Air Force medical service and medical readiness training, which is centered at Sheppard AFB, Tex., took an important step forward with the certification of the contingency aeromedical staging facility mobile training course in February. It is the first mobile training course certified both by Air Education and Training Command and Air Mobility Command. “We can go anywhere now and teach the course,” said Maj. Tammy St. Armand, instructor supervisor for the 381st Training Squadron’s CASF course. All soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen wounded in the combat theater go through the CASF before embarking on their next stage of medical treatment either at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, or in the United States. The new course allows CASF members to be trained away from Sheppard. It was used in January and February during the Pacific Lifeline 2008 exercise in Hawaii and will be part of the upcoming Patriot 2008 joint exercise at Volk Field ANGB, Wis. (Sheppard report by A1C Jacob Corbin)
The Air Force has finished modifying and testing the new VC-25B Bridge aircraft that will serve as a temporary Air Force One, the service announced May 1. All that’s left now is to finish painting the jet before it starts flying this summer.