Four-man medical team goes on alert with CRG Published March 23, 2007 By Senior Airman Dilia DeGrego 305th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs MCGUIRE AIR FORCE BASE, NJ. -- The 305th Air Mobility Wing's mission is to provide responsive, combat-ready mobility and expeditionary capability for America. Upholding this mission and supporting one of Air Mobility Command's most valuable assets, one of two 305th AMW medical teams is currently on alert with the 817th Contingency Response Group. The four-man team, from the 305th Aerospace Medicine Squadron, is one of 12 medical global reach laydown teams, or FFGRLs as they are known by their unit tasking code, assigned to AMC bases, consisting of a flight surgeon, public health officer/craftsman, bioenvironmental engineer/craftsman and an independent duty medical technician. Three of the teams are affiliated with the 621st Contingency Response Wing, two of which belong to McGuire. The third team is from Dover Air Force Base, Del. Throughout their 90-day alert time, the team will stand ready to provide preventive medicine capability and limited medical care for the 817th CRG personnel if and when the CRG is called to deploy. "This initiative is the original idea from the Air Force CRG concept of operations, to have a medical team on alert with each CRG," said Col. Dean Nelson, 817th CRG commander. "It is the next evolution of this idea. It will allow us to be aligned with them and gives us the opportunity to train together. The CRG is about having a cohesive team to go out and set up a base in a short amount of time. I am excited to have them on the team, it enhances our capability." Lt. Col. Kenneth D'Alfonso, 818th Global Mobility Readiness Squadron commander, whose unit recently came off alert added, "A key component in AMC's contingency response groups is the four-person FFGRL medical laydown team. The medics are a true force multiplier. It is incredibly comforting to know if something happens, there is an IDMT or doctor to provide immediate care and if in an extreme case, arrange a medical evacuation. In addition, our public heath and biomedical environmental engineers make sure we don't get a 'sick camp' from contaminated food sources, water, contagious disease, insects/pests, or take unnecessary risk in extreme weather." The goal is to always be able to field a full team should the affiliated alert CRG be deployed, said Lt. Col. Wayne Korn, 305th Aerospace Medicine Squadron Public Health Flight commander. "The medics will work closely with CRW's unit deployment managers to ensure all alert team members are medically ready to deploy on a 12-hour notice," said Colonel Korn. "Medical logistics personnel must maintain the FFGRL equipment packages to be ready to load on a six-hour notice. The team is also fully equipped to do their jobs for 30 days without re-supply. The team that is not on alert acts as a backup." Medics supporting a CRG are fully trained to support their mission to be completely capable and not be a liability in a semi-permissive environment, said Colonel Korn. In preparation for their time on alert, each team attends CRW 101 training, the expeditionary site survey process course at the USAF Expeditionary Center and Eagle Flag with the affiliated CRG. That includes weapons and combat skills training to defend the base, medical assets, patients and cargo handling. "This is our first time being on alert together," Colonel Nelson said. "We just had them out in the field with us recently for a week to 'shake out the bugs' and everything went quite well. They are learning a lot from us, and we are learning a lot from them. We are glad to have them as part of the team."