By
CPL Andrew Hetherington
Volume 48, No. 10, June 15, 2006
 |
|
Military
Working Dog Handler LAC Jay Lockman and his German Shepherd
Max keep watch while on Operation Astute.
|
|
Photos
by LAC Rod Welch
|
 |
|
A
1ATS member directs a Philippine Air Force C-130 on the
tarmac at Dili Airport.
|
 |
|
An
airload team member prepares to unload pallets of water
from a C-130.
|
382
EXPEDITIONARY Combat Support Squadron (ECSS) from RAAF Base
Amberley has found a new work role, operating out of Dili Airport
terminal assisting civilians as they depart the country.
The Evacuee Handling Centre (EHC) has only been in operation
a short time, but OIC of the EHC FLTLT Robin Welch said his
team of 14 has adapted to their new work role very quickly.
“382 ECSS has usual roles that involve working in logistics,
administration, has a communication element and unloads and
refuels aircraft,” he said.
“In this EHC role we operate what is pretty much like a
normal airport, where departing passengers go through metal
detectors, are searched for any metal objects and dangerous
goods, and we are doing all of this with limited facilities
and staff.
“Our people are trained to know what to look for. This
job is not part of their Corps or mustering, it is a secondary
duty.”
Since arriving in Dili, FLTLT Welch said his team has been busy
processing several hundred evacuees departing the country bound
for Darwin.
“After we landed on the first Hercules flight into the
country, we immediately placed 54 civilians on the same aircraft
we came in on, to go back to Darwin,” he said.
“In the first four days we processed 375 people.”
A typical day for the EHC team involves dealing with mainly
civilians who are waiting at the airport to go to Australia
and have Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) approval
to make the journey.
“I greet DFAT and then my 2IC FSGT Tracy Woolley addresses
the passengers and lets them know, in fairly fluent Tetum, what
to expect about their departure,” he said.
“We then do a bag search and at the same time ask them
questions such as if they have any dangerous goods. We also
ask them a set of medical questions, such as are you pregnant,
have you flown before, do you have any ear infections, and if
anything comes up we can have one of the doctors look at it.
“The passengers then wait in a clean holding area, where
we know they are safe and secure. From there we escort them
out to the aircraft with the air defence guards. We hand over
the manifest to the crew and they are flown to RAAF Base Darwin,
where Customs and Immigration receive them.”
382 ECSS has trained in the EHC role before, but FLTLT Welch
said it was still difficult for the team at the beginning of
the deployment.
“The unit originally trained 25 people in this role,”
he said.
“In this deployment, initially I was only allowed to bring
five of the team with me. It was very difficult because when
we hit the ground we did not know what to expect. We were also
working with other people we had never met before.
“It was a bit of an ad hoc EHC, as we didn’t have
time to set up and unload all of our equipment, but everything
seemed to go smoothly and everyone in the team did a great job.”
Healing
hands touch Dili
By
CPL Andrew Hetherington
Volume 48, No. 10, June 15, 2006
 |
|
Air
Force AME members (in flight suits) and EHCMST members
(in DPCUs) team together to practice using the Deployable
Aero Medical Retrieval Transport System (DARTS) at Dili
Airport. Pictured from left is SQNLDR Sally Scott, WGCDR
Andrew Pearce, LACW Rachel Downing, LACW Ashley Coburn,
SQNLDR Sandy Riley and LACW Rebecca Mahony.
|
|
Photo
by LAC Rod Welch
|
| |
|
|
| * |
 |
Two
medical teams have set up at Dili Airport
to provide medical assistance to the people
of Timor-Leste as part of Operation Astute.
|
|
The
Evacuee Handling Centre Medical Screening
Team (EHCMST) assess Timorese patients before
they are considered for aero-medical evacuation.
|
|
The
Aero-medical Evacuation (AME) team then evacuate
patients to Darwin using the advanced Deployable
Aero-medical Retrieval and Transport System
(DARTS).
|
|
|
|
TWO Air Force medical teams are working hard to provide medical
assistance to the people of Timor-Leste during Operation Astute.
OIC of the Evacuee Handling Centre Medical Screening Team (EHCMST)
SQNLDR Sandy Riley said the unit’s role is to medically
screen evacuees heading back to Australia.
“If an evacuee ticks ‘yes’ to any of the medical
questions on their pre-departure questionnaire, they will be
referred to us for further screening and assessment,” she
said.
“We then either question or examine them to ensure that
they are fit to fly and if they are not, we will try to do something
to reduce the risks for them, which may include putting a medical
escort on board or considering an aero-medical evacuation for
them.”
The team consists of a doctor, a nurse, two medics and an environmental
health surveyor. SQNLDR Riley said they have screened on average
75 people a day since arriving in Dili on day two of Operation
Astute and have had to screen a variety of cases.
The next phase of the EHC screening team’s mission is for
it to become an airfield health support centre. SQNLDR Riley
said this would involve the centre gaining more medical staff.
“We will then be the primary health facility for the airport,
which in the future is expected to have about 500 people working
out of it,” she said.
“We will also provide airfield emergency response and have
a 24hr patient holding capability, which will augment the health
assets already at the airfield to provide a joint level-three
health facility.”
The other Air Force medical unit helping the Timorese people
is the AME or aero-medical evacuation team.
OIC of the team, Doctor FLTLT Adam Storey, said the unit provides
evacuation for people to Darwin for medical reasons.
“So far the team has had five separate evacuation missions
and on one of those missions we had eight people on the flight,”
he said.
He said he is very pleased with the way his team are working
so far in this deployment.
“The team is working together fantastically, seeing we
hit the ground running and are working in difficult conditions
with the heat and the facilities,” he said.
One important addition to the team is an advanced piece of equipment;
the Deployable Aero-medical Retrieval and Transport System (DARTS).
This was developed after the two Bali bombing incidents.
“This enables critical care to be provided in the air with
safe restraint of medical equipment as well as power and lighting
for the equipment on board a C-130,” said WGCDR Andrew
Pearce, a Specialist Reservist and emergency physician from
Adelaide working with the AME team.
“The DARTS has enabled us to provide life-saving management
for a prolonged time in a strategic evacuation.”
He said having seen what is available in other air forces around
the world, they are truly leading the way in aero-medical evacuation
equipment and personnel.
“Hopefully we will not have to utilise the DARTS, however,
it gives us the capability of providing expert care in the air.
The DARTS forms part of the enhanced AME team which was deployed
on the first C-130 into Dili,” he said.
