The U.S. Air Force recently deployed aid to nations in Europe to help counter the spread of the new coronavirus and brought home Americans stranded abroad.
On March 20, a C-130J from Ramstein’s 86th Airlift Wing transported an En-Route Patient Staging System to Aviano Air Base, Italy, to be delivered to the Italian Ministry of Defense. The mobile system includes 10 patient holding and staging beds, supporting a maximum of 40 patients in 24 hours, according to a U.S. Air Forces in Europe release.
“The COVID-19 pandemic requires that we work with our allies and partners to meet the challenges together,” USAFE boss Gen. Jeffery Harrigian said in the release.
The system includes seven days of medical supplies, two tents, and can reach operating capability within one day. The C-130 delivery also included a 15-day resupply pallet, according to USAFE.
On March 23, another Ramstein C-130 delivered pallets of medical supplies to Sarajevo, to help Bosnia and Herzegovina’s response to the new coronavirus, according to the U.S. Embassy in the country.
Also on March 20 and 21, C-130s and C-17s airlifted members of a U.S. women’s football team from Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras, to Joint Base Charleston, S.C., according to Air Mobility Command.