Possibility of Airevac Operations Performed by UAV Systems

Abstract

Piloted aircrafts are widely used in search and rescue operations in theatre and in aeromedical evacuation deployments as well since WWII. The AIREVAC capacity of dedicated aircrafts flown by military pilots is well defined posing huge financial burden on responsible nations regarding the full process of medical training, broad scale of medical equipments and the continuous quick response alert requirement of medical staff. As a developing option the NATO Science and Technology Organization has started a study about the possible deployment of UAVs for medical evacuation purposes, in certain critical phases of transport when the capacity is limited and stabilization and rapid transfer have the highest priority. We are going to discuss the indication for UAV flights, mainly focusing on technical details, but touching the responsibility and competency level of UAV operators as well.