Medical emergency on Koningsdam

[VMax1700]

Interesting comment about next of kin,  John. We were wondering what would happen in current case. Pax airlifted to Corsica and will possibly be further moved to Nice or Monaco. What happen with next of kin? Presumably still onboard and will arrive in Civitavecchia tomorrow. Would travel insurance cover their trip from Rome to Nice or Corsica? 

[Krazy Kruizers]

It would depend on how comprehensive an insurance policy they have.

 

Hope they have a policy that covers helicopters in a foreign country.

[Copper10-8]

2 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

Interesting comment about next of kin,  John. We were wondering what would happen in current case. Pax airlifted to Corsica and will possibly be further moved to Nice or Monaco. What happen with next of kin? Presumably still onboard and will arrive in Civitavecchia tomorrow. Would travel insurance cover their trip from Rome to Nice or Corsica? 

 

Hi Colin; next of kin, for the vast majority of the time, stays onboard until the arrival in the next port and then joins the patient/family in the hospital. The only non-helo crew I have ever seen go up into the helicopter to join the patient on the flight to the land-based medical facility has been ship's nurses (that's Maasdam's nurse Jennifer waiving from back of the U.S. Coast Guard Station Boringuen, Puerto Rico HH-65 Dolphin)

 

[Copper10-8]

21 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

Interesting comment about next of kin,  John. We were wondering what would happen in current case. Pax airlifted to Corsica and will possibly be further moved to Nice or Monaco. What happen with next of kin? Presumably still onboard and will arrive in Civitavecchia tomorrow. Would travel insurance cover their trip from Rome to Nice or Corsica? 

 

The next of kin would be responsible for their own air travel to, in your case, Nice or Monaco in order to join their relative. The ship and ship's  agent will assist in making those reservations happen. Most aerial medevacs are accomplished by the military (Navy/Air Force/Marines/Coast Guard - some private companies under contract) of the various countries. They don't charge for their invaluable services. 

Edited April 19, 2019 by Copper10-8

[Lunar Dragon]

Thank you for posting the videos.  My father was in Air Crash rescue in the USAF.

This brings back so many memories for me.  My father has passed away but I am still so proud of him.  

[Copper10-8]

3 hours ago, Lunar Dragon said:

Thank you for posting the videos.  My father was in Air Crash rescue in the USAF.

This brings back so many memories for me.  My father has passed away but I am still so proud of him.  

 

Soesterberg, 32nd TFS?

[Lunar Dragon]

No actually, although later he was in Soesterberg.  My mother was Dutch (they met in Ramstein). Dad was in Air Crash Rescue at Grand Forks AFB.

my mother was from Amsterdam, and her first taste of the States was North Dakota.  Bit of s culture shock, but she always remembered how lovely the people were there.  I live in Holland as I happened to marry a Dutchman, because of Dad being stationed at Soesterberg later-   what goes around,comes around😁.   Soesterberg was a lovely base,  sorry they closed it down.  We were also at Hahn AFB.  Wonderful memories there growing up.  Also gone.  I stopped by there with my Dad in the 90’s, I believe, and it was just closed.  Really strange as everything looked exactly the same (except the buildings were no longer green) but It was a ghost town.  

[Copper10-8]

31 minutes ago, Lunar Dragon said:

No actually, although later he was in Soesterberg.  My mother was Dutch (they met in Ramstein). Dad was in Air Crash Rescue at Grand Forks AFB.

my mother was from Amsterdam, and her first taste of the States was North Dakota.  Bit of s culture shock, but she always remembered how lovely the people were there.  I live in Holland as I happened to marry a Dutchman, because of Dad being stationed at Soesterberg later-   what goes around,comes around😁.   Soesterberg was a lovely base,  sorry they closed it down.  We were also at Hahn AFB.  Wonderful memories there growing up.  Also gone.  I stopped by there with my Dad in the 90’s, I believe, and it was just closed.  Really strange as everything looked exactly the same (except the buildings were no longer green) but It was a ghost town.  

 

 

Thanks for that story! Small world! I remember stories about Hahn, Ramstein, Bitburg and Spangdahlem from my brother-in-law. I'm actually the other way around; born and raised in Amsterdam and then my middle sister, working at the duty-free stores at Schiphol Airport, has to go and fall in love with a U.S. senior airman stationed at Soesterberg AB (vliegbasis)/Camp New Amsterdam with the 32nd FIS (later TFS), as you know, the only USAF squadron whose emblem included the royal crest of another nation. They get married and, after his air force discharge, move to L.A. That's the main reason why I also moved at age eighteen, right out of my Amsterdam high school, and became a U.S. citizen (thanks to the USMC), rather than stay a Dutch one and more than likely would otherwise still reside there today. There's another poster here on Cruise Critic who was stationed at Soesterberg and married a Dutch girl. Anyway, apologies for the hi-jack, and back to our featured story

 

[Lunar Dragon]

How interesting, small world indeed!  Soesterberg, I believe, remained Dutch soil, unlike other bases which were US soil. Therefore the Royal crest.  Anyway 

groetjes uit Nederland en een fijne dag verder!

 

 

[ski ww]

Interesting learned a bit of history. We witnessed a Med Evac on Amsterdam on the way to Vancouver 2010. Conditions changed from good to bad back to good, winds, blowing snow & waves. Great job done by helo crew.  

 

[catl331]

19 hours ago, puppycanducruise said:

We are so lucky these people are able to help.

AMEN to that!   If it weren't for the possibility of heli-evac I would be very reluctant to take any cruise that went more than 2 hours from a hospital. I was a little nervous on a T-A when we were mid-way between the Azores and Bermuda.

Edited April 20, 2019 by catl331

[Judyrem]

22 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

Your son's unit was involved in a famous medevac of a Westerdam passenger some 300+ miles off San Diego in 2013 that required a mid-air refueling by one of their MC-130s. Only the USAF/Calif Air National Guard can provide such a feat (mid-air refueling of a helo to extend the range of such an operation in order to reach the patient) "In Pace et Bello, Noctem et Diem (In Peace & War, During Night & Day)" Please thank your son for his service!

Looks very scary.  Brave men and women.

[Caribbean Chris]

Thank you for these videos!! I think my heart is still pounding from that refueling.

 

Watching these rescuers go about their business in such a skilled, yet matter-of-fact, manner makes you think about how much training they must go through to perform these maneuvers!

 

And by the way - it is mind-boggling to remember that earlier this year, HUNDREDS of passengers were airlifted in this way from the Viking Sky off Norway’s coast.

Edited April 20, 2019 by Caribbean Chris

[sppunk]

Best wishes to the passenger!

 

We were on the Rotterdam in 2014 in the North Sea and ad a patient evacuated by helicopter. We had 14’ seas, 40 mph winds and it was at night - insanely talented these pilots are. 

[dobiemom]

22 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

Here's the video of the 2013 Westerdam medevac in the Pacific, incl. the actual refueling of the Calif Air National Guard Pavehawk helo by the MC-130 of the same unit (starting at 0.56 sec). <snip>

 

 

Amazing!

[Copper10-8]

9 hours ago, ski ww said:

Interesting learned a bit of history. We witnessed a Med Evac on Amsterdam on the way to Vancouver 2010. Conditions changed from good to bad back to good, winds, blowing snow & waves. Great job done by helo crew.  

 

 

 

HH-60 Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, AK crew - one of the two main Coast Guard responders for Alaska rescues and medevacs (they usually have a helo based out of Cordova also), the other one is USCG Air Station Sitka

[FredT]

AND.... Lets not forget the rescue of so many from the Prinsendam on October 4, 1980 when she burned and sank in the Gulf of Alaska... One of the greatest rescue's in cruise ship history.