HRs
I look at the soldiers getting onto the plane...with all their gear (flak vests rifles and kevlars (helmets) and i always try to remember their young faces. I make it a point to study their expressions and look at their eyes. Dont really know why. But I know that some will come back heros and that some will not come back. Sadly, whichever it is will matter little except to the family and freinds of the soldier.
The reality of that statement struck me as I was re-configuring the cargo compartment of a '130 to haul wounded. This was the second time I had to do that. mostly we just haul/cargo and healthy soldiers.The first time i had to configure it to haul litters was when we sat alert in December.
The "alertbird" is a plane we get ready to go for short notice if something happens that it is needed. Normally it was not our duty to have alert, but the normal guys plane broke so we picked up the slack. That particular day the alert was needed and called into action. That was the day the Mosul chow hall had the suicide bomber attack around Christmas. I had a freind there at that time who thankfully was not injured (or worse)in the attack. But the "alert bird" was called to medevac haul some of the wounded that day.
And here i am again, configuring the plane to haul wounded. Taking down all the seats and rollers and putting up the stantchions to support the litters and fixing all the devices that the aeromeds said were unservicable due to getting knocked around a few too many times.
I overheard the aeromds talking about the mission, as the senior (male) aeromed instructed the jr (female) aeromed how to hook up the medical oxygen supply to the aircraft oxygen system. Apparently there were a few litter patients that we were taking from here to another base in iraq. And at the base in iraq we'd pick up some "HR's". The senior aeromed (a captain )reached around the young attractive aeromed to show her how the oxygen got hooked up. She was giggling and the flirting was annoyingly ever present as they went about their business setting up their gear for the mission.
We were almost finished getting the plane ready when we saw he bright flashing lights of an emergncy vehicle approach off in the distance. The ambulance drove up andbacked itseld up to the ramp of the plane...which i lowered and i had installed the removable loading ramps to facilitate walking up with the litter (or stretcher).
The patient looked yung and he had bandages and IV tubes in his wrists. I later found out that he is a marine... out of the ramadi area. The giggling and flirting amongst the two crew members continued despite the fact that there was now a patient on the plane. I heard them two aeromeds discussing the mission some more over alot of giggling...and the Sr. aeromed was asing the loadmaster crewmember about the placement of seats. He was concerned there wouldn't be room to starap down the "hrs". At ths point the female jr. aeromed interrupts and asks..."What's an Hr?"....
For a moment everything gets silent as the Sr. male aeromed says "human remains"....
the jr aeromed interrupts the momentary silence with a giggle saying ...." oh...hee hee hee... all this time i thought you were talking about human resources when you said H.R."
The flirting and giggling continued, barely missing a beat.
I wondered if i was the only one who thought it inappropriate to reduce someone who gave their life for their country to just another acronym.
The reality of that statement struck me as I was re-configuring the cargo compartment of a '130 to haul wounded. This was the second time I had to do that. mostly we just haul/cargo and healthy soldiers.The first time i had to configure it to haul litters was when we sat alert in December.
The "alertbird" is a plane we get ready to go for short notice if something happens that it is needed. Normally it was not our duty to have alert, but the normal guys plane broke so we picked up the slack. That particular day the alert was needed and called into action. That was the day the Mosul chow hall had the suicide bomber attack around Christmas. I had a freind there at that time who thankfully was not injured (or worse)in the attack. But the "alert bird" was called to medevac haul some of the wounded that day.
And here i am again, configuring the plane to haul wounded. Taking down all the seats and rollers and putting up the stantchions to support the litters and fixing all the devices that the aeromeds said were unservicable due to getting knocked around a few too many times.
I overheard the aeromds talking about the mission, as the senior (male) aeromed instructed the jr (female) aeromed how to hook up the medical oxygen supply to the aircraft oxygen system. Apparently there were a few litter patients that we were taking from here to another base in iraq. And at the base in iraq we'd pick up some "HR's". The senior aeromed (a captain )reached around the young attractive aeromed to show her how the oxygen got hooked up. She was giggling and the flirting was annoyingly ever present as they went about their business setting up their gear for the mission.
We were almost finished getting the plane ready when we saw he bright flashing lights of an emergncy vehicle approach off in the distance. The ambulance drove up andbacked itseld up to the ramp of the plane...which i lowered and i had installed the removable loading ramps to facilitate walking up with the litter (or stretcher).
The patient looked yung and he had bandages and IV tubes in his wrists. I later found out that he is a marine... out of the ramadi area. The giggling and flirting amongst the two crew members continued despite the fact that there was now a patient on the plane. I heard them two aeromeds discussing the mission some more over alot of giggling...and the Sr. aeromed was asing the loadmaster crewmember about the placement of seats. He was concerned there wouldn't be room to starap down the "hrs". At ths point the female jr. aeromed interrupts and asks..."What's an Hr?"....
For a moment everything gets silent as the Sr. male aeromed says "human remains"....
the jr aeromed interrupts the momentary silence with a giggle saying ...." oh...hee hee hee... all this time i thought you were talking about human resources when you said H.R."
The flirting and giggling continued, barely missing a beat.
I wondered if i was the only one who thought it inappropriate to reduce someone who gave their life for their country to just another acronym.
posted by militarybrat at 6:24 PM
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