UH-1 Litter Configuration for 6 patients Mixed Configuration for 3 Litter and 4 Ambulatory Patients

This aircraft may be used as a dedicated air ambulance or as an airlift of opportunity.

There are three basic medical configurations:

• 6 litter patients, loaded 3 high, on each side of the aircraft cabin.
• 3 litter patients, loaded across the cabin, with additional seating for  4 ambulatory patients (two on each side).
• 9 ambulatory patients.

In addition to the physical space inside the cabin, maximum load of the helicopter must also be considered. Maximum load varies with altitude, temperature, and fuel. The pilot will advise the ground personnel of his/her load capacity.

Litter patients are normally loaded top to bottom, with the most seriously injured on the bottom. Patients receiving IV fluids should not be placed in the upper tier as there is not enough space between the roof of the cabin and the patient to insure good gravitational flow of IV fluids.

Litter patients with Hare traction splints, splint supports and foot rests should be loaded last and placed directly on the floor of the helicopter.

Unless a medical team is dispatched with the helicopter, it will have no medical personnel or equipment aboard, other than aircrew first aid kits.

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The listing of any non-Federal product in this CD is not an endorsement of the product itself, but simply an acknowledgement of the source. 

Operational Medicine 2001

Health Care in Military Settings

This web version is provided by The Brookside Associates Medical Education Division.  It contains original contents from the official US Navy NAVMED P-5139, but has been reformatted for web access and includes advertising and links that were not present in the original version. This web version has not been approved by the Department of the Navy or the Department of Defense. The presence of any advertising on these pages does not constitute an endorsement of that product or service by either the US Department of Defense or the Brookside Associates. The Brookside Associates is a private organization, not affiliated with the United States Department of Defense.

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