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Israeli startup Urban Aeronautics is testing a flying ambulance drone they hope to release before 2020, Business Insider reports. The vehicle, which is called the AirMule, would be used to perform rescues in places like dense urban environments, where helicopter maneuvering is difficult. The AirMule is directed and controlled remotely and it can fly unpiloted with up to 880 pounds of cargo. Its primary purpose is to assist with rescues during military operations: A much quieter, remotely-piloted aircraft like this would be a game changer for military personnel. Medical evacuations for wounded troops have greatly improved since the introduction of...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq, Dec. 1, 2009 – Four soldiers serving here with the New Hampshire National Guard earned a special distinction last week when they became their company’s first all-female medical evacuation crew. From left, Sgt. Debra Lukan, Capt. Trish Barker, Staff Sgt. Misty Seward and Chief Warrant Officer Andrea Galatian, of the Army’s 3-238th Medevac, C company, became the company's first all-female crew just before Thanksgiving. They are serving in Iraq as part of Task Force Keystone. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Neil Gussman  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. In the three days before Thanksgiving, Capt....

4/22/2009 - JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (AFNS) -- Coalition military members in Iraq have plenty of equipment, tactics and techniques at their disposal in the event of a worst-case scenario in the field. However, if those safeguards fail, a team of operators from the 64th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron is standing by, ready to help. "Our primary mission is personnel recovery," said Maj. Kevin Lehnerd, a HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter pilot from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., assigned to the squadron. "Our role provides pilots and people on the ground a sense of security when they are accomplishing their missions." If...

The Iraqi Air Force flew its first, ever, medical evacuation (Medevac) mission on May 14th. While the Iraqi pilots and medics successfully evacuated an Iraqi casualty, it was also a training mission. U.S. instructors were on board to observe, and later advise on any areas that still needed work. An Iraqi UH-1 helicopter was used. As more Iraqi Medevac crews begin operating, they will eventually serve as instructors, to train thousands of Iraqis for military and civilian Medevac missions. Iraqis have been impressed with the American use of Medevac techniques, and everyone wants this capability once the Americans are gone.

SERIOUSLY BURNED GIRL FLOWN TO THE UNITED STATES Young girl was rescuing her two-year-old sister Ukrinform, Kyiv, Ukraine, KYIV - A charter plane with five-year-old Nastia Ovchar on board departed on Thursday evening heading for Boston, the USA. Nastia Ovchar, 5, a resident of Kharkiv region, who was seriously injured in a fire, rescuing her two-year-old sister, and is staying in a very grave condition is being accompanied by her mother and doctors, said Ukrainian Ombudswoman Nina Karpachova, who was instructed by President Viktor Yushchenko to control the case, told Ukrinform. The girl will be transported by a plane of...

Home Resources News Travel Shop Money Careers Education Join the Military Community War Veterans Overloading VA Thousands of U.S. troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with physical injuries and mental health problems are encountering an overburdened benefits system, and officials and veterans groups worry that the challenge could grow as the nation remains at war. The disability benefits and health care systems that provide services for about 5 million American veterans have been overloaded for decades, with a current backlog of more than 300,000 claims. And as of Aug. 1, nearly 150,000 National Guard and reservist veterans became eligible...