The multinational A400M fleet is the future backbone for air transport under EATC’s operational command. This fleet is consistently growing and also evolving its diverse capabilities. Spain and Germany are the first A400M EATC member nations to reach the capability of strategic aeromedical evacuation, i.e. the movement of critically ill or wounded patients.
Read more about the ramp-up of the A400M fleet.
A milestone and premiere in this development : A German A400M was tasked to perform an urgent strategic aeromedical evacuation mission on the 05 September 2018.
Here is the story !
A German military had to be evacuated urgently from Romania back to Germany under high medical care.
The process started with …
… the German National Patient Evacuation Coordination Centre located in Koblenz, Germany who immediately sent a formal “Patient Movement Request” to EATC. The aeromedical specialists from EATC’s Aeromedical Evacuation Control Center (AECC) analysed and assessed this request without delay. EATC then decided to activate the German A400M from the “Lufttransportgeschwader 62” in Wunstorf, Germany.
The urgency entailed quick reaction from all actors.
At short notice, the AECC, the executing wing in Wunstorf and the German authorities coordinated this flight with special focus on a safe patient movement under high medical care. To comply with the need of an intensive care transportation, the aircraft was equipped with a “Patient Transport Unit”. This unit holds all medical equipment needed to take care of any patient in serious medical condition.
After this swift and skilful preparation of the mission…
… the A400M took off to Oradea, Romania, under EATC’s command. The aircrew and the aeromedical evacuation team worked hand in hand to embark the patient in the most competent and fast way. The flight back to Germany went smoothly without any flight or medical related problems. The disembarking of the patient worked out very well and the patient was transported in a ground ambulance towards the military hospital in Koblenz. Only 8 hours after the initial take off in Wunstorf, the A400M landed again on its home base.
The first dedicated A400M was a great success...
… for all actors involved in this particular mission. The respectively 6 and 12 hours “notice to move” for the Spanish and German A400M strategic aeromedical evacuation missions and this positive experience add to EATC’s multinational fleet. EATC is looking forward to enhancing the capabilities to perform professional strategic aeromedical evacuation with the highest level of in-flight medical care.