A five-man TV crew from the CBS news magazine “60 Minutes” has been to Balad AB, Iraq, to interview and film Air Force medical personnel, who are engaged in getting casualties from the battlefield to Balad’s theater hospital and on to Germany for more extended care. According to Balad’s Red Tail Flyer, the Air Force Theater Hospital, which sees some of the most seriously injured troops, has hosted numerous national and regional broadcast and print news media. Col. Don Taylor, commander of the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Group, said that it is “important that we tell the story of the extraordinary work that our people are doing here.”
Airmen and Guardians in the Active and Reserve component, as well as civilian employees, in “mission critical and high-risk populations” are now required to receive influenza vaccinations annually to “preserve force readiness,” according to a recent Department of the Air Force memo.