By Jayden Vaughn, Anna Evilsizor, Marc Balbarin

FORT KNOX, Ky – Soldiers and emergency medical personnel conducted a casualty evacuation exercise (CASEVAC) to help prepare for potential medical emergencies, while increasing and maintaining readiness here on June 1, 2026.

At 8:40 a.m., a Cadet Summer Training (CST) cadre member called in a crash consisting of many simulated injuries. Army medics on the scene quickly assessed each injured soldier during the exercise. 

U.S. Army medics triaged each injured soldier by assessing their conditions in order to maximise safety and efficiency while waiting for aid from emergency services and MEDEVAC transports to the hospital.  From walking non-critical Soldiers to safety to applying splints and gauze pads to injuries, medics ensured simulated casualties remained calm while awaiting treatment.  

As they arrived on the scene, Soldiers from the 2nd Forward Support MEDEVAC Platoon coordinated a plan to safely extract Soldiers from the woods. 

“Once we receive the 911 call MEDEVAC request, we fly into the HLZ and I greet the medics on the ground,” said Staff Sgt. Connor Scott, a flight paramedic from the 2nd Forward Support MEDEVAC, Foxtrot Company, 3-501st Assault Helicopter Battalion-Medium, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Armored Division. “They present me to the patient, and I get a quick snapshot of what’s going on. From there, we let them into our aircraft and provide care on our end and stabilize them until we get them to the hospital.”

But that is not the only reason that U.S. Army Soldiers believe that CASEVAC is a vital exercise to implement.

“CASEVAC is important because it demonstrates to the ground force that we are able to do our mission,” said Capt. Austin Stillman, the 2nd Forward Support MEDEVAC  Officer-in-Charge at Fort Knox for Cadet Summer Training. “We are an asset that’s only used for the worst calls, like the worst types of injuries or illnesses, that require immediate hospitalization at a much higher level of care.”

Stillman said that not only are Soldiers practicing how to locate and reach a patient, they are also honing and applying their medical skills in the field.

“It’s a good training opportunity for all aspects of medicine here on Fort Knox,” Scott said. “Obviously, you don’t want to have patients, but when you get the opportunity to save someone’s life, it’s a good feeling.”

He added that this exercise helps further develop critical thinking skills for both Soldiers and medics in addition to creating a better understanding of their roles in a scenario. 

“Whether it’s training or real life, just understand that if the need arises, where you need to be seen by medics or MEDEVAC, we’re all pretty competent and skilled in our craft,” said Scott. 

Simulated casualties were later transferred from a Fort Knox Fire Department ambulance to a UH-60 Black Hawk, which would then airlift them to continue their medical treatment at more capable institutions.  

Maj. John Vallery, the Task Force Medical Executive Officer, who helped organize the CASEVAC, said repetition is an important aspect of simulations like these.  

“This translates over into the real world,” said Vallery. “If we are in combat, for instance, the more reps that we get in these MEDEVAC rehearsals, the better we’ll be able to react to them when they actually occur.”