Medevac Crews: Pushed to the Limits

(CBS)  A Medevac helicopter comes in at dusk, carrying a U.S. soldier with one leg blown off by an IED -- horrific injuries, but he will survive.

CBS News Correspondent Terry McCarthy reports Medevac pilots have been saving lives since the Korean War. But never have pilots like Air Mission Commander Russ Schuler been pushed so close to their limits as in the mountains of Afghanistan.

"Some of the flying here has been really difficult," said Schuler. "A lot of situations where you are having to make the call at the last second."

Schuler, who is based in Logar Province, south of Kabul, is used to mountains and desert. At home in Las Vegas, he flies classified narcotics missions for the Nevada National Guard.

CBS News Special Report: The Road Ahead

Special Report: Afghanistan

But with 18,000-foot peaks here higher than the unpressurized helicopters can fly, Schuler is battling the terrain every day.

"We fly up to 14,000 feet without oxygen, but it's for a limited time," said Chief Warrant Officer Schuler. "We usually fly the valleys to get through the mountains."

Major Dan Anderson flies out of San Diego - and likes to brag about scooping water from golf course water traps to douse flames in southern California's fire season. He has flown Medevac in Iraq and Afghanistan - and says the differences are stark.

"Whereas Iraq is a two dimensional fight - almost flat, very low contour," said Anderson. "Here, it is three dimensional.

The Medevac pilots do 24 hour shifts, and leave all their equipment on the helicopters so they can take off within minutes of getting a radio
call.

This is one of the busiest Medevac units in Afghanistan. They have flown 577 missions in the last nine months, averaging more than two a day.

The most common injuries they treat are from improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. Today the Taliban are planting bombs of up to 1,000 pounds under roads, causing damage even more deadly than in Iraq.

"You can have internal injuries, external injuries, amputations with head injuries, penetrating trauma," said Specialist Anthony Della, a Medevac medic.

Because of the vast, mountainous terrain, evacuating casualties often extends beyond what doctors call the "golden hour": that crucial 60 minutes during which a traumatically-injured person has to reach a hospital before their survival chances plummet.

So medics have begun doing emergency procedures inside helicopters that would normally wait for ER doctors like Dustin Zierold.

"I think we have adapted very well, using whole blood transfusion, haemostatic agents, training of the medics to get airways and special techniques down, inside the helicopters themselves," said Dr. Zierold.

"Literally, you have had to stretch the golden hour?" asked McCarthy.

"Absolutely, absolutely," he said.

At night the helicopters fly without lights, so medics like Specialist Anthony Della have to work on patients with night vision goggles.

"You have the turns, you have the bumps, you have no space, you have no light," said Spc. Della. "It is definitely a hard environment to work in.

"I mean is it scary? Yeah. It's scary. People are trying to shoot at you, kill you," Said Della. "But it's all about the guy on the ground. They're taking the higher levels of risk. We can assume a little bit of it to make sure he goes home."

Every time they launch, Medevac teams from pilots to medics know only too well that Afghanistan is a battlefield with no margin for error, and no easy way out.

More special coverage on CBSNews.com:
Medevac Helicopter Crews Saving Lives in Afghanistan
Marines in Afghanistan: A Day in the Life
Taliban Gaining Firepower and Confidence
Battle of Wanat - Inside the Ambush
Afghanistan, 8 Years In: How We Got Here

[SloppyNachoes]

See, here is where you went wronge "bubbadubba." You THINKING that medevac pilots from Vietnam disagree with the comment is dumb. I'm sure they have exceptional respect and gratitude for what these guys do. Let's take a wild guess at what you do for a living... Sit behind a desk and have nothing better to do with your time than write stupid comments on true and factual stories. Or maybe you stand behind a cash register and say, "Welcome to burger King, would you like to try a Wopper today?"
Either way, what these medevac pilots, crew members and medics do for a living is a dangerous and rewarding way of life. The danger comes from, landing in a village where people where just shot and wounded knowing that person is still around and that you could be next. It comes from flying to 14,000 ft. to save someone's life that you don't even know (could even be an Afghan) when your helicopter is only supposed to fly to 11,125 ft. I can guarantee that if you ask any one of these medevac crews if they love their job, they would tell you, they wouldn't have it any other way.
Now let me ask you this, and I want you to really think about it... Would you do it for a living? And trust me, they don't do it for the money. Would you leave your family behind for a year, only to spend it in Afghanistan? Would you lay your life on the line to save the life of someone you don't even know? You should maybe start thinking before you speak and try picturing yourself in the boots of some of these people. And maybe, just maybe, you will come to realize that what these guys do does "push them to their limits."
To the medevac guys, keep up the good work. It's been a great year and maybe one day we will get to spend another one together.

[horiwitz]

what a great job they do. our wounded get excellent care quickly. it was wonderful to see our child hard at work!!!!!!

[bubbadubba]

Note the only person whining like a little girl is the person who wrote the article.
The military members never said they are "pushed to the limit".
"But never have pilots like Air Mission Commander Russ Schuler been pushed so close to their limits as in the mountains of Afghanistan."
I think a lot of Medevac pilots who flew in Vietnam with a lot less equipment, older and slower helicopters, a better armed enemey, on a lot more dangerous missions might disagree with that stupid comment. A lot more Medevacs were shot down or crashed in 7 years in Vietnam than in Afghanistan and a lot more pilots and crews died.
Give me a break.
What a garbage story, or should I simply say LIE.

[cubscout09]

Weight. The weight of the oxygen makes you burn fuel that you may need later to save lives. Also, if you have a limited supply of oxygen, you'd probably save it for a patient.

[payasyougo]

God bless our Medivac pilots.

And our marine snipers.

[democracy1]

Agree absolutely! But is there some reason that they can't have "canned" oxygen?

The troops in Afghanistan are dealing with some of the worst terrain on the planet. Kudos to them!

[dblbar1]

AMEN to both!