Transporting patients: 36th AES return from deployment

More than 40 members from the 36th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron here recently completed a six-month deployment supporting multiple combatant command operations, which included Northern, Central, and European Commands.

This deployment highlighted the squadron's critical role in providing life-saving medical care and transportation to injured personnel across the theater, said Lt. Col. Shannon Corbin, 36th AES interim commander, adding that AES teams include a medical crew director, flight nurse and three aeromedical evacuation technicians.

During their deployment, unit members collaborated with their sister services to enhance operational readiness and ensure seamless patient care at their deployed locations. The squadron’s highly trained aeromedical evacuation teams were tasked with stabilizing and transporting wounded service members from forward-deployed locations to higher-level medical facilities, enabling them to receive advanced care.

“Our primary focus is to provide rapid and reliable medical evacuation services,” said Corbin. “This deployment underscores our commitment to saving lives and supporting the health and well-being of our warfighters.”

Two first-time deployers agreed that it was an eye-opening experience with maintaining a consistent routine and said they would do it again.

Capt. Lauren Poulson, 36th AES flight nurse, who was deployed to Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, said that throughout the deployment, the deployed members utilized C-130J Super Hercules and C-17 Globemaster aircraft, ensuring that medical personnel could operate efficiently in diverse and challenging environments. The aircraft were outfitted with specialized medical equipment, including litter systems, cardiac monitors, and oxygen delivery systems, transforming them into flying hospitals capable of addressing various medical emergencies.

“We also conducted joint training exercises with the Army to improve readiness and maintain medical evacuation capabilities during downtimes when the crews were not flying missions,” said Poulsen. “During one of those training exercises, called DustOff, we assisted by participating as patients, which allowed the Army soldiers an opportunity to hone the evacuation of patients, by picking up simulated injured patients, transporting and loading into a helicopter for a quick evacuation from outside the base.”

Staff Sgt. Alexis Adeleke, a flight medical technician with the squadron, who was deployed to Ramstein Air Base, Germany, said she flew different mission types: picking up patients from Al Udeid Air Base, Doha, Qatar, and transporting them back to Ramstein AB, Germany and also transferring patients back stateside.

“We had a good variety of missions to choose from and our training helped us prepare to be part of a blended crew that share the same goals, because at the end of the day our job directly impacts the lives of our fellow service members,” said Adeleke.

Always looking to enhance training and readiness, the deployers shared their experiences and provided feedback to unit leadership.

“By gathering information from the returning deployers, we will focus on creating better training plans to maintain a high level of readiness,” said Corbin. “Our members’ contributions during this deployment exemplify their unwavering dedication to saving lives and supporting the mission of the U.S. Air Force.”