Team Vance assists with civilian life flight

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Mary Davis
  • Public Affairs
Vance Air Force Base, Okla. --  Team Vance demonstrated its close partnership with the Enid community Monday when a civilian aircraft carrying a critical-care surgical team requested to make an unscheduled landing here.
The medical team was enroute from Dallas to St. Mary's Regional Medical Center in Enid to perform vital surgery. After takeoff, the pilots became aware that Woodring Regional Airport's runway was closed due to construction. The crew quickly had to find an alternate place to land within the Enid vicinity. They began making inquiries at local airports, but found none that had runway lighting.
"Command post was notified at 3:05 a.m. regarding a Learjet-type aircraft carrying surgeons that were requesting to land at Vance AFB," said Senior Airman Richard Deien, command post controller. "We began making the necessary calls to make the landing possible."
It was later learned the medical team were LifeShare surgeons, who perform life-saving organ harvesting and transplants around the country. Since the operation these surgeons would perform was organ harvesting - time was of the essence.
"Members of base operations, the control tower and maintenance came in early to ensure the airfield was prepared," said Dan Franklin, deputy airfield manager. "We opened the runway around 5 a.m., and once the aircraft landed, maintenance personnel marshaled in the aircraft."
An emergency medical team awaited the aircraft's arrival, and quickly whisked the doctors away in an ambulance to St. Mary's for surgery.
This couldn't have been possible without Team Vance's help, said Robin Perry, director of St. Mary's nursing support services.
"Once Vance was contacted, it was phenomenal how quickly it all came together," she said. "It was important to get the surgeons in so they could provide life for others."
The unique Vance/Enid partnership is what makes serving here a great experience for all Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, Reserve and Guard personnel, said Lt. Col. Timothy Miller, deputy commander of the 71st Operations Group.
"This special relationship Team Vance has with Enid makes it very easy to give back to the community when they are in need," he said. "I was amazed how quickly we could go from a closed to a fully functional airfield with weather support, base operations, an operating control tower and maintenance support in less than an hour. It was truly a team effort."