A Little Hoist Work

Today we did some hoist training. Its a skill we train on pretty regularly since hoisting the wounded out or doing rescue is a part of our job. Generally, the medic (me) rides the Jungle Penetrator down to the site on the ground to take care of business. I’ll assess the patient, make sure they are packaged appropriately, the watch as the Skedco is raised into the helicopter. Once the evacuation is complete, I’ll ride the JP back up into the helicopter and begin the enroute care.

Sometimes this can end up pretty precarious if someone is, say trapped on a mountain, or we have to hover over wounded soldiers in combat. Even in training this can be a bit risky since we are still dealing with weather and terrain.

Anyway, one more pic after the jump.