Quiet Years 57

Part Two

Domestic Duties

&

Contingency Operations 
58 Call Sign – Dustoff
Quiet Years 59

Chapter Three

Quiet Years, 1973–1980 

“MAST has saved several lives in Texas and has rendered invaluable aid in a 

large number of cases. I hope that the project will be maintained as a regular 

program and indeed expanded to every extent possible.” 

Sen. John Tower1

Return to Garrison

Societal Change

With the final withdrawal of Army units from Vietnam in 1973, the 

MEDEVAC force was either returned to the United States or dispersed 

to Korea and Europe. Personnel rosters showed that there were 359 

Medical Service Corps (MSC) aviators, most of whom with vast combat experience. For them, the remainder of the decade brought few changes to organization, 

some updating of doctrine, a steady but not overly burdensome operations tempo, 

and the addition of a new mission, one focused on domestic needs. 

The garrison Army to which they returned was very different from the one 

that had dispatched them to war a decade earlier. Like the nation in general, it 

had dramatically changed. Vietnam took a toll on American society. The growing 

antipathy to the war that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s was in many 

cases transferred to the soldiers. In numerous documented cases, young soldiers 

were scorned when they returned home. “Baby killer” was an epithet shouted at 

many, and soldiers were not welcome on most college campuses. Racial tension 

was common on the bases because of the social revolution of the 1960s. Many 

soldiers returned from the war with drug addictions and behavioral and psychological issues. The Army returned home rife with low morale, poor discipline, 

and reduced military effectiveness. Career officers and noncommissioned officers 

(NCOs) were severely challenged by these difficult problems.2
60 Call Sign – Dustoff

One young MEDEVAC officer witnessed these developments. 1st Lt. Frank 

Novier entered the Army in May 1971. He was commissioned into the MSC and 

posted to a ground job with the 82d Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. A few months later, he was reassigned back to the Army Medical Department 

Center & School at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, in casual status awaiting a slot in 

flight training. He received orders to join the 421st Med Co (AA) in Germany 

after graduating in November 1974. Arriving in early 1975, he did his share of 

staff duty officer tours while getting mission-qualified. One evening, he handled 

a major discipline problem when some soldiers were throwing wall lockers out of 

a barracks. He also noticed that there were places on the post where it was unsafe 

to walk at night. At the time, he recalled, “Germany was not a real fun place.”3

He also noticed that most of the pilots were excellent flyers, but highly individualized in their procedures. Many were downright sloppy in their dress, and 

he did not enjoy flying with them. However, they did teach him a passion for the 

mission. What was missing was unit pride and cohesion. 

Novier said, “They were a reflection of the Army of the 1970s. It was not a 

very strong Army; it was beaten down from Vietnam. These guys were individual 

heroes, you didn’t have this cohesive feeling of being a unit.” He also noticed that 

the unit did not do any field training. Occasionally, a crew or two would fly out to 

be near a field exercise. They would land on a hill and monitor their radio for calls. 

Yet, he sensed that it was all done half-heartedly.4

With the end of the military draft on 30 June 1973, the Army had to compete 

for young men and women in the labor market instead of being infused each year 

with a new cohort of young soldiers as it had been since World War II. Many wondered if an organization as hidebound as the Army could openly compete or if the 

nation was prepared to pay a competitive price for young men and women who 

had other choices. A Presidential Commission was formed in 1969 to study the 

problem and make recommendations. One commission member, the renowned 

economist Milton Friedman, argued that it was the only way that a democracy 

with an open market economy could maintain a standing military. He made his 

case in a testy exchange with Gen. William Westmoreland, Army Chief of Staff, 

and former theater commander in Vietnam. 

Westmoreland told the commission that he did not want to command an army 

of mercenaries. Friedman asked, “General, would you rather command an army 

of slaves?” Westmoreland responded, “I don’t like to hear our draftee soldiers 

referred to as slaves.” 

Friedman retorted, “I don’t like to hear our patriotic volunteers referred to as 

mercenaries. If they are mercenaries, then I, sir, am a mercenary professor, and 

you, sir, are a mercenary general; we are served by mercenary physicians, we use 

a mercenary lawyer, and we get our meat from a mercenary butcher.” Friedman’s 

argument carried the day, the military draft was eliminated, and the Army became 

all volunteer.5

To attract qualified young men and now women in the numbers needed to sustain the force structure, the Army initiated a recruiting program. The Army adopted 
Quiet Years 61

the slogan “Be all that you can be” to attract new troops.6

Recruited into the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) earlier, Bill 

Thresher raised his right hand and recited the oath of commission on 21 December 1973, as he became a 2d Lt. in the MSC. Thresher was a recent graduate of 

Henderson State University, Arkadelphia, Arkansas. He initially intended to take 

his commission in the armor branch, but he changed his mind when he learned 

that his chances of flying were better in the MSC. When he reported for active 

duty, he was ordered to Fort Bragg for duty with the 5th Combat Support Hospital as a medical logistics officer. It lasted a little more than a year as he awaited 

orders to flight school. However, it was an eventful tour. Thresher was impressed 

with the sense of mission that permeated all of the units assigned to the XVIII 

Airborne Corps. 

He remembered: “Everything there was about urgency. You have got to be 

ready to go, constantly under the gun for emergency deployment readiness exercises.” He also saw the key part that the MSC officers played as the facilitators 

for the clinicians. It gave him a keen appreciation for the role they played serving 

both the profession of medicine and the profession of arms. It also gave him a 

strong fundamental knowledge of Army medicine that benefited him later. After 

14 months at Fort Bragg, he was assigned to Fort Rucker, Alabama, for his flight 

training.7

Operations

Garrison Duty

After graduating from flight school in February 1976, 2d Lt. Thresher was 

posted back to Fort Bragg to serve with the 57th Med Det (RA), led by a tough 

commander, Major Bob Rose. Rose was a Vietnam veteran and a rigorous leader. 

Thresher found that same sense of urgency he had experienced on his earlier assignment and saw that it made perfect sense for a MEDEVAC unit. Another Vietnam veteran, Capt. Bill Kruse, who was the consummate pilot and held nearly 

every qualification possible, also mentored him. Thresher wanted to fly a lot, and 

Kruse taught him all manner of tactics and techniques in the cockpit that were 

hard learned in Vietnam. It was invaluable mentoring and the key way that flight 

experience was passed to new pilots. No fully standardized flight procedures existed then, and published flight manuals offered only the barest explanations of 

tactics and techniques.

Thresher’s very first operational mission was to recover a soldier from the Sicily drop zone who was killed when both of his parachutes failed. Loading that soldier and another with a broken leg sustained in the jump onto his aircraft delivered 

to the young lieutenant the reality of his chosen career field. Thresher learned the 

basics quickly, and with barely 50 hours in the UH-1, he was upgraded to aircraft 

commander. As he steadily logged missions and hours, he grew to enjoy the mission and flying, and developed a deep appreciation for what it was giving him. 
62 Call Sign – Dustoff

He said:

It was a great grooming ground for responsibility because when you are the pilot in command 

of your aircraft with a kid in the back who has deviated his spine on Holland Drop Zone ...

and your copilot has got less time than you do, you learn responsibility pretty quick. ...and 

this soldier in the back is depending on you. His mother and father are depending on you; his 

kids are depending on you. It’s an obligation and you can’t let him down. ...The reason he is 

alive today, theoretically, is that you were able to get there within seven, eight minutes and get 

him to a hospital within twelve minutes so somebody then could do their job. ... The medic 

on the ground who treats the guy when he is first hurt and the doctor who saves his life at the 

hospital—they are both critical but you are the glue between the two of them. That’s what the 

57th meant to me.8

In general, the MEDEVAC units did not suffer the same type of discipline problems rife throughout the Army then. In part, this resulted from the fact that all 

medical personnel were volunteer specialists of some sort who had to score higher 

on their entrance exams and then complete difficult training to get their jobs. In 

December 1977, now Capt. Bill Thresher was abruptly removed from flying duties and assigned to command the 429th Med Co, a ground ambulance unit. He 

inherited a poorly performing unit with a number of discipline problems that required him to issue several nonjudicial punishments or even discharges. Initially, 

he feared that his strong actions would alienate his other troops. However, he 

found that by taking firm actions against the recalcitrant ones, the good troops 

rallied to him. He instilled in them the sense of urgency he had learned in his 

previous units and turned the 429th into a very sharp unit.9

But Thresher’s experiences were somewhat the exception. The Army also had 

to take internal steps to change the way it fundamentally did business. It had to 

get soldiers back to the basics of soldiering by hiring civilians to perform the 

mundane chores such as KP, grass cutting, and guard duty. 

Training had to be refocused to provide more exciting and meaningful endeavors. It also had to be redesigned to encourage the development of initiative, 

self-reliance, moral and physical courage, and mutual confidence. Soldiers had to 

be encouraged to take advantage of educational opportunities—both on and off 

base—and develop a logical learning progression that would last throughout their 

career. The Army reenergized its programs to develop professional leadership for 

both officers and NCOs. It had to establish an NCO educational system for the 

development of sergeants at all levels. It also had to realign the officer assignment 

system to allow for stabilized tours for commanders, something that had been 

badly broken by the personnel turbulence caused by the rapid buildup and just as 

rapid inactivation of units for the Vietnam War. 

Perhaps most important, it had to improve the quality of life for the soldiers. 

The barracks needed to be upgraded to allow for privacy. Better housing had 

to be built for Army families. Facilities on base such as the post exchanges, 

personnel offices, and gymnasiums needed to be improved. Health care had 

to be expanded, with longer clinic duty hours more convenient for the troops. 

Soldier pay needed to be improved to make it competitive with what an enlistee could earn on the outside. All of these items required increased funding, 
Quiet Years 63

and Congress supported them with increased appropriations starting in fiscal 

year 1973.10

In the mid-1970s, Lt. Col. Pat Brady was given command of the 326th Medical Battalion, 101st Airborne Division, at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He had not 

served directly with troops for a while, and was shocked at what he found. Much 

of his time was taken up with disciplinary problems and drug use. 

Brady remembered the following: “There was a permissiveness coming out of 

society that overflowed into the Army. I think probably the best way to describe it 

was the slogan of the time... ‘Today’s Army wants to join you.’” He believed that 

many of the troops that were entering the Army then were inferior to the soldiers 

with whom he had served in Vietnam and other earlier assignments. He further 

believed that too many of recruits brought with them “disciplinary problems that 

detracted from training.”11

Maj. Doug Moore watched these developments from his position as the deputy 

commander for administration at the U.S. Army Medical Department Activity 

at Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia. In the summer of 1973, as a new Lt. Col., he 

reported to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to attend the Army Command and General 

Staff College. While there as a “token medic,” he wrote a paper about the future 

uses of air ambulance units. His unpublished paper, titled “Air Ambulance Support for the Combat Division,” was a forward-looking analysis of necessary air 

ambulance unit structure based on projected threats and missions. He proposed 

increasing the number of air ambulances necessary directly to support a division from six to 10. He also raised questions about the proper way to command 

and control them, provide for aircraft maintenance, and deal with the increasing 

sophistication of communications, navigation, and airspace control. He also suggested that MEDEVAC doctrine needed to be updated with these changes—all 

prescient thoughts as future events would show.12

Recruitment

Initial results for the new recruitment program were disappointing. During the 

fiscal year ending June 1972, only 68.5% of the needed quota of new enlistees 

was met. However, by Christmas, recruiting began to bottom out. By the end of 

fiscal year 1973, the enlistment rates exceeded 100%. Two reasons were cited for 

the turnaround: (1) The Army was smaller than it had been since well before the 

Vietnam buildup; and (2) Congress also helped by providing recruiting bonuses 

for 32 critical skills and incentive bonuses for recruiters.13

At the same time, a reduction-in-force for officers was enforced. The buildup 

of forces in Vietnam had created a huge bulge in the officer corps in year groups 

1967 to 1970. Before Vietnam, officer strength had comprised about 11.6% of 

the total Army manpower. By 1972, it swelled to 14.9%. For long-term stability, 

it had to be reduced to 13.7%. In 1972 and 1973, reduction-in-force boards were 

held, and 4, 900 officers were released.14

Another paradigm shift was the active recruitment of women. Since 1948, the 

Army had limited the number of women to no more than 2% of total end strength. 
64 Call Sign – Dustoff

They were restricted almost exclusively to the clerical and supply fields. Married 

women could not join, and women who became pregnant were discharged.

These restrictions were slowly lifted. In 1973, 10,900 women joined the Army. 

Capt. Jerry Foust, serving as an instructor at the Academy of Health Sciences at 

Fort Sam Houston, saw some of the first to come into the medical branches. He 

was impressed. “The first women who went through the school did just fine,” he 

said, “They were smart.” The numbers steadily increased, and by 1978, there were 

more than 53,000 women in the service. Female recruits were a key factor in the 

Army achieving its recruitment needs.15

As numbers increased, restrictions on assignments for women were relaxed, 

and they spread into almost all elements of the Army. In 1976, women were allowed into the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and 119 entered the class 

of 1980. In the Reserve Components, female membership also steadily rose. By 

1982, more than 38,000 women were serving in the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR). 

Women were also strongly encouraged to enter the ROTC program, and their 

numbers exceeded 5,000 active participants by the end of the decade. The integration of women into the Army was so successful and complete that the Women’s 

Army Corps, in existence since 1942, was disestablished in 1978, and women 

were assigned to branches just like the men.16

The introduction of women into what had traditionally been an all-male environment led to a rapid increase in incidents of sexual harassment and fraternization. 

The Army soon realized that it needed to establish new rules and procedures to 

regulate soldier behavior. Firm guidelines were established that defined improper 

fraternization, especially between superiors and subordinates. The problems were 

never completely solved, but the trends turned positive as women began to firmly 

establish themselves in their chosen fields as professionals fully capable of doing 

their jobs and fully deserving of the respect due to them as professionals. The 

Army was truly no longer “your father’s Army.”17

Moore witnessed those changes. After staff college he attended airborne qualification training at Fort Benning, Georgia, and then reported to Fort Bragg, to command the 307th Medical Battalion, 82d Airborne Division. It was an intense twoyear assignment because the division always had to have a brigade-sized force 

ready to deploy, and that included a company from his battalion. At the end of that 

assignment, he was directed to attend the Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, 

Pennsylvania, and was one of only six MSC officers selected.

He mixed with a broad swath of Army and other service officers, plus rising leaders from other governmental agencies and even other nations. It was a time of learning as they collectively struggled with the issues roiling the Army and nation. They 

discussed the efforts to rebuild and restructure the military. This experience was a 

good foundation to his next assignment with the Inspector General of the Army.18

In 1977, the MSC of the Army made a concerted effort to increase the number 

of females serving in that branch. At the MSC’s request, the Recruiting Command 

conducted surveys among women already serving. Most indicated satisfaction 

with the progress of their careers, although many complained of sexual bias. More 
Quiet Years 65

than two-thirds preferred the MSC to other branches. The MSC made some positive changes to its recruiting effort, and the results were very positive. From a low 

of just 7 female officers in 1968, the MSC had 544 serving by 1987, most joining 

after 1977. Some joined to fly as MEDEVAC pilots.19

In February 1979, in response to the increased recruiting efforts to bring more 

women into the MSC, 1st Lt. Karen Anderson graduated from flight training at 

Fort Rucker and became the first female MEDEVAC pilot. She joined the 247th 

Med Det (RA) at Fort Meade, Maryland, as a medical evacuation pilot.20

Organization

Units

In September 1973, the active Army MEDEVAC units were located at the following places:

United States

498th Med Co (AA) Fort Benning, Georgia

507th Med Co (AA) Fort Sam Houston, Texas

54th Med Det (RA) Fort Lewis, Washington

57th Med Det (RA) Fort Bragg, North Carolina 

(replaced the 151st Med Det that inactivated)

68th Med Det (RA) Schofield Barracks, Hawaii

237th Med Det (RA) Fort Ord, California 

(replaced the 32d Med Det that inactivated)

247th Med Det (RA) Fort Meade, Maryland

283d Med Det (RA) Fort Bliss, Texas

571st Med Det (RA) Fort Carson, Colorado

AA Platoon, Fort Campbell, Kentucky

326th Med Battalion, 

101st ABN Div

Germany

421st Med Co (AA) Stuttgart – with platoons also at Schweinfurt 

and Darmstadt

15th Med Det (RA) Grafenwöhr

63d Med Det (RA) Landstuhl

159th Med Det (RA) Bremerhaven

236th Med Det (RA) Augsburg

Korea

377th Med Co (AA) Yongsan, Korea21
66 Call Sign – Dustoff

Throughout the decade, units would be reassigned and moved. In 1975, 

two more units, the 36th Med Det (RA) at Fort Polk, Louisiana, and the 431st 

Med Det (RA) at Fort Knox, Kentucky, were activated. In October 1979, the 

283d Med Det (RA) moved from Fort Bliss to Fort Wainwright, Alaska. The 

next year, the 247th Med Det (RA) was moved from Fort Meade to Fort Irwin, 

California.22

Personnel Movements 

Like the units, the personnel of MEDEVAC were also periodically reassigned 

as they progressed steadily through their careers. After graduating from the Army 

Command and General Staff College in June 1973, Maj. Jim Truscott went to 

Headquarters, European Command, located near Stuttgart, Germany, as an operations officer, an assignment that gave him a unique opportunity as a relatively 

junior officer to participate in joint and combined operations. A year later, he was 

reassigned back to the 63d Med Det (RA), now at Landstuhl, the same unit that he 

had commanded six years prior, but now equipped with six UH-1H helicopters and 

a full complement of pilots, medics, and support personnel. Their mission was to 

provide evacuation of sick and injured essentially from locations along the Rhine 

River to hospital locations. They were under the operational control of the 421st 

Med Co (AA). The unit received its logistical support from aviation maintenance 

and logistical units in the area. Truscott rapidly developed the skills necessary to 

work with both the medical and aviation communities to perform his mission.23

One hundred and eighty miles to the southeast, 1st Lt. Art Hapner and the 236th 

Med Det (RA) had settled into their facilities just northwest of Augsburg. Their 

six UH-1Hs had all flown in Vietnam and were completely refurbished. The pilots were a mixed lot, with one-half also Vietnam veterans. Many were not fully 

trained to fly in instrument conditions, and the unit had to set up an internal program to do so. The unit primarily supported field units, but also had occasional 

taskings to support the local communities. The pilots occasionally flew to Garmisch to pick up patients. Pilots in the unit became very adept at instrument and 

international flying. Hapner served with the 236th until 1976, when he was sent 

back to Fort Sam Houston for the MSC advanced course.24

Reserve Component Units in the Total Force

Another fundamental change was afoot within the Army. The active component was always supported by a large Reserve Component that had two subcomponents: (1) the USAR, and (2) the 54 Army National Guards (ARNGs) of the 

individual states, Washington, DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. 

In times of war, the units from both subcomponents were activated for federal 

service and fought alongside their active duty fellow soldiers. However, during 

the Vietnam War, for political reasons, there were only minor activations of Reserve Component forces. As the nation withdrew from the conflict, Secretary of 
Quiet Years 67

Defense Melvin Laird announced in 1970 a “Total Force” concept that would 

reintegrate the active and Reserve Components so that in future wars, both would 

be relied on to serve the nation. In 1973, this concept became official policy, and 

more force structure was moved into the two Reserve Components. 

Traditionally, the ARNG units had been composed primarily of combat type 

units while the USAR consisted mostly of combat support and combat service 

support formations, especially medical units. But the break was not clean. Congressional pressure and constant intervention resulted in each component having 

units of all types. During the Vietnam War, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara tried to combine the ARNG and USAR. He was decisively blocked by 

congressional action and while the traditional split was maintained in theory, in 

reality, both components received authorizations for combat, combat support, and 

combat service support units protected by yearly appropriations laws that were 

subject to constant congressional involvement.25

To make these forces more capable of rapidly activating and operating with 

the active duty Army units, they received newer equipment and authorizations 

for more full-time personnel to ensure continuity of training and administrative 

matters. Additionally, the current Army Chief of Staff Gen. Creighton Abrams 

believed that the nation had made a terrible mistake in the Vietnam War by not 

calling on the ARNG and USAR to participate in the conflict. He saw the early 

and committed use of the Reserve Components as vitally necessary for sustaining the national will in time of war. Thus, he directed the Army to take specific 

steps to structure its combat forces so that it could not be committed to anything 

more than short duration contingency operations without calling on its Reserve 

Components. By the end of 1973, two-thirds of the combat support and combat 

service support units needed to sustain the Army in the field were in the Reserve 

Components. Although Reserve Component manning initially dipped during the 

1970s, the units received new equipment and grew in later years.26

This restructuring affected the MEDEVAC force. More units were authorized 

for both components. The USAR activated new detachments. In most cases, the 

various states converted already existing ARNG units into MEDEVAC companies 

and detachments. In the mid 1970s, the following units were active in reserve 

status in the two components: 

Army Reserve (USAR)

145th Med Det (RA) Marietta, Georgia

273d Med Det (RA) Tomball, Texas

321st Med Det (RA) Salt Lake City, Utah

343d Med Det (RA) Hamilton AFB, California

347th Med Det (RA) Miami, Florida 

348th Med Det (RA) Orlando, Florida

412th Med Det (RA) Louisville, Kentucky

872d Med Det (RA) Lafayette, Louisiana27
68 Call Sign – Dustoff

Army National Guard (ARNG)

24th Med Co (AA) Nebraska

112th Med Co (AA) Maine

123d Med Co (AA) Mississippi

126th Med Co (AA) California

1187th Med Co (AA) Iowa

142d Med Det (RA) North Dakota

146th Med Det (RA) West Virginia

397th Med Det (RA) New Hampshire

400th Med Det (RA) Washington, DC

441st Med Det (RA) Kentucky

470th Med Det (RA) Kentucky

670th Med Det (RA) Tennessee

717th Med Det (RA) New Mexico

812th Med Det (RA) Louisiana

813th Med Det (RA) Louisiana

841st Med Det (RA) Washington

867th Med Det (RA) Missouri 

868th Med Det (RA) Missouri 

920th Med Det (RA) Kansas

986th Med Det (RA) Virginia

1022d Med Det (RA) Wyoming

1059th Med Det (RA) Massachusetts

1085th Med Det (RA) South Dakota

1134th Med Det (RA) Alabama

1136th Med Det (RA) Texas

1150th Med Det (RA) Nevada28

A New National Mission for MEDEVAC

Operations 

Military Assistance to Safety and Traffic 

Concept. As the active duty Army struggled with the difficult challenges of the 

post–Vietnam era, several of the stateside MEDEVAC units received taskings 

under a new program called Military Assistance to Safety and Traffic (MAST). 

Many individuals participated in its development including Spurgeon Neel, a key 

contributor, who throughout the 1960s constantly wrote and spoke about the use 

of helicopters in medical care. His efforts drew the attention of civilian medical 

leaders who asked for a civilian version of MEDEVAC.

In February 1969, Dr. Charles Atkinson, a physician from Florida wrote to then 

Col. Neel, serving as the Director of Plans, Supply, and Operations on the Office 
Quiet Years 69

of The Surgeon General staff. Atkinson read one of Neel’s articles and was interested in possibly procuring Army MEDEVAC support for his community. 

Neel replied: 

The concept of using air ambulances in the highway safety program appears to be a very valid 

approach to the problem of getting the patient to professional care as soon as possible....The 

helicopter air ambulance is solving our major evacuation problems and I believe will solve 

yours also.29

Two months later Neel wrote an article for the Journal of the American Medical 

Association in which he stated: “The experiences that the Army Medical Service 

has gained in the utilization of helicopter ambulances can and, I believe, must be 

translated into comparable civilian emergency health programs.” He also pointed 

out that Army MEDEVAC elements at Fort Rucker and Fort Sam Houston had 

performed local rescues of highway accidents on an ad-hoc basis since 1966.30

Others within the Army also pushed the concept. Lt. Col. Robert Sears, a career aviator, proposed an “Air Medical Evacuation System” in his master’s thesis 

while attending the School of Engineering at Arizona State University in 1968. 

His paper proposed a “concept of utilizing helicopters as a means to transport 

the seriously injured to a medical facility capable of treating the specific injuries, 

with complete independence from road and traffic conditions ...” He specifically 

noted that, “The U.S. Army has pioneered the field of helicopter evacuation and 

has proved the effectiveness of the concept.”31

After graduating from Arizona State University, Sears served in the office of 

the Assistant Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. William E. DePuy. He briefed 

DePuy on the program and concept. DePuy gained approval for Sears to develop 

the idea and initially send it out for staff coordination on feasibility. The responses 

were generally favorable with questions raised about financing, legal authorities, 

etc. The ARNG was especially supportive, seeing its units as key participants, but 

noting that they would have to be reequipped with newer helicopters.32

Concurrently, the Departments of Transportation and Health, Education, and 

Welfare also considered similar proposals. Operation SKY-AID, the test program 

run by the 24th Med Co (AA), Nebraska ARNG in 1968 and 1969, had shown the 

efficacy of domestic MEDEVAC and portended great promise. After the Secretary 

of the Army, Stanley Resor, was briefed on the Air Medical Evacuation System 

proposal, he sent a memorandum to Melvin Laird, Secretary of Defense, stating 

that he believed that the project held great promise. For several months, Laird 

discussed this very idea with the Secretary of Transportation. In response, Laird 

appointed Resor and the Army to serve as the executive agent for the Department 

of Defense (DOD) on the matter, making him (Resor) the decision authority for 

all Air Medical Evacuation System matters involving the DOD and directing him 

to initiate an interagency study group to determine the best course of action.33

Test. The interagency study group formed and worked through the fall and 

winter. The Department of Transportation actually chaired the study group because it had already funded several test projects under the Highway Safety Act. 
70 Call Sign – Dustoff

In April 1970, the study group visited Fort Sam Houston to observe the 507th 

Med Co (AA). The group also considered Army Reserve Component units for 

the program and visited the 24th Med Co (AA) at Lincoln, Nebraska, to hear 

about its success with Operation SKY-AID. In May, they presented a development plan for a test of the now renamed MAST program. The 507th Med Co 

(AA) was directed to be ready by June to provide coverage over San Antonio 

and the adjoining 10 counties. The test began 1 July and ran until the end of 

the year. Each governmental department would fund its own incurred costs.34

Subsequent discussions between DOD and the Department of Transportation 

determined that the initial test would be expanded to five locations, none of which 

would initially include a Guard or Reserve unit. The sites were selected based on 

the location of military units, a state government’s expression of interest and support, a rural environment contiguous to adequate medical facilities, and different 

climate and terrain conditions.

First Mission. The operation at Fort Sam Houston started 15 July 1970. The first 

call came two days later. A young man had been run over by a tractor in Dilley, 

Texas, 84 miles away, sustaining a broken leg and shoulder and internal injuries. 

Two minutes after the call was received, a 507th MEDEVAC helicopter under 

the command of Capt. Sam McLamb lifted off and sped to the scene. The subsequent return flight to the hospital took 30 minutes, well short of the 90 minutes 

required by a ground ambulance. The value of MAST was immediately clear. 

Later, McLamb stated that, “It was the closest thing to a Vietnam Dustoff mission 

one could imagine. It included the same tension and speed ... everything but the 

hostile fire.”35

Additional Army operations were started on 6 August with the 78th Med Det 

(RA) at Fort Carson and the 54th Med Det (RA) at Fort Lewis. The U.S. Air 

Force also participated and opened MAST operations with detachments of the 

42d Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, 

and Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, on 1 September 1970. At each location, the operation was crafted with the support of local authorities. It was clearly 

understood that military usage would not replace or compete with local services. 

The helicopters would not be used in areas where ground ambulances could better 

respond. Requests for helicopter assistance were based on the judgment of medical or emergency personnel at the scene who believed that the medical situation 

was life-threatening and required expeditious helicopter transport to a facility capable of providing the necessary care.36

Secretary Laird made a trip to San Antonio to observe the program. Watching 

a 507th helicopter deliver a patient injured in an automobile accident, he pointed 

out that highway accidents were the greatest killer of young men in America. He 

added, “When I saw the rapid evacuation and treatment of casualties in Vietnam, 

I thought this was one lesson we could apply at home.”37

The test ran through December. The 507th logged 114 missions and recovered 

138 patients. All other units were dramatically lower, with the Mountain Home 

and Luke units only logging four and five missions, respectively, because they 
Quiet Years 71

only made crews and aircraft available for a limited period each day. The 54th 

at Fort Lewis flew 34 missions and carried 41 patients. Unfortunately, one of its 

crews suffered a fatal crash, and subsequently, the local authorities were reluctant 

to call them out, fearing another accident.

Limitations in communications gear were noted, and localized procedures had 

to be resolved. Overall, the program was successful. Some local resistance occurred because a few local ambulance companies perceived the use of the military 

assets as unfair competition. From a military perspective, the report noted that:

It proved desirable from the standpoint of training and motivation for the medical unit in 

particular. Aeromedical evacuation procedures developed for combat situations are readily 

transferable to civilian applications. Public acceptance of the concept was clearly established 

and reflected most favorably upon the military. ... MAST operations were a ‘natural’ for the 

medical company ... 38

The Interagency Group completed the test phase with several conclusions:

1. Even though the short test was based on limited operational experience, the 

concept appears to be sound from a military and civilian perspective.

2. The military possesses significant capability for providing assistance 

that does not necessarily exist within civilian companies due to financial 

considerations. 

3. Army MEDEVAC units are particularly well suited for the missions that 

provide realistic training and motivation for assigned personnel.

4. Tactical aviation units can provide the support, but it diverts them from their 

primary mission. 

5. Air Force rescue units have limited manning and equipment and require 

augmentation to provide 24/7 coverage. 

White UH-1s from the 507th Med Co, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, performing MAST duty in the 1970s. 

Source: Army Medical Department Museum.
72 Call Sign – Dustoff

6. The test indicates that participating units suffered no degradation of unit 

integrity, effectiveness, training, or ability to do their primary mission.

7. Availability of military assets does not mean that the local communities will 

necessarily use it. 

8. Less than full-time availability of assets restricts community requests for the 

services. 

9. The local community emergency medical system must be capable of 

integrating with the military unit for proper and timely notification, 

coordination, and communication. 

10. The general public and medical and law enforcement officials show a high 

degree of acceptance of the program.

11. Military units supporting MAST operations do not require any additional 

money, personnel, or aircraft.39

At Fort Rucker, the home of Army Aviation, Commander Maj. Gen. William J. 

Maddox, Jr. watched the process very closely and was pleased with what he saw:

I examined the interim test report... and decided that MAST was well within the capability 

of Army units to handle... I concluded that the MAST program was in line with the readiness 

objectives we have for Army units because it provides a method of giving our people an opportunity to have a life saving and operational mission as opposed to a routine training mission.40

Continued Operations. Even though the MAST test was concluded, the operations did not stop. As word of the program’s success spread, more units wanted 

to participate, and discussions began about utilizing Guard and Reserve units. 

Many received newer equipment, and their close relationships with their communities ensured early acceptance of the new capability. The governors of Nebraska and Idaho asked to participate. The Governor of Arizona was especially 

interested. He was aware of Sears’ work at Arizona State University and requested that the 997th Medical Company (AA) of the Arizona ARNG be included in the program. However, ARNG participation needed legal determination 

before it could occur.

Enabling Legislation. Political support for the program began to develop. Congressmen J.J. Pickle and Abraham Kazan of Texas both submitted statements of 

support for the program into the Congressional Record. Senator John Tower, also 

from Texas, wrote a strong letter to the Secretary of Defense in which he stated, 

“MAST has saved several lives in Texas and has rendered invaluable aid in a 

large number of cases. I hope that the project will be maintained as a regular program and indeed expanded to every extent possible.” Numerous city mayors from 

across the nation, like Franklin Keller of Lacoste, Texas, copied his efforts. Keller 

wrote, “Please do all you can to have the lifesaving service of MAST continued 

and expanded throughout our area. I feel this is a very worthwhile service and 

should by all means be continued.”41

In 1971, President Nixon called for increased medical support for rural areas 
Quiet Years 73

as national policy. Political support continued to grow for MAST as congressional and executive branch offices received letters of endorsement and city council 

resolutions of support. The next year Congress passed and the President signed 

Public Law 93-155, authorizing (but not requiring) the use of DOD helicopter 

resources in a continuing medical emergency transport role in the civilian community. The law also specified some limitations:

1. Assistance could only be provided in areas where military units able to 

provide assistance were regularly assigned, and military units could not be 

transferred from one area to another for providing such assistance. 

2. Assistance could be provided only to the extent that it did not interfere with 

the performance of the military mission. 

3. The provision of assistance would not cause any increase in funds required 

for the operation of the DOD.42

In addition to these limitations, the Secretary of Defense set several more restrictive policies for the program:

1. Military units would not compete for emergency medical evacuation missions 

in areas where civilian operators could provide comparable support.

2. Military support would be accomplished only as a by-product of and 

within the Military Department’s annual training program and without 

adverse impact on the primary military mission. MAST sites would be 

established adjacent to installations only where air ambulance or rescue 

units were regularly assigned and aeromedical personnel and equipment 

were available. 

3. MAST operations could be discontinued with little or no advance notice 

because of DOD priorities.43

By January 1974, the five original MAST designated units had flown 2,456 missions and carried 2,773 patients.44

Within the next several months, several more units received MAST taskings. 

The 57th Med Det (RA) at Fort Bragg, the Air Ambulance Platoon of the 326th 

Medical Battalion at Fort Campbell, the 68th Med Det (RA) at Schofield Barracks, the 82d Med Det (RA) at Fort Riley, Kansas, the 237th Med Det (RA) at 

Fort Ord, and the 498th Med Co (AA) at Fort Benning with platoons at other locations all assumed MAST duties to the great delight of their local communities. 

Two years later, the 273d Med Det (RA), an Army Reserve unit at Tomball, Texas, 

became the first Reserve Component unit to also assume MAST tasking. There 

were many more within the next year, as MAST became a major consumer of the 

services of the Army’s active and Reserve Component MEDEVAC community.45

At Fort Sam Houston, Capt. Jerry Foust became a self-described “talking dog” 

for MAST. He was sent to cities and towns across Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, 

and the midwest to relay the positive things that MAST could do for their communities. He loved the assignment.46
74 Call Sign – Dustoff

At one point, Foust encountered a young lieutenant named Dan Gower, who 

had graduated from Texas A&M University in 1970 and commissioned into the 

infantry. He asked for and received orders for flight school. While at Fort Rucker, 

he and his wife were injured by a tornado. Consequently, he had to request a humanitarian assignment back to Fort Sam Houston after graduation.

There he was assigned to the 507th. Foust liked Gower and convinced him 

to branch transfer to MSC. Gower transferred and flew his fair share of MAST 

missions.47

In addition to his flying obligations, his first position in the unit was to serve as 

the administrative officer that thrust him into the myriad social issues prevalent 

then. He had troops in trouble for drugs and alcohol abuse, and several had to 

be discharged. He dealt with racial tensions. In general, Gower noticed that the 

soldiers who came to MEDEVAC were a bit more mature and stable than troops 

in other units. They understood the importance of MEDEVAC and accepted the 

necessary training and focus necessary to accomplish the mission. 

During his time with the unit, the 507th received some of the first women to 

enter the MEDEVAC mission area. Their first female medic was Spc. Donarita 

Czerwinski. Her first real mission after qualification was a MAST scramble to 

recover a farmer who fell into a combine that chopped his legs off just below his 

groin. She handled the difficult mission because the “old head” Vietnam veterans 

had trained her. Gower was proud of her and his other soldiers. He served with 

the 507th until 1977 when he attended the MSC advanced course and transferred 

to the 68th Med Det (RA) in Hawaii.48

MAST Continues to Grow. The next unit to join the MAST program was the 

431st Med Det (RA) at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Activated in the spring of 1975, it 

began participating in MAST almost immediately. By September 1976, more than 

8,200 MAST missions had recovered 8,613 patients. Helicopters from Army and 

Air Force units—both active and Reserve—were on call at 22 locations across 

the United States. Missions came in all varieties. A crew from the 571st Med Det 

(RA) at Fort Carson was launched to pick up a young soldier’s wife who was going into labor four weeks early. They picked her up for transport to the Fitzsimons 

Army Medical Center in Denver. However, en route at 8,000 feet she gave birth to 

a four-pound daughter who was delivered by the flight medics, Sp5 Tom Haverkorn and Pfc. Debra Kleinfelter.49

In another incident, a backpacker fell on Mount Rainer and slid down 1,500 

feet, receiving severe internal injuries, fractured ribs, etc. He suffered from exposure to the harsh elements. Park rangers were notified late at night and determined 

that it would take several hours to rescue him with a ground team. They called 

the 54th Med Det (RA) at Fort Lewis for help. At first light they launched a UH-1 

MEDEVAC helicopter. The backpacker was on a glacier with jagged ice at 9,500 

feet elevation. The pilot held the helicopter on one skid as the crew recovered the 

man. They evacuated him to a hospital in Takoma. 

The Air Ambulance Platoon of the 326th Medical Battalion at Fort Campbell also 

became very busy with MAST calls. In two days in June 1976, both aircraft and 
Quiet Years 75

crews on call were dispatched six times to answer various calls to do the following: 

1. Respond to an aircraft accident; 

2. Transport a burn victim;

3. Carry emergency blood supplies (twice);

4. Transport a patient with a brain tumor; and

5. Transport a day old baby with birth defects. 

These flights provided needed services to the communities involved and excellent 

training for the crews involved. 

In California, a bad storm capsized a small boat off of Santa Cruz in the Monterey Bay. A patrol boat tried to save the occupants, but was itself swamped, and 

its crew of two had to swim to shore. A UH-1 from the 237th Med Det (RA) at 

Fort Ord was dispatched and rescued the crew of three in 15 minutes.

In still another illustrative incident in 1976, a butane truck exploded in Eagle 

Pass, Texas. Ten people were killed and 40 were injured. The 507th Med Co 

(AA) at Fort Sam Houston was called for help. The unit launched six helicopters 

that stopped at local hospitals to transport needed on-site medical personnel. 

Then the helicopters made seven trips back to several San Antonio hospitals 

to deliver 22 injured people. Representative Abraham Kazan was deeply appreciative and wrote a thank-you letter to the unit. “Be assured of my continued 

support of the MAST program and my deep appreciation for your aid to people 

in need....” 

A witness to the entire incident, Texas Highway Patrolman Ken Phillips, also 

wrote to the unit. “I hope the MAST program will be expanded to include other 

areas in Texas that are remote from expert medical care.” The dedication, courage, 

A 507th Med Co crew responding to a MAST call. 

Source: Army Medical Department Museum.
76 Call Sign – Dustoff

and skill of the men and women of the MAST units proved its worth in saving 

lives, obtaining prompt medical attention for the seriously injured, and reducing 

suffering. MAST brought the military and local communities together while also 

providing excellent training for the crews. The program showed success beyond 

its expectations, and the Eagle Pass mission was recorded as one of the most 

memorable. By March 1977, the 507th and its two separate platoons had recorded 

the recovery of 2,000 patients.50

Crash Rescue

The MEDEVAC units were also considered for other missions. One was crash 

rescue. A small number of UH-1s was outfitted with fire suppression kits for use 

in recovering aircrews from burning aircraft. The helicopters were modified with 

an extendable boom that could spray 50 gallons of water forward of the aircraft. 

Theoretically, the spray could suppress flames long enough so that the medic and 

the crew chief—who was specifically trained in firefighting—could dismount, enter the wreckage, and pull out the trapped survivors. 

Three units, the 132d Med Det (RC) at Fort Bragg, commanded by Capt. Glen 

Flint, the 214th Med Det (RC) at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and the 218th Med Det 

(RC) at Fort Hood, Texas, were activated in 1971. Each unit had two aircraft, 

five pilots, three medics, and three crew chiefs, plus a small maintenance team. 

All were fully operational within a year. However, there was little need for their 

services. By 1975, all three units were inactivated. Their personnel and equipment 

returned to conventional MEDEVAC units that were then assigned crash and rescue duties as a secondary mission, but without the fire suppression kits.51

Refocusing on the Future

Organization

Europe

At mid-decade, the MEDEVAC units in Europe focused primarily around the 

field Army units located in central and southern Germany. The 421st Med Co (AA) 

located at Nellingen with its 1st and 3d Platoons owned or controlled 49 aircraft. 

Its 2d Platoon was located at Schweinfurt, and its 4th was at Darmstadt. The 421st 

also had several individual detachments assigned to it. The 15th Med Det (RA) 

was at the Grafenwöhr training complex where large combat units routinely rotated through for weapons training. The 63d Med Det (RA) was at Landstuhl and 

primarily performed intra-theater transfers. The 159th Med Det (RA) at Nürnberg 

and the 236th Med Det (RA) at Augsburg provided general support to large Army 

units in their area. All could be called upon to support Army dependents who were 

sick or somehow injured. Commanders also developed local relationships similar 

to the MAST program in the United States, which allowed the MEDEVAC units 
Quiet Years 77

to respond to requests from the local German governments for medical help.52

Commanders wrestled with the unique issues facing MEDEVAC flying in Europe. The single biggest challenge was the weather. Europe experienced four distinct seasons, and the flying there, especially in southern Germany, could be very 

challenging. The units required all pilots to become proficient at all-weather flying. 

There were other challenges. The improving capabilities of the Soviet and 

Warsaw Pact forces to the east could not be ignored. MEDEVAC pilots had to 

be proficient at low-level or nap-of-the-earth flying to avoid improved enemy 

air defense weapons. One company commander, Maj. William Wood, wrote: “A 

pressing need exists for an Army-wide reassessment of air evacuation employment on the European battlefield... In many areas MEDEVAC doctrine remains 

to be developed.” Those were prescient words, shared by others in other arenas. 

But change sometimes comes slowly.53

In 1976, Maj. Jim Truscott took command of the 421st. Although organized as a 

company command, it actually functioned as a battalion, and he found the challenges daunting. With his units scattered all over Germany, he constantly coordinated 

Lt. Col. Jim Truscott (left), with Col. Jim Walker, commander of the 30th Med Group, as Truscott 

passes command of the 421st Med Co to Maj. Tom Scofield (right) then located at Stuttgart, Germany, 

in June 1978. 

Source: Jim Truscott.
78 Call Sign – Dustoff

with and answered to several widely dispersed commands. His unit provided on-call 

service for local German governments, similar to MAST in the United States. Theoretically, they were only supposed to fly when German assets were not available. 

However, the Germans only flew in the daytime, which meant that the 421st received frequent calls at night. Truscott realized the value of such missions. Almost 

all were flown single-ship, which meant that all pilots learned rapidly how to make 

tough operational decisions. Additionally, he pushed them to develop their instrument flight skills to deal with the challenging weather, and he instituted an internal 

instrument course for some pilots who had weak skills. He removed several pilots 

from flight status because they either could not or would not improve their flight 

skills to handle the challenging European weather. When the weather was fine, he 

encouraged them to fly nap-of-the-earth and develop their tactical skills. His pilots 

rose to the challenge and enjoyed the flying. He also stressed strict risk management 

techniques. During his two-year command of the unit, they had no accidents. Truscott’s talent and potential were both recognized, and he was promoted to Lt. Col.54

Doctrine

Field Manual (FM) 100-5, Operations, July 1976 

Moving away from the searing experiences of Vietnam, the Army began an intensive effort to look forward and, as necessary, redefine its warfighting and supporting 

doctrine for the threats of the future. There existed cause for concern. Although 

the nation had been exhaustively engaged in that conflict, the Soviet Union and its 

client Warsaw Pact countries had steadily built up their forces arrayed across the 

central plains of Europe, both in terms of quantity and quality. New tanks, artillery, 

and air defense weapons indicated that perhaps the eastern forces were preparing—

at some point—to move against the North Atlantic Treaty Organization alliance 

nations in a bid to establish hegemony over the entire region. The power of Soviet 

doctrine and technology was validated in 1973 when Arab nations allied with the 

Soviet Union dealt a devastating blow against Israel, a nation that had designed its 

defense force around western doctrine and equipment. American soldiers who later 

toured the battlefields of that conflict saw firsthand the lethality of current Soviet 

tanks, artillery, antitank weapons, and antiaircraft missile systems, and knew that 

they presaged a new and vastly more dangerous future for conventional war.55

Leading this reexamination of basic doctrine was Gen. William E. DePuy, now 

the commander of the newly formed U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. 

He had served as an infantry officer in World War II and commanded the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam. He was personally and professionally well versed in 

the sting of battle. After reviewing several deep historical analyses, he determined 

that the future threat suggested war more along the lines of that experienced by the 

Army in World War II. He personally led the effort to rewrite FM 100-5, Operations, the Army’s key operational doctrine manual of the time. Given the threats of 

the day and their geographical location, it focused on the primacy of the defense as 

opposed to offense and began moving the Army away from its modus of operation 
Quiet Years 79

during the Vietnam War. Over time, this doctrine would be further redefined into 

what would become the doctrine of “AirLand Battle.” DePuy further dictated that 

these rediscovered concepts should be taught at the U.S. Army Command and 

General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth. There the doctrine was buttressed 

with historical examples and used to train a new generation of rising officers.

The concept called for new technologically superior equipment that could overcome the massive forces of the Warsaw Pact. Although design efforts for this 

equipment had been ongoing, developments in speed, survivability, rapid communications, night vision capability, target acquisition, and fire control fit well 

into the new doctrine, and they led to the development and acquisition of five new 

weapons systems:

1. The M1 Abrams main battle tank;

2. The M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle;

3. The AH-64 Apache attack helicopter;

4. The Patriot air defense missile; and

5. The UH-60A Black Hawk utility helicopter.

The UH-60A was designed to replace the fleet of UH-1s and was a very high 

priority with the infantry branch. Its speed and range would fit well with the faster armor formations and could be procured for air assault, utility support, and 

MEDEVAC.56

AirLand Battle focused on fighting battles in three areas: (1) close, (2) deep, and 

(3) rear. It called for the primacy of armor as the pivotal element, supported by the 

other arms, and closely integrated with tactical airpower. With its fleet of attack 

helicopters the Army would provide much of that airpower. As the forces received 

the projected new equipment, they would be reorganized under a program called 

“Division 86,” which optimized that level of command with structured forces 

to take advantage of the evolving technology being fielded. The entire concept 

called for new arrangements of support functions to support fast-moving operations. Assignment of MEDEVAC detachments to divisions was considered and 

then discarded. (The 101st Airborne Division was not reorganized under “Division 86” and retained its AA platoon with helicopters.) The combat service support operations were required to reorganize and refine their subordinate doctrine 

to support these concepts. Specifically, the traditional division medical battalion 

was inactivated and its companies reorganized with a main support company to 

remain with the new division support command and three forward support medical companies to deploy with brigade-level forward support battalions.57

Field Manual 8-35, Evacuation of the Sick and Wounded, January 1977

The Army began to update its FMs from its Vietnam era versions. The first was 

a rewrite of FM 8-35. It replaced the 1970 version and was vastly more expansive 

in definition. No longer just focusing on casualty loading tactics, techniques, and 

procedures, it specified that:
80 Call Sign – Dustoff

Medical evacuation is the process of moving any person who is wounded, injured, or ill to and 

or between treatment facilities. The medical evacuation and treatment of the sick and wounded 

begin at the place of injury/onset of illness and continue as far rearward as the medical condition of the patient requires. The military services accomplish these functions as rapidly, as orderly, and as effectively as possible, keeping the welfare of the patient as the primary concern.58

It included a section on the advantages of evacuation by air, indicating that the 

speed, range, and flexibility of helicopter ambulances shortened the time needed 

to move the sick and wounded to that medical facility best manned and equipped 

to deal with the specific needs of the patient. This made for much more efficient 

use of highly specialized personnel and equipment that existed only in limited 

numbers. The helicopter ambulances were not as constrained by terrain as ground 

vehicles and provided a smoother and comfortable ride for the patients.

The change also discussed some problems with air evacuation. Medical doctrine specified keeping wounded soldiers as far forward as possible so that they 

could be returned to duty if their wounds allowed. Helicopters, with their speed 

and responsiveness, made it too easy to very rapidly move patients to the rear, 

thus over-flying intermediate facilities that could handle their needs. The new FM 

emphasized that the flow of patients must be monitored and controlled within the 

medical chain of control to prevent this movement. It reiterated the command and 

control arrangements laid out in the April 1970 version of FM 8-10, and reemphasized the differing roles for the 25-ship companies and 6-ship detachments, 

repeated their basic missions, and added an on-call capability for air crash rescue 

for selected units.59

The document also recognized that aviation was inherently dangerous. Although the newer generation of helicopters was equipped with advanced avionics 

and flight instruments that made them fully capable of flying at night or in inclement weather, Army units in the field did not necessarily have navigational aids that 

the air ambulances could use in instrument conditions.

The new FM 8-35 also included a section on the dangers of mountain flying, especially at night, or instrument conditions. Varied or heavily treed terrain could force 

the use of hoists. Although most air ambulance helicopters were equipped with 

hoists, their use was challenging and required specific training for the crewmembers. 

Lastly, the evolving serious threats to MEDEVAC aircraft were addressed. Advances in enemy antiaircraft weapons, especially massed guns, new missiles, and 

enemy aircraft, were highlighted. As a countermeasure, low-level or nap-of-theearth flying was taught to all pilots. For the Vietnam era pilots, it was just a return 

to the ways that they flew in that conflict. The FM also included discussion of the 

threat posed by advancing friendly weapons systems, thus highlighting the need 

for procedures to properly coordinate the movement of MEDEVAC helicopters 

across the modern battlefield in a safe and expeditious manner.60

FM 8-10, Health Service in a Theater of Operations, October 1978 

In support of this doctrinal shift outlined in FM 100-5, the Army also reviewed 

and revised its medical doctrine. The key document, again, was FM 8-10. It stated: 
Quiet Years 81

Health service support is a single integrated system for providing, in the shortest possible time, 

the sick, injured and wounded soldiers in the theater of operations with the required care and 

treatment. This support... includes all health services utilized in the theater of operations... 

patient evacuation and medical regulating. The objective of military medicine to conserve 

trained manpower dictates that patients are examined, treated, and returned to duty as far 

forward ... as possible and that health service support resources are employed to provide the 

utmost benefit to maximum personnel in support of the mission.61

Within any theater, the Army theater commander was responsible for the medical 

care of his soldiers and was assigned a medical command (MEDCOM). The MEDCOM commander also usually served as the Army Surgeon. The MEDCOM could 

be of various sizes based on the size of the forces assigned to that theater. Usually, it 

was a medical brigade, with necessary subordinate units task organized for the mission assigned. Air ambulance units, either companies or detachments, were assigned 

to the brigade on a basis of two detachments per division supported, one per independent combat brigade, or as necessary to hospital centers to meet the aeromedical evacuation needs of the theater. They were commanded and controlled by the 

brigade, or as necessary, subordinated to medical groups or even medical battalions.62

The new FM also laid out the responsibilities for evacuation. It clearly stated, 

“To the maximum extent feasible, air ambulances will be used in the combat zone 

for the evacuation of all patients with any category of precedence...” Tactical 

combat units were responsible for initial care and evacuation from the point of 

injury to an initial unit aid station. Division assets, either ground ambulance or air 

ambulance detachments, evacuated from there to division-level medical facilities. 

Corps ambulance units, again, either ground or air, then evacuated them to higher 

levels of care to prepare them for evacuation from theater, if necessary. At any 

point, any level of care could be bypassed if the condition of the patient required 

it and the means of evacuation was available.63

The Quiet Years Continue

Operations

MAST

As the MAST program continued to expand, it was only natural that Army National Guard MEDEVAC units were considered for the mission. It was something 

that could very naturally be incorporated into their role as state or federal assets. 

However, when the MAST program was established, guidance available at that 

time did not clearly determine that those units could participate. Before federal 

activation, Guard units were under the control of their state (also, Washington, 

DC, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam). Legal opinions had to be developed before a decision could be made. That process was finally completed in 

May 1978, when the Under Secretary of the Army, Walter B. LaBerge, signed a 

memorandum authorizing National Guard units to participate in MAST.

64
82 Call Sign – Dustoff

As expected, the various Army Reserve Component units received oversight 

from their Army gaining commands. Many rising MSC officers performed this 

duty. After completing his series of assignments at Fort Sam Houston in early 

1977, Maj. Jerry Foust was assigned as a reserve advisor with the 89th Army 

Reserve Command in Wichita, Kansas. More than half of all MEDEVAC units 

were in the Reserve Components, and this afforded him an excellent opportunity 

to become acquainted with that community of citizen soldiers. Before leaving 

the assignment in 1979 to attend the Army Command and General Staff College, he visited every MEDEVAC unit in his area and actually flew with most of 

them, watching very closely for lapses in professionalism and safety. This was 

very critical because MAST flying itself could be very dangerous, a point sadly 

reinforced early in 1978 when the Air Ambulance Platoon of the 326th Medical 

Battalion at Fort Campbell suffered a tragic loss of a MAST crew responding to 

an automobile accident in the Great Smoky Mountains. That crash killed Captains 

John Dunnavant and Terrance Woolever, and Sgt. Floyd Smith.65

Foust observed many of the Guard units, such as the 24th Med Co (AA) from 

the Nebraska ARNG, and the 717th Med Co (AA) from New Mexico, as they 

deployed for summer training or exercises and flew MAST missions. In general, 

he was impressed with their professionalism, enthusiasm for the missions, and 

vast experience. Most pilots were older than their contemporaries in the active 

duty units and were mostly airline pilots in their civilian careers. However, he 

could also clearly see that their unit tactics still reflected the experiences of their 

predominantly Vietnam era crews and needed upgrading.66

Lt. Col. Pat Brady spent a great deal of time with ARNG and USAR units. 

Working as the medical coordinator at Sixth Army headquarters in San Francisco, he regularly visited their MEDEVAC units. He found that most of the crewmembers were Vietnam vets and had—on average—1,600 hours of flight time on 

mission, which was about double the hours flown by “experienced” active duty 

MEDEVAC crewmembers. The Guardsmen and reservists all chose to remain 

with MEDEVAC and possessed a wealth of experience that they put to good use.67

In 1978, after a very successful series of assignments in Germany, Lt. Truscott 

was transferred back to Fort Sam Houston to serve as the aviation staff officer at 

the Health Services Command Headquarters. He traveled worldwide as part of a 

survey team that visited units to review procedures and operations. This afforded 

him the opportunity to visit almost all MEDEVAC units. Although he saw a veritable panoply of problems and challenges, one issue kept appearing. He noticed 

that many units had enthusiastically embraced their MAST taskings. They realized that it provided good training, led to excellent community relations, and was 

great publicity for the Army. However, many of the units had also lost their tactical edge. Truscott had many intense conversations with local garrison commanders who kept their MEDEVAC units focused on MAST and would not release 

them for field exercises or training. He reminded them that the MEDEVAC units 

were go-to-war units and had to be ready. Yet, this was a time of relative peace and 

in many cases his message was not enthusiastically received. 
Quiet Years 83

After two years with the Health Services Command Headquarters, Truscott 

went to the Army Medical Department Center and School and became Chief 

of the General Subjects Branch and then the Chief of the Command and Staff 

Branch, both under the Military Science Division. He worked directly with the 

Officer Basic and Officer Advanced Courses and the Non-Commissioned Officer 

Courses. He had a direct and personal opportunity to mentor rising young officers 

and NCOs.68

Serving at Fort Sam Houston as the commander of the Health Services Command, Maj. Gen. Spurgeon Neel maintained his interest in MEDEVAC and 

watched the development of MAST. He applauded the increased involvement of 

the units in their local communities, but also recognized that it was affecting their 

purely military prowess. He commented that, “It is going to take some doing to 

get them out on a maneuver or get them back into a war.” 

However, he saw the clear value of the training, especially for the medics. “We 

feel that the best way to train our medical technicians is to let them take care of 

actual patients under actual conditions. It is the only way. You can’t simulate 

patients. There is a certain urgency about someone bleeding or not breathing.”69

Concerning the training provided to the pilots, he was less sanguine. He later 

said, “To be perfectly candid, this is not the best training for our pilots because 

there is no war, this is a peacetime situation and we always follow the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] regulations and we fly fairly high. So the pilots, after accomplishing their MAST mission, still have the requirement over and above 

that to maintain their proficiency in tree-top flying, nap-of-the-earth flying, night 

flying, and all of that.”70

Capt. Bill Thresher also developed a strong opinion of MAST. In April 1979, he 

moved to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, to command a platoon of the 507th Med Co (AA). 

What he found when he arrived concerned him. The unit was heavily committed 

to MAST and basic base and range support, but was undermanned with crews 

which meant that each had to fly more missions each month. He could see the 

chronic fatigue in his personnel. More importantly, however, the unit had not had 

any field training in several years and had lost its tactical edge. To Thresher, the 

inherent complacency and lethargy in his soldiers’ actions were blatantly obvious 

indicators that the unit and his soldiers needed some redirection. 

Thresher was in a quandary. He could clearly see the value of MAST both in 

terms of what it provided to the local community and the training it provided for 

his medics. The flying trained the pilots to be very good at instrument procedures 

since they almost always flew with flight plans under Federal Aviation Administration air traffic control. However, the unit was a designated “go-to-war” unit, 

and intuition told him that it was just not ready to meet its designed tasking. 

Thresher addressed the problems forthrightly. He requested and received more 

aircrew-members to spread out the mission requirements. He also received the 

unit’s full issue of field equipment and began taking his troops to the field for 

training exercises. Soon his troops were out “soldiering” again, and morale and 

performance began to improve. 
84 Call Sign – Dustoff

On one of these excursions, Lt. Col. Eldon Ideus, who recently replaced Truscott as the aviation officer at the Health Services Command, under Neel, visited 

the unit. Ideus had been to many of the MEDEVAC units and shared Thresher’s 

concerns. He was pleased at what he saw at Fort Sill and shared with Thresher 

a large project that he was working on to develop training manuals designed to 

standardize flight procedures across the Army. His effort was drawing heavily 

on the experiences of the disappearing Vietnam era mass of pilots who were 

beginning to either retire or otherwise leave flying. Thresher enthusiastically 

supported the work, feeling that it was necessary to stanch a recent increase in 

flight accidents.71

New Personnel 

Other Vietnam MEDEVAC veterans touched the new troops in similar ways. In 

the summer of 1978, Scott Heintz graduated from the ROTC program at Morehead State University in Kentucky. During his summer camps, he was exposed to 

the combat branches but did not hear much about the support and service support 

organizations. Fortunately, a friend was going to volunteer for the MSC and told 

him about its mission. It appealed to him, so he made it his first selection, and as 

a distinguished graduate of ROTC, he received his choice. Attending the MSC 

basic course that summer, he was subsequently assigned to be a ground ambulance platoon leader with Charlie Company, 15th Medical Battalion, 1st Cavalry 

Division at Fort Hood.

The 15th had commanded an air ambulance platoon with the 1st Cavalry Division in Vietnam. Its current commander, Lt. Col. Ernie Sylvester, had flown with 

great distinction as a MEDEVAC pilot in the war. He and the Charlie Company 

commander, Maj. Gerry Nolan, a Vietnam era MEDEVAC pilot, took young 2d 

Lt. Heintz under their wings and regaled him with stories about the mission. They 

took him to the Fort Hood airfield where a platoon of the 507th Med Co (AA) was 

located. They pushed him to take the Flight Aptitude Skills Test. He passed it with 

exceptional scores and was accepted for flight training. 

Heintz was also fortunate to have assigned to him an excellent platoon sergeant, 

S.Sgt. Otis Smith, who guided him on “how to do things right.” Heintz later recalled, “The late 1970s, drugs were still an issue. We had some knuckleheads. It 

was a little bit of a challenge.” Smith gave him the training and structure that he 

needed to handle and learn from those experiences. In December 1980, Heintz 

reported to Fort Rucker for flight school.72

Organization

New Aircraft 

Starting in early 1979, the Army began to take delivery of production models 

of the UH-60 Black Hawk. The first aircraft went to the aviation battalions and 

companies, with the expectation that some would be assigned to MEDEVAC units 
Quiet Years 85

to replace their aging UH-1s. The MEDEVAC variant of the UH-60 was designed 

to carry four litter patients on a rotating carousel, which eased loading, or up to 

14 ambulatory patients. It had a projected cruise speed of 160 knots at sea level 

with a sprint capability of 180 knots, and an un-refueled range of 300 miles. It was 

equipped with a powerful hoist so that it could work above deep forest, and deicing gear, so necessary in Europe and Alaska. Its assignment to MEDEVAC duties ensured that the medical community was equipped with the most up-to-date 

aircraft so that it could support the combat units being reorganized and equipped 

to bring reality to AirLand Battle doctrine. In December 1980, plans were announced for the entire MEDEVAC fleet to be converted to UH-60s by 1990.73

Monitoring this development from afar since he had retired from the Army 

in 1977 with more than 43 years of service, Maj. Gen. (ret) Spurgeon Neel had 

mixed feelings about the Black Hawk. He saw the value of having a common 

aircraft across the Army fleet and appreciated its strong engines and upgraded 

avionics. However, he felt that the new machine was too big and made an inviting target. He remembered that many times, soldiers were wounded in “ones and 

twos.” With bigger, more expensive helicopters, the temptation would exist to 

hold the patients forward until more were wounded so that a larger helicopter 

could carry several at once, thereby being more efficient from a transportation 

perspective. He counseled that, “We don’t want to become efficient to [the point] 

where we let [a casualty] die while we are waiting for 16 more.”74

New Personnel

In May 1980, Pauline Lockard graduated from Rutgers University in New Jersey. She was the top Army ROTC graduate in her class and took great delight in 

serving as the first female battalion commander at a school that had originally 

been all male. Lockard had entered ROTC three years earlier when her brother 

returned from a tour with the Army in Germany and recommended that she do 

so. She discovered that the Army was especially keen to recruit capable young 

women, so she signed up. 

After receiving her commission, Lockard reported to her first duty assignment 

as a platoon leader with the 36th Medical Clearing Company at Fort Bragg. While 

going through her initial unit training and still awaiting a slot in the MSC basic 

course at Fort Sam Houston, she met some of the MEDEVAC pilots from the 

57th Med Det (RA). It only took a short conversation with them to convince her 

that she wanted to fly. In checking with her assignment officer, she was informed 

that she would have to serve a two-year tour with the 36th before she could go to 

flight school.

While attending the basic course, she submitted a request package for flight 

school, which required a letter of recommendation. After a course lecture one 

day, she had a chance encounter with the school commander, Brig. Gen. Quinn 

H. Becker. The next day, she went to his office and asked him directly for a letter 

of recommendation. His staff was dumbfounded. Having commanded the 15th 

Medical Battalion in Vietnam in 1970–71, he knew a bit about MEDEVAC and 
86 Call Sign – Dustoff

just looked at her and smiled. “Anybody that has the nerve and audacity to do 

what you just did deserves a letter to flight school,” he said, as his staff drafted the 

letter. The letter worked and she was accepted, but with the proviso that she serve 

out her assignment at Fort Bragg first.75

Pete Smart, a 26-year-old college graduate and school teacher, wanted to be 

an Army pilot, but could not afford to fly on a teacher’s salary. He spotted an 

Army recruiting poster that said that aspiring enlistees could be an Army pilot 

in 40 weeks by becoming a warrant officer. That sounded just perfect. When he 

approached an Army recruiter, the sergeant wanted him to take a commission. 

Smart was interested, but then discovered that he would have to pick a branch 

like armor, infantry, or artillery. That would have required an initial assignment 

other than flying and would not necessarily allow him to get into flight school. 

Smart told them that he wanted to be a warrant officer so that he could fly, and 

they signed him up.

Reporting to the Warrant Officer Candidate Course at Fort Rucker, he found it 

surprisingly easy for someone who had grown up both physically and mentally 

fit and was four years older than anybody else in the class. After graduating as a 

new warrant officer, he remained at Fort Rucker and entered flight school, intent 

on becoming a MEDEVAC pilot. He was challenged by the formalized and rigid 

course, but enjoyed the camaraderie of his fellow students, many of whom would 

become lifelong friends. 

As graduation approached, Smart hoped for an assignment to a MEDEVAC 

unit. Unfortunately, the only MEDEVAC slot for his class went to another student. WO1 Smart ended up with an assignment to the Charlie Company of the 

501st Combat Aviation Battalion, 1st Armored Division, as an OH-58 pilot in 

Illesheim, Germany. He reported to the unit in August 1981. His plans for MEDEVAC would have to wait.76

Operations

Disaster Relief for the Eruption of Mount Saint Helens

The MEDEVAC community received another challenge from a completely unexpected quarter when the nation’s attention was dramatically focused on events 

in the state of Washington in May 1980. On 18 May, the top of Mount Saint Helens, located 100 miles south of Seattle, was blown into the clear northwest sky in 

the single most devastating volcanic eruption in the United States. 

Doug Moore had survived his “learning experience” with the Army Inspector 

General and was promoted. He escaped the Pentagon and served at Fort Lewis as 

the commander of the 62d Medical Group, which had a MEDEVAC flying unit, 

the 54th Med Det (RA) with 6 UH-1H helicopters assigned to it, and also had 

operational control of a medium-lift helicopter company with CH-47 Chinook 

aircraft.

 When Moore assumed group command, he discovered that the 54th had become so deeply enmeshed in its MAST taskings that it no longer functioned as a 
Quiet Years 87

tactical unit. He took some very direct actions, including personnel replacements 

and unit realignments to return the unit to its primary mission. That was painful, 

but part of being a commander.77

Now, a mountain had blown up in his backyard, and his unit became directly 

involved in the response and recovery efforts. 

Seismic activity near the mount had been detected several months earlier indicating volcanic activity, and as early as March some state level planning efforts had 

started. Moore’s direct participation started early in May when the commander of 

the 9th Infantry Division, also at Fort Lewis, called him into his office and informed 

him of the worrisome seismic reports that indicated that a cataclysmic event might 

be looming. Moore immediately began working with the Washington ARNG and 

other state and local agencies to develop a coordinated response as necessary.78

The mountain exploded on a bright Sunday morning. Moore was at home when 

his assistant operations officer called him with the news. He looked outside and 

saw the ugly boiling mass of black and gray debris laden clouds building to the 

south. The 54th Med Det had aircraft on alert for MAST tasking, and Moore immediately directed them to launch their first aircraft to the area. Other units began 

to initiate response plans as Fort Lewis went on full alert. The overall state coordinating center was aware of the explosion and had diverted state assets into the 

area. It asked the Fort Lewis forces to hold and stand by. 

UH-1V from the 54th Med Det (HA) responding to the Mt. St. Helens disaster. 

Source: Col. (ret) Doug Moore.
88 Call Sign – Dustoff

Col. Doug Moore as the commander of the 62nd Medical Group at Fort Lewis, Washington, in 1980.

Source: Col. (ret) Doug Moore. 
Quiet Years 89

Secondary eruptions continued into the next day as rain clouds moved in and 

blanketed the area with a steady rain. People drove with their headlights on and 

snowplows cleared the roads of debris and mud. 

On 19 May, Moore was informed that the state was having problems mounting 

a coordinated rescue operation. President Jimmy Carter had visited the area that 

day and in a meeting with the Governor of Washington, Dixy Lee Ray, promised 

any necessary federal aid. One of his first requests was rescue support, and Moore 

was directed to lead the effort. He departed Fort Lewis at 0300 in a large convoy 

of support equipment for the airport at Toledo. Arriving at sunrise, he found a 

chaotic mess of intermixed agencies, personnel, and equipment. Observing it all 

was a crush of press personnel there to record the effort. 

His troops immediately set up a rudimentary command center and by noon 

had established a modicum of control over events. Then he had a series of meetings with local police and sheriff commanders to establish an overall rescue and 

recovery program. Several of these individuals had to be flown to the Toledo 

airfield in 54th Med Det helicopters because the roads were blocked. Once these 

jurisdictional issues were resolved, Moore turned his attention to the coordination 

of aircraft from the Army, Coast Guard, several state National Guards, and many 

more federal, state, and private organizations. 

While doing this, Moore always had to remember that he and his units were in 

a supporting role. The governor of Washington was in charge of the recovery effort, and Moore ensured that he had a proper chain of command to maintain that 

relationship. He discovered that his best course of action was to work through the 

local county sheriffs, and began direct coordination with their designated leader, 

Sheriff Bill Wiester of Lewis County. 

Moore immediately asked Wiester to use his deputies to organize the airfield for 

continued operations to include an expanded search and rescue flight operations 

center, a collection point for concerned families and visitors, a gathering area for 

the ever expanding press teams, and a mortuary. 

With those issues addressed, Moore then expanded the search and rescue operations. Pilots from the 54th and other flying units developed a communications 

plan with the sheriffs and other ground agencies. They agreed on map protocols 

and the identification of common points so that air and ground search could be 

coordinated. However, the eruption had so transformed the shape of the mountain 

that in the most devastated areas, the maps were of only minimal use. Before the 

eruption, there had been a beautiful lake on the north side of the mountain. The 

blast and subsequent magma flow literally moved the lake three-quarters of a mile 

to the northwest and raised it 200 feet. The lake was covered with a layer of dead 

trees and ash. It took some very skillful flying by some 54th pilots to determine its 

location and danger to anybody who tried to cross that apparent open area on foot.

When the weather finally improved enough to allow steady flight operations, the 

aircraft started intensive search and rescue flights. However, they still contended 

with intermittent low clouds, rain, falling ash, and even snow. The magma that 

spewed forth from the eruption was still warm, and its heat combined with the 
90 Call Sign – Dustoff

humid air to generate thick morning fog in the valleys. The Federal Aviation Administration established a special restricted zone around the mountain. Unauthorized aircraft still entered the area and caused several near misses. 

Moore was onboard one of the first helicopters to fly over the mountain. They 

determined that as much as 1,300 feet of the mountain had blown away. A press 

team picked up their report, and his words were quoted in the papers the next day. 

The crews from the 54th and support units flew up and down the valleys daily 

looking for and recovering survivors, remaining aware of the threat of fog banks 

full of rock outcroppings, towers, shattered trees, and power lines. 

When the weather cleared for several days, another problem arose. The ash and 

dust that blanketed the area was easily disturbed. Any helicopter takeoff or landing generated clouds of dust. Fortunately, most of the military helicopter pilots 

were Vietnam vets and handled the challenge well. The thick ash was also very 

abrasive on the aircraft, and maintenance procedures had to be modified. 

The crews picked up more than 200 survivors, including one media team that 

had disregarded all restrictions, entered the restricted zone, and came close to 

being killed by the harsh conditions. The crews also recovered 57 bodies, people 

caught in the horror of the eruption and subsequent fallout. Many of the bodies 

were horribly mangled, and reminded Moore and the other Vietnam vets of scenes 

they had seen in that conflict. 

The crews from the 54th and other attached units operated out of Toledo until 

29 May when the operation was terminated. While there, they were equipped 

to provide for themselves. Within a few days of their arrival, folks from the local communities brought hot meals to them. Day and night, the informal “chow 

hall” was open with fresh hot food and endless coffee for “our boys,” as the locals called them. For men organized and trained for and experienced in war, the 

recovery missions flown to help their fellow citizens of southwest Washington 

devastated by the horrific eruption of Mount Saint Helens were some of the most 

satisfying missions of their entire careers.79

Tactical Training

As the decade ended the Army activated the National Training Center at Fort Irwin in the eastern deserts of southern California. This 1,000-square-mile complex 

was designed and built as a realistic training area structured to allow brigade-sized 

forces to practice the evolving doctrine contained in FM 100-5. Ten brigades a 

year, each with up to 3,500 soldiers, rotated through so the troops could “train as 

they would fight” in the expanses of the dry canyons. A large cadre of observers 

and controllers was emplaced to direct and train them.

The units maneuvered on a live-fire range with pop-up moving enemy targets 

and then through a fully instrumented battle arena against a well-trained opposing 

force, and actively learned and practiced the tenets of the AirLand Battle doctrine. 

The National Training Center was eventually joined by the Combat Maneuver 

Training Center, at Hohenfels, Germany, and the Joint Readiness Training Center, 

at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, later moved to Fort Polk.80
Quiet Years 91

In October 1980, the 247th Med Det (RA) moved from Fort Meade to Fort 

Irwin to support the National Training Center. They directly supported the brigades in their training and provided base medical support. In the following decade, this facility provided the Army with an opportunity to develop the ability to 

fight and defeat the massed forces of the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact, should 

they ever attack any of the nations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.81

MAST Continues to Expand 

In November 1980, the 412th Med Det (RA), an Army Reserve unit based in 

Louisville, Kentucky, signed a memorandum of agreement with the 431st Med 

Det (RA) at Fort Knox, to augment and on occasion replace it to provide MAST 

support to Fort Knox and the surrounding area.82

As the decade ended, the MAST program noted its 10th anniversary since its 

conceptual beginning. Missions were being flown from 29 different base locations 

and involved both Air Force and Army units to include units from their Reserve 

Components. Records showed more than 18,500 missions had flown consuming 

more than 43,000 flight hours. The following was in one historical report:

MAST is an outstanding and durable example of military and civilian community cooperation. 

The civilians benefit from the life-saving service, and the supporting military unit receives the 

opportunity to maintain mission proficiency under conditions which cannot be duplicated in 

a training environment. The reason for the success of the MAST program ... is the personnel 

assigned to the helicopter ambulance and rescue units. They cared about saving the life of an 

injured backpacker in a remote area of the Colorado Rockies and a critically ill premature infant in a small community hospital in southwest Texas – and they’ll care about the people who 

will need them in future decades.83

* * * *

The 1970s had been a relatively docile period. With the return of American 

forces from Vietnam, the nation enjoyed a quiet respite and had generally turned 

inward. The Army was given a chance to reform, rebuild, and refocus. That 

also benefited the MEDEVAC community as it reconstituted itself, updated and 

revised its doctrine in line with larger doctrinal and operational changes, entertained thoughts of a new aircraft, and actually picked up a new mission—the 

MAST tasking—which forced it to integrate with local governments across the 

nation.

However, ominous events were occurring overseas. Iran experienced a bloody 

religious revolution and its new anti-U.S. government seized 52 American hostages. They were held for 444 days before diplomatic efforts brought them home. 

A military rescue effort was mounted but failed. MEDEVAC forces were not involved. That event was perhaps a harbinger of increased American involvement 

in that region of the world. 

Worrisome events also occurred closer to home. In 1979, a communist cabal 

overthrew a pro-U.S. government in Nicaragua. That led to a leftist insurrection 

in El Salvador and potential instability in other nations of the region. Central 
92 Call Sign – Dustoff

America had long been considered a quiet backwater. These events began to draw 

the attention of the nation to that region and portended possible increased involvement there.84

On a lighter note, in February 1980 veterans of MEDEVAC units from Vietnam 

and Korea came together and formed the Dustoff Association. Their objectives 

were to capture their history, recognize their outstanding performers through a 

Hall of Fame, and link with the current generation of MEDEVAC personnel to 

perpetuate their heritage. These veterans, like old soldiers from all conflicts, realized that the bonds that they had forged in the sting of battle were not ephemeral 

but enduring and enriching.85