FORT SILL, Okla., May 20, 2016 -- Drill sergeants from A Battery, 1st Battalion, 19th Field Artillery trained on air medical evacuation (medevac) at Wyatt Range May 13.
The simulation involved a flesh wound with an injury to the leg.
"Our goal is to see how long it will take to get someone medevaced out and how well the process will go," said Capt. Gregory Ford, commander A/1-19th FA. "This allows us to test our skills, to see how proficient we are."
The drill sergeants arrived at 11 a.m. for some last-minute training and dry runs prior to the helicopter coming in.
"We want to know that we can perform a successful mission anywhere on post, on any range, even if it is nine klicks (kilometers) out from the main post area," said Ford.
The accident scenario involved Drill Sgt.(Staff Sgt.) Meghan McGuire in a simulated wound she received from being shot in the leg. A medical crew from Chickasha Medical Flight in a Eurocopter EC130 landed to assist with the training.
Drill Sgt. (Staff Sgt.) Kyle Hlebinsky administered first aid until the helicopter arrived.
"I have been on helicopters before, but not in this position," said McGuire. "But, it's good to know what it would be like, and I am confident in my crew."
In a normal situation, when injured Soldiers are flown off post, they will be flown to Comanche County Memorial Hospital or another facility depending on the injury. They will be treated there and released back to post when the Soldier is out of danger. Since Fort Sill does not have an air medevac team, it relies on private organizations such as this one to provide the service.
This was a good opportunity for the the battery's drill sergeants to do the training as they were between new recruit classes and won't start up again until July, said Ford.
During their downtime between classes drill sergeants catch up on their qualifications, training and certifications.
Drill Sgt. (1st Sgt.) Kirk Royer said they were hoping that all went well and the helicopter crew would come through. Despite some delays in part because the Soldiers were testing their readiness, the mission concluded a success.
"Overall it went pretty well and each team that participated took away something from this exercise," said Ford. "Someday we may have a real emergency and lessons learned here will be invaluable."
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