BATMAN to the Rescue

Air Force pararescuemen are training with next-generation wearable technology that will help rescuers quickly monitor blood pressure, heart rates, and the pulses of multiple casualties at the same time, helping Guardian Angels better respond to large-scale casualty events. Airmen from the New York Air National Guard’s 106th Rescue Wing spent two days in late August evaluating the system, called Battlefield Air Targeting Man-Aided kNowledge, or BATMAN. The system, developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory, includes wrist-mounted smartphones, along with lights on gloves and heads-up displays in helmet goggles, according to an Air Force release. The airmen used prototypes during a two-day exercise at Francis S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base, N.Y. The system has evolved since it began in 2003 with a chest-mounted laptop after airmen said they preferred the smaller smartphones, according to the Air Force. “This is a unique tool that can allow us to monitor up to five patients at once on a single electronic device,” said Lt. Col. Stephen Rush, a flight surgeon with the 106th Rescue Wing, in the release. “This increases our capabilities and effectiveness in a mass-casualty incident.”