Deployed 94th AW members aid wounded troops Published Dec. 7, 2007 By Master Sgt. Angelita Colon-Francia Public Affiars DOBBINS AIR RESERVE BASE, Ga., -- Aeromedical evacuation technicians Staff Sgt. Alanta Stevens and Senior Airman Lauren Yancey of the 94th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron recently helped to save the life of a Canadian soldier injured in Afghanistan. Presently on deployment in support of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom, Sergeant Stevens and Airman Yancey are members of an aeromedical evacuation and critical-care air-transport team. The team is comprised of Reserve, National Guard and active duty Airmen from Dobbins Air Reserve Base; Ramstein Air Base, Germany; Channel Islands Air National Guard Base, Calif.; Pittsburgh Air Reserve Base, Pa.; and Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. Currently, they are all deployed to Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Combined Air Force aeromedical evacuation and critical-care air-transport teams, (CCAT,) evacuate casualties from combat zones and operate intensive care units in aircraft cabins during flight. On November 27, no C-17 Globemaster aircraft were readily available for an urgent medical mission. A KC-135 crew assigned to the 459th Air Refueling Wing at Andrews AFB, diverted from its usual refueling channel between Bagram and Ramstein to pick up patients in Kandahar for direct transport to Ramstein, Germany. The team boarded with four ambulatory patients, five litters and medical equipment. On board was a soldier, critically wounded by a claymore mine. Sergeant Stevens, a traditional reservist and full-time nursing student, wrote in a statement for the Minuteman that she supervised the configuration and setup of the oxygen and electrical equipment for the patient inside the aircraft's cabin. She also assisted with directing the on-/off-load of patients during the mission. "This mission was one of the best I have ever flown, and I have flown about 60 live (aeromedical evacuation) missions in the past two years," wrote Sergeant Stevens who, along with Airman Yancey, is still deployed to Afghanistan. "Our crew handled a tough situation the way that we are actually trained to." Lt. Col. Nancy Westbrook, commander of the 94th AES, said she is proud of Sergeant Stevens and Airman Yancey. "They are both doing an outstanding job. They volunteered for deployment and their performance speaks well of character, training, the wing and the squadron." Sergeant Stevens and Airman Yancey's actions during the flight were recognized when they were named the 2007 94th Airlift Wing Noncommissioned Officer and Airman of the Year. "It's not surprising," said Capt. Chad Corliss, 94th AES Operations Officer, about Sergeant Stevens and Airman Yancey's roles in the life-saving mission. "We train for missions like this to provide urgent movement and care, to save life, limb or eyesight. They have demonstrated outstanding ability." Of the 80 nurses, medical technicians and ground support personnel assigned to the AES, roughly 50 percent have volunteered for deployment to support Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom, according to Colonel Westbrook. Sergeant Stevens is on her third deployment since 2005. This is the first deployment for Airmen Yancey. Sergeant Stevens credits the joint effort of every crew member representing air, aeromedical evacuation and CCAT - Reserve, National Guard and active duty Airmen - for the success of the November mission. "We all pitched in and saw the importance of helping this patient," she wrote. "We all pulled together and were proud of the job we did. In all of this, we realize that these guys--these wounded Soldiers, are the heroes and deserve everything we can give them. That's why even if it is a long mission, we remember that it is nothing compared to what they have gone through."
