 |
| Air
Force medics tend to patients awaiting airlift. C-130
Hercules crews from the 50th Airlift Squadron at Little
Rock Air Force Base, Ark., teamed up with Airmen from
the 452nd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron at March
Air Reserve Base, Calif., to relocate sick and injured
patients devastated after Hurricane Katrina. (U.S.
Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Jon Quinlan) |
NEW ORLEANS
-- Air Force bases
nationwide have deployed hundreds of Airmen to Louisiana
and Mississippi to save lives in the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina.
Search and rescue missions are under way around the clock
to evacuate hurricane victims stranded along the Gulf
Coast.
Two 50th Airlift Squadron C-130 Hercules from Little Rock
Air Force Base, Ark., and Airmen from the 452nd Aeromedical
Evacuation Squadron at March Air Reserve Base, Calif.,
landed at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International
Airport on Sept. 3 to relocate sick and injured patients
devastated after Hurricane Katrina.
The Joint Task Force-Katrina mission was to evacuate patients
to San Antonio and to Ellington Field, Texas, where hubs
have been established to support evacuation operations.
"Our C-130 has been transformed into a flying ambulance
in the sky," said Tech. Sgt. Patrick Carter, a 463rd
Operations Support Squadron loadmaster.
As of Sept. 4, the Air Force had moved more than 2,955
aeromedical evacuation patients, transferred more than
15,165 passengers and delivered 4,613 tons of cargo supporting
JTF-Katrina, Air Force officials said.
Aeromedical evacuation has been vital in saving lives,
said medics on the ground.
"If
we don't move fast enough, people are going to die,"
said Chief Master Sgt. Rodney Christa, aeromedical evacuation
unit superintendent at the New Orleans airport. "Every
(aeromedical evacuation unit) in the Air Force is here
to help. We are landing one (cargo airlift) plane here
every 45 minutes."
The initial aeromedical unit arrived at the airport Aug.
31.
"At first we worked until we couldn't work. Now we
work 16 hours on, then four hours off," Chief Christa
said.
"We moved quite a few patients," said Maj. Stacia
Belyeu, 452nd AES medical crew director. "The patients
were lined up in order of precedence."
Patients lined the terminals on litters awaiting transportation
and Airmen assessed each patient before loading them onto
the C-130's.
"The medical team is great. You can tell they really
care," said Capt. Delvin Genenbacher, a 50th Airlift
Squadron pilot and aircraft commander. "These people
are in an awful situation. We're here to get them out
as quickly as possible. We'll do as many missions it takes,
no matter how long it takes."
Helicopters from all branches of the military landed every
10 to 15 seconds at the airport bringing in people rescued
from New Orleans.
"This was a touching mission to be involved in ...
I am just honored to do this," Carter said. "If
we were in the same situation I'm sure they would do the
same thing for us."
In Mississippi, Airmen are also supporting the relief
effort.
"We have a tremendous joint effort (among) Guard,
Reserve and active-duty Airmen (at Evers Field Air National
Guard Base, Miss.)," said Col. Joe Callahan, 347th
Expeditionary Rescue Group commander and deployed commander
of the 347th Rescue Wing at Moody AFB, Ga. "This
is the largest search and rescue mission in the history
of the Air Force."
With nearly 450 Airmen on a 24-hour operations schedule
at Evers Field, the 347th ERG in Jackson, Miss., has pulled
more than 2,700 people to safety in less than a week,
said Maj. Todd Worms, a 347th ERG operations officer also
from Moody.
"The mission we're providing is absolutely critical
to ... all those we've pulled from harm's way," Major
Worms said. "And there are many left."
"We're not going home until we've lifted everyone
we can," Callahan said.
Twenty-three HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter crews are rotating
eight day and four night missions.
With each helicopter staying airborne at least eight hours
straight, crewmembers are often exhausted when they return
to base.
"It's been a really long day but very rewarding,"
said Maj. Sean Choquette, an HH-60G pilot from Davis-Monthan
AFB, N.M. “Although we've encountered total destruction
and never-ending obstacles, it's been a fantastic joint
effort. Everyone has pulled together nicely."
It has been such a fantastic effort that many Airmen are
volunteering to stay longer and work more hours.
"I have several Airmen (who don’t want) to go home,"
said Captain Giles, whose 41st Helicopter Maintenance
Unit only had 12 hours from initial notification to deployment.
"These guys know they're playing a crucial role in
the relief effort, and (I almost have) to make them stop
working and rest. That's the tempo here. Everyone's totally
dedicated." (First Lt. Jon Quinlan of the 314th AW
public affairs, and Airman 1st Class Tim Bazar of the
347th ERG public affairs contributed to this article.)
