AFTER ACTION REPORT: OPERATION DESERT STORM

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  3.  Recommendation: Pass on to Ramstein AB support
  activities our congratulations for a job well done

AR. Reserve aeromedical evacuation personnel performed
 in an excellent fashion throughout the Operation.

 1.  Observation: With only a few exceptions,
  reserve personnel assigned to the Ramstein AB AECE performed
  assigned duties in an excellent fashion.

 2.  Discussion: The aeromedical evacuation control
  element was formed from many different reserve units, both
  strategic and tactical. Although there is a need to better
  identify in writing how to structure and operate a deployed
  AECE, the personnel assigned to Ramstein AB pulled together
  and got the job done with minimal problems. This was
  possible through the excellent cooperation and coordination
  of all affected management personnel and individual -
  crewmembers. Both management and crewmember personnel
  pulled together and formed a cohesive unit which performed
   its mission in an outstanding fashion. Although there are a
  significant number of observations with recommendations for
  improving aeromedical evacuation during future deployments,
  the basic element-(the individual medical reservist) proved
  to be highly trained and adaptable to a variety of
  situations. As long as we can keep reservists of this
  caliber, the success of future deployments is ensured.

 3.  Recommendation: Improve the aeromedical
  evacuation structure, equipment, and system as recommended
  throughout this after action report so that aeromedical
  evacuation personnel will be able to perform in an even more
  effective and proficient fashion in future deployments.

 10. Commander's summary. Operation Desert Storm provided
 valuable training experiences to the aeromedical evacuation
 community, and at the same time, identified numerous weak-
 nesses which currently exist. The six most critical areas
 having a negative effect on operations during Desert Storm
 were: 1) the lack of a single Air-Force level regulation
 describing the aeromedical evacuation concept of opera-
 tional and the working relationship between various medical
 organizations, 2) not having aeromedical evacuation under a
 single operating command (such as USTRANSCOM) during both
 wartime and peacetime, 3) inadequate personnel authoriza-
 tions in aeromedical evacuation command and control unit
 type codes (aeromedical evacuation control centers/elements
 and liaison teams), 4) lack of standardized administrative
 and medical equipment, 5) inadequate prepositioned medical
 supplies, and 6) inadequate training in management of the
 aeromedical evacuation system. In spite of the problems
 identified, aeromedical operations were run in a highly
 professional manner with full support of aeromedical evacu-
 ation personnel, base support personnel, and the local
 medical treatment centers. The Ramstein AECE was placed on

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