Airlifts of wounded surge in May, June; Highest since Fallujah in 2004

Aeromedical staging facility team members join a critical care patient for transport on a C-17 Globemaster to the main American military hospital at Landstuhl, Germany.

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany — The “surge” in U.S. troops in Iraq has resulted in an increase in patients passing through this base.

May and June stand among the busiest months ever for airmen who help transport and care for wounded servicemembers coming from Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Air Force figures.

June saw the highest number of patient movements since April 2004, when U.S. forces conducted a major offensive on the Iraqi city of Fallujah.

In May, the airmen conducted 1,545 “patient movements.” In June, the facility saw 1,564 movements.

Read the rest at Stars and Stripes

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