour span of time, you allow the other two crews the ability to maintain a normal sleep schedule which helps maintain readiness," said Capt. J.J. Pruitt, HC-130P King pilot. "We maintain a 30-minute alert so that if a 9-line drops, we can be ready to respond with wheels up in that amount of time. Once we launch, we have a secondary alert crew that can launch within 60 minutes of us should there be a need."

Since the current unit deployed in April, statistics show the importance of the Fever mission in Afghanistan. In two months time, there have been 157 missions consisting of 142 medevac, 13 CCAST, one CCATT and one PR resulting in 79 lives saved and 103 lives assisted in the continuum of medical care.

"Per our creed, our role is to save a life in any condition," said Master Sgt. Mike Boyles, HC-130P loadmaster. "We're a lifeline to any injured, wounded or downed personnel. Out here, (we're primarily conducting CASEVAC) - an atypical mission for us but still a mission worthy of our aid."