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TOPIC AREA: CREW MANAGEMENT / UTC STAFFING / STANDARDIZATION OF 
		TRAINING
 
SUBMITTED BY: HQ AFRES/SGXO 
 
ISSUE: Assignment of tactical (C-130 trained) crews to support a strategic 
mission reduced mission capability. 
 
OBSERVATION: The mission of the NRAECC at RAF Upper Heyford was to accomplish 
U.K. to CONUS aeromedical evacuation missions. However, only 20 of 65 assigned 
medical crews were qualified on C-141 aircraft. 
 
DISCUSSION: Personnel from units having a tactical mission were deployed into a 
strategic situation. We were instructed that the Medical Crew Director and Charge 
Medical Technician on each mission had to be C-141 qualified. This resulted in a 
total crew capability of 39 based on the number of qualified MCDs assigned. Based 
on estimated patient workloads, we would have exhausted medical crews in three 
days. This observation has been made numerous times over the years and still has 
not been fixed. 
 
IMPACT: This would require an increase in manpower authorizations for all C-130 
aeromedical evacuation units. Further analysis is required. 
 
RECOMMENDATION: Mission statements of both strategic and tactical aeromedical 
evacuation units should be updated to include their dual tactical/strategic role 
in aeromedical evacuation and all medical crews must be required to be mission 
qualified in both tactical and strategic movement segments. Although the "crew is 
a crew" concept has been discussed for many years, it is obvious that necessary 
training has not been accomplished. Only the low patient count in Operation 
Desert Storm saved the aeromedical evacuation system from revealing this 
weakness. We can no longer afford to neglect this serious training deficiency. - 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
., 
 
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