Portal:United States Air Force/news/2007September

30 August 2007; Christchurch, New Zealand (AFPN) — Airmen of the 304th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron flew a C-17 Globemaster III on a medical evacuation mission to bring a patient requiring immediate medical attention August 28, 2007 out of Antarctica.

Twenty-four hours after completing their winter fly-in season for Operation Deep Freeze, 304th EAS Airmen from McChord Air Force Base, Washington, were asked to stay in place for an additional 24 hours for a possible medical evacuation mission.

The next day the crews and a medical team assigned to the 446th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron from McChord Air Force Base, on a routine training mission to Christchurch, were assembled and waited for word that the medical evacuation was approved and prepared to return to Pegasus White Ice Runway in Antarctica.

Like all missions, a medical evacuation requires some time to coordinate. Once the mission was given the go-ahead, there were still requirements that had to be met. Paperwork, phone calls, e-mails, mission planning and weather support all had to be in line before the mission could be launched.

"It takes several hours to get in touch with everyone," said Major Bill Eberhardt, the 304th EAS director of operations. "We were at the end of (the winter fly-in season), so they already started to disassemble the runway at Pegasus. They had to stop and get everyone back in place. All the forecasters, air traffic controllers and everyone had to be back in place just for this flight."

The medical team had to transform the McChord AFB C-17 from a cargo transport to a patient transport as the team set up, prepared and checked their equipment for the patient pick up in Antarctica.