Soldiers of the Oregon Army National Guard’s aeromedical helicopter unit spent the last year operating in support of Operation Inherent Resolve as part of the war against ISIS. The 70 Soldiers of Company G, 1st Battalion, 189th Aviation Regiment, returned home in early March after deploying to the Middle East to conduct around-the-clock medical evacuations (medevac).
Using HH-60M Black Hawk helicopters, the unit provided lifesaving care to the Combined Joint Task Force supporting the fight to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
“The most recent deployment was Operation Spartan Shield, which morphed into Inherent Resolve,” explained MAJ Brady Phillips, commander of the 189th Aviation Regiment. “Originally, when we deployed, we deployed to Kuwait, Iraq, Syria and Jordan. Then about half-way through the deployment, we pulled our medevac company out of Kuwait and opened up another location in Syria.”
The company functioned under unique circumstances in that it operated out of six locations when designed for only four. The unit was spread thin, but Soldiers found a way to get the job done.
The 189th flew more than 2,300 combat hours, completed more than 180 combat medevac missions and transported more than 200 patients.
“Our flight hours were not as high as they have been on past deployments; however, the missions were dynamic due to the length of the flights and the seriousness of the injuries to the people we treated,” said MAJ Phillips.
The civilian skillsets brought by these National Guard Soldiers also proved invaluable to the success of the unit’s mission, as many of the flight medics have civilian careers as paramedics, nurses and other occupations in the medical field. MAJ Phillips said their civilian skills were also employed while operating in remote locations.
“The key challenge was having to be self-reliant for a lot of the support functions, so when you weren’t flying or performing medevac duties, you were teaming up to help make the overall camp work,” said MAJ Phillips. “Our people were not only fliers, medics and maintainers, but also had other skills they put to use, such as IT, carpentry or electrical skills. They helped with setting up communications networks, building living quarters, running wire, or serving chow and helping out in the kitchen. It made the deployment go by really fast.”
G Company deployed an Area Support Medevac Platoon, two Forward Support Medevac Platoons (FSMP) and nine Black Hawk helicopters. The company was augmented by an FSMP from the Montana Army National Guard’s C Company, 1-189th Aviation, and an FSMP from the Massachusetts Army National Guard’s C Company, 3rd Battalion, 126th Aviation Regiment. These units combined to make up one medevac company under 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 149th Aviation Regiment, from the Texas Army National Guard.
All totaled, G Company employed more than 100 Soldiers, operating 15 Black Hawk helicopters across locations spread throughout Syria, Iraq, Jordan and Kuwait.
MAJ Phillips said having even a small role in the success of the overall Global War on Terror was gratifying.
Some Soldiers of Company G said a day at work in the Middle East wasn’t too unlike their Army National Guard training or domestic activations back home. This strikes a chord commonly heard from Army National Guard leaders – train hard in advance and it will seem that much more familiar when in theater.
“It’s fascinating to see us Stateside doing a mission, and then you go over there and it’s the same thing – just away from home,” said SGT Landon Gross. “As far as medevac and going to pick up a patient, it’s very much the same.”
SGT Gross, a Company G crew chief, was located about 40 miles outside of Mosul, Iraq. This was his second deployment. His first was to Kuwait. The base, Key West, was a huge forward operating base (FOB) at the height of the war in Iraq. By the time of SGT Gross’ stay there, it was a far cry from its days as a major U.S. base, complete with a driving range and swimming pool, which earned its satirical name from the Florida holiday island.
“We were a full company in Kuwait, so compared to that, [Key West] was very austere,” he said.
“We had two aircraft at the site, [and we were] very limited on supplies – what we slept in, what we ate.”
SGT Gross said that despite the limitations, or perhaps because of them, he was excited to spend time there. It was just a small group of Soldiers – himself and a single platoon – and they came to rely on one another.
“You really get to know each person,” he said. “When you are flying with those pilots, you get to know them really well too. When we went on missions, you kind of knew exactly what they were going to do before they did it. It made it really nice, so you are not flying with someone you are not real sure of.”
A fellow Company G crew chief, SFC Joseph Brixey said he felt the Oregonian unit was not necessarily typical of other Army National Guard aviation units, in that they are often activated to fight wildfires at home in Oregon. They keep a heavy training load in order to stay prepared for that, and are generally kept on a heightened awareness status. That translated well into being prepared for their Middle East mission. He said he likes the excitement that comes with the unpredictable nature of being a medevac crew chief.
“When you are out there on shift, you have a 15-minute response time. You might be in a deep sleep at 4 o’clock in the morning and get a call. You will be off the ground well before that 15-minute window. It goes from 0 to 100 in a second. It might be a pretty intense mission, it might not be. You never really know until you get there,” SFC Brixey reflected. SGT Gross said he too thrives on the intensity and recognizes some of the inherent dangers. He described one recurring obstacle that made something as simple as landing on a clear night not only tricky, but downright dangerous.
“It is dark,” he said. “You lose sight of the ground. We train for it, but when you are in an area where there is a possible threat, you’re just always on alert. You want to make sure everything is quick, in and out – get the job done. As you’re coming in on approach and that dust starts to come up behind you and the helicopter tail starts to disappear in the dust and you’re still 20 feet up – I think it’s one of the most nerve-wracking things you can do in a helicopter.”
According to MAJ Phillips, the injuries and people Company G treated and transported were often not combat-related, yet it was still critical support to Inherent Resolve.
“In Raqqa, we didn’t go beyond the front line of troops,” he said. “There was a need for delivering of medical supplies closer to the front for the people that were supporting the fight inside Raqqa. We would do some of those missions, or there would be a vehicle rollover [from] people going to and from. We would pick those guys up.”
At Mosul, the U.S. advisory ground forces ringed the city. They had an FOB there and Company G treated Soldiers who were hurt by everything from vehicle rollovers to IEDs to someone whose filling popped out and needed to get to the dentist.
“Anything medically related – we would haul them,” MAJ Phillips stated.
Though the Soldiers brought back experiences that increased their knowledge and advanced their skillsets, it was often the most humble of observations that stood out the most.
For SFC Brixey, it was the cheers of little children.
“Doing flyovers in Syria somewhere, you always have children and kids running out just waving and really excited to see us,” he said. “It made it obvious that there is a positive effect from what we’re doing over there. That’s always really rewarding to feel.”
For SGT Gross, it was the steadfast resiliency he saw not only in his fellow Soldiers, but also in the people they were helping to liberate.
“When you think Middle East, you think desert, mountains of sand – not a whole lot going on,” SGT Gross reflected. “But going through Erbil, [you see] a metropolis and a big city. It makes you realize that it is a big country and it is thriving. It was definitely cool to see. It’s expanding and trying to become a better place. We can be a part of that and hopefully help make it better.”
BY STAFF WRITER Matthew Liptak
