Soldiers carry Brig. Gen. Clinton Murray, commanding general of Medical Readiness Command Europe, from a UH-60 Black Hawk medevac helicopter to a field hospital near Bordusani, Romania, June 6, 2023, during Exercise Saber Guardian. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
STUTTGART, Germany — U.S. European Command wants $22 million to replace an aging aeromedical evacuation center at Ramstein Air Base, where “life-threatening equipment malfunctions” could put troops at risk, according to budget documents.
The situation at Ramstein would be exacerbated during a crisis given a lack of space to support the additional medical teams that would be needed to handle large numbers of casualties during a conflict, EUCOM said in its list of unfunded priorities recently submitted to Congress.
The command on Tuesday made available documents related to its request for the new aeromedical evacuation facility.
EUCOM’s Gen. Christopher Cavoli last week also highlighted the request during testimony in Washington, where he said the war in Ukraine brings into focus the need for ramped up capabilities.
“We work on (medical evacuation) even harder now because of what we’re observing in Ukraine,” Cavoli said. “The casualty rates are just enormous. And if you contemplate a large-scale war across the European continent, we can expect them to be greater.”
Cavoli said he submitted the unfunded request for a new aeromedical evacuation facility for the second year in a row.
“I am concerned about this,” he said.
An Air Force medical evacuation team practices patient transport procedures in a training facility at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center May 10, 2023. U.S. European Command has requested $22 million to replace an outdated aeromedical evacuation center at Ramstein Air Base, citing risks of equipment malfunctions and insufficient space for medical teams in crisis situations. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)
The squadrons handling medical evacuations out of Ramstein are responsible for missions across Europe. The airmen work out of an uninsulated structure built in 1957 that was set up during the early days of the base. They function as former aircraft maintenance and alert facilities, the budget documents stated.
Today, the electrical system that supports the buildings is overloaded and unable to service the squadrons’ equipment standby requirements, causing circuit breakers to trip and electrical wiring to overheat.
The situation creates “safety and health hazards for vital equipment, personnel and patients … leading to life-threatening equipment malfunctions during evacuation missions,” the documents said.
In lieu of construction funding, design work has continued.
The project hit a milestone in May 2022 when 35% of the project’s design was completed. The full design is expected to be done by September.
But the initiative, which was in the Air Force’s construction plan for 2025-2029, since has been removed by the service to make funds available for Next Generation Air Dominance requirements, according to budget documents. That program is focused on developing a next-generation fighter to replace the F-22.
