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Modernizing the medevac
The army builds a new hovering hospital
December 25, 1996
Web posted at: 4:45 p.m. ESTFrom Correspondent Dick Wilson
CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee (CNN) -- The U.S. Army says one of the major lessons it learned from the Gulf War is the need for updating its medical evacuation ability, so that wounded soldiers can be treated for their injuries more quickly.
To meet that need, the Army its developing a new type of medevac, or medical evacuation helicopter.
For decades, the military has been using Huey helicopters to airlift soldiers in medical emergencies, but now it's moving to the faster, bigger and more flexible Blackhawk helicopter.
The prototype is a hovering hospital, crammed with about a $1.5 million worth of medical gear built into the basic Blackhawk. On just two minutes notice, it can be switched to any of three modes:
- Medical evacuation
- Troop transport
- Cargo carrier
In the medical mode, the converted Blackhawk holds six patients on motorized stretchers that move up and down, a configuration that allows for better patient care, says Sgt. Stacy Swallows, a medic with the Tennessee National Guard.
"In the event (patients) are loaded feet first, you always have the face of the person available to you. You also have the capability of moving around inside the cabin, so accessibility is the key thing," Swallows told CNN.
The on-board equipment available to medics also includes oxygen-generating equipment and suction devices for cleaning out wounds.
"This is the same kind of (oxygen-generating) system that flies on F-15 and F-18 (fighter jets)," says Mike Prieto, of Colorado-based Air Methods Corp.
"We don't carry bottles or liquid oxygen. We generate oxygen in the air, off the air from the (helicopter's) engines."
Top priority
The modified Blackhawk also has advance communication and navigation gear, including an infrared camera that can find the wounded at night.
Calling it his top priority, Army Surgeon General Ronald Blanck says he hopes to obtain $189 million to retrofit 87 new medevac helicopters.
For now, the prototype is used on military missions by the Tennessee National Guard and is available for civilian use if commercial medical helicopters are unavailable.
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