Rapid Deployment Force

shades of 1982...

When i entered the Air Force in 1982, i was assigned to the rapid deployment force, and made to wear a 3 inch circular patch (that wasnt even subdued, and went from purple to pink after several washings) that cost 2 bucks a piece to sew on all my uniforms. 10 dollars was a lot to an airman back in 1982...it was 3 cases of beer.

Anyhow..we had to be able to grab our pre packed bags and get on a plane within 60 minutes of being re-called. And we belonged to the hospital..we had a pre-loaded ATC (air transportable clinic) and a ATH (Air Transportable Hospital) we were staffed on.

The fastest i ever remember getting to anywhere was 30 minutes to the line..where were placed on c-130s that had the engines running and air lifted to sudan about 15 minutes after we got there. seems the libyians were a little frisky that week. :lol:
 
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