FORT SILL, Okla. Oct. 9, 2014 -- When disaster strikes is the not time to meet your counterparts for the first time.
Knowing this and planning for complete mission readiness, 1st Battalion, 14th Field Artillery Soldiers and local civilian helicopter rescue teams practiced emergency evacuations during a two-weeklong field exercise Sept. 22 to Oct 3 here.
Rather than just have the chopper land and conduct operations, the battalion wanted to make the exercise challenge everyone by turning off all lights and landing the rescue team in the middle of the night along with a daytime mission. Soldiers used glow sticks to properly communicate with the helicopter in the field for the nighttime operation.
"The training provided a new found skill and confidence to Soldiers giving them the ability to package patients, establish a landing zone in both day and night, and safely and effectively expedite evacuating Soldiers with serious injuries," said 1st Lt. Jason Stogner, battalion medical officer.
As Fort Sill has transitioned away from an emergency room to an urgent care center, the drills practiced during the field exercise with local hospitals are even more realistic than ever before. Learning on the go at the time of a disaster could result in repercussions, something the battalion wanted everyone to understand by training their Soldiers, regardless of their military occupation specialty.
"We had everyone we could get out here training with the local helicopter evacuation team from Air Methods Corporation that covers Comanche County and nearby areas," said 1st Lt. Christopher Rossi, battalion signal officer. "If they weren't helping move or hoist patients, then they were training on the methods to communicate with and guide the pilot and helicopter team."
The training instilled the confidence necessary should a similar emergency occur. With realistic scenarios successfully completed, most of the battalion had the skills to care for wounded troops needing to get out of the area as fast as possible.
"It is all about communication," said Rossi. "It's about knowing which person is calling to shots and giving the orders, listening to those calls and moving in sync as team. That's what ensures patient safety and mission success."
The volume of noise from the spinning helicopter rotors and harsh winds nearly drowned out the words "ready, lift!" as members of the Steel Warrior Battalion transferred patients to and from a helicopter with a civilian pilot and medical team they had not met previously.
"Everybody out here is strong enough to be able to carry a litter, but problems happen when there is miscommunication and someone doesn't know who is directing. So that is what we eliminate by doing this training," said Rossi.
The training familiarized not only the medics in the unit, but helped all Soldiers learn how to care for a patient who may be unresponsive and how to extract them from the situation.
Since disaster could strike at anytime, the Soldiers practiced both day and night operations with the helicopter team. This forced the teams to go "lights-out" and use their night-vision goggles and glow sticks for sight and communications with the helicopter rescue team and each other.
Joint training is something the battalion is becoming very proficient on as they also trained with the Air Force loadmasters two months ago to practice their launcher loading skills.
Following both day and night helicopter evacuation operations, battalion leaders held an awards presentation for the crew to thank them for their cooperation and involvement.
"We are firm believers in training to the standard," said Stogner. "I want to push these Soldiers, whether medical, field artillery, logistics or anything else, that much harder to make sure they are the best in what the Army has to offer. Without a shadow of a doubt, when you come to the aid station, you are going to be taken care of to the best of our abilities," he said.
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