On 18 November 2017, EATC tasked and controlled the first aeromedical evacuation mission with a Luxembourg offered asset.
This first cross-national flight happened only days after Luxembourg officially provided a new capability of civilian contracted aeromedical evacuation assets to EATC portfolio.
Upon request from one of the EATC member nations, EATC’s Aeromedical Evacuation Control Centre (AECC) planned the strategic aeromedical evacuation of an injured soldier back to the patients home country. The AECC chose the best transportation assets with regard to the medical requirement of the patient.
The provider of the aeromedical evacuation was the “Luxembourg Air Rescue”, a recognized air ambulance service company. Their ambulance Learjets operate worldwide and are ready upon 2 hours from the mission order.
Payment is done through the ATARES (Air Transport & Air-to-air Refuelling and other Exchange of Services) arrangement. This arrangement facilitates mutual support through the exchange of services without any monetary exchange. ATARES is the main currency used among the EATC member nations to support each other.
The Aeromedical Evacuation Control Centre (AECC)
The AECC plans strategic aeromedical evacuations of injured or sick persons by air assets from anywhere in the world to the patients home country, or to a safe place where appropriate medical care is available. The AECC matches at all moment the patient’s needs with the best available transportation asset. On average, EATC coordinates the worldwide transportation of over 1200 patients a year.
The AECC also aims at developing standardised procedures and cross national certifications in the aeromedical evacuation domain. AECC’s expertise in this field of work is widely recognized.
The multinational AECC team is composed of flight surgeons and flight nurses - experts in aeromedical transports.
The images have been kindly provided by Luxembourg Air Rescue.