Medical Evacuation In The Vietnam War

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DUSTOFF IN VIETNAM I. INTRODUCTION- In April of 1962, the Vietnam war got the best thing coming to them; five UH-1 Huey helicopters. The rigorous terrain of the jungle in Vietnam proved to be too much for most ground elements. They needed something that was much faster and efficient so they called the 57th Medical Detachment. They quickly took the name “Dustoff” and became an instrumental force on the battlefield. Eventually the detachments grew and grew until coverage was everywhere and wherever the ground forces went, they knew they could depend on “Dustoff” when the ground ambulances can’t. This was a vital part of Vietnam and helped us ultimately win the war. II. A. Key Points: 1. The history of Medical Evacuation and where it all…show more content…
The establishment of advanced medicine and critical care en-route time limited to under an hour from initial point of injury to that next level of care brought survival to 97%. 1. By November of 1962 there was 199 helicopters serving the entire are consisting of 13 units which boosted the survival rate and allowed quicker evacuation times by shortening the distances. 2. Major Charles Kelly, from Georgia took command in 1964 and quickly became a known pilot across the land. He did not let anything get in his way and set the tone for the rest of the war for the Medevac units. D. Over the course of the war, over 900,000 wounded or KIA were evacuated from the battlefield. This was all due to the evolving of the Medevac mission in regards to aviation and aviation medicine colliding to create something spectacular that we still use today as a result. 1. Having dedicated assets on the battlefield outfitted specifically for Medevac allows the fight to continue with little lapse in time. 2. Major Kelly paved the way to become one of the most recognized pilots in history today, where tactics and employment are still in action today. 3. Mike Novosel, a medic in Vietnam flew almost 2,500 missions and saved over 55,000…show more content…
Hoist operations in Vietnam also was a great new tactic developed to be able to extract patients in areas the helicopter could not land. IV. SUMMARY: 1. The United States played a huge role in the Vietnam War and developed new tactics and techniques used in combat in today’s battlefields. 2. Dustoff has become a legendary icon in today’s Warfighting and absolutely necessary to accomplish the mission and keep more people in the fight. 3. Ground forces fight better knowing that if they are wounded in action, that in less than an hour, they can be successfully rescued and taken to the next level of care to survive another day. 4. Aviation has continued to develop in technology over the years as well to facilitate the needs and demands Medevac plays. Some new upgrades are more horsepower engines to carry bigger loads, digital cockpit instrumentation, moving maps, Global Positioning Satellites, faster speeds, better on board medical equipment, and higher trained medics. 5. Dustoff will always be a part of the Wartime mission and without it, ultimately, we can lose in
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