Since 27 December 2004, Norway’s armed forces have provided considerable support for civil authorities in the aftermath of the tsunami catastrophe in Southeast Asia. More than 50 service personnel are now in Southeast Asia helping with the relief work. Between 40 and 45 are in Indonesia, four in Sri Lanka and seven in Thailand.

Armed Forces personnel are continually involved in a series of international operations with an effective and well run-in command organisation in place. This has helped to ensure that the defence organisation has been able to respond rapidly to requests for support for the civil authorities in connection with the relief work in Southeast Asia. The Defence Situation Centre reports that over 120 persons from the defence sector have been directly involved in this work so far. In addition, a substantial number of others in the Ministry of Defence, the Defence Staff, the Joint Operational Headquarters and other service bodies are also contributing to this work.

Armed Forces contributions include the following:

Task identification and coordination At an early stage the Armed Forces sent an advance task identification/coordination team to the disaster area. This was a very important contribution towards being able to identify persons with a critical need for repatriation by air. The team was led by the Armed Forces’ senior specialist. Patient evacuation flights (Medevac) from Thailand The defence authorities have provided support for the civil authorities in flying patients home from Thailand. Two aircraft have been leased from SAS/Braathens and fitted out as ambulance aircraft on contracts modelled on those relating to personnel on stand-by for military operations. The prior existence of the “stand-by” concept was important in making it possible to draw up a new contract at short notice to meet this special situation.

The last Medevac flight reached Gardermoen on 5 January. These flights have now ended after having brought home a total of 123 Norwegian, Swedish and Danish patients with others including relatives. Around 30 service personnel have taken part in these flights. When circumstances required it, some of these flights carried extra personnel including additional doctors and chaplains. Service chaplains have had an important role to play in giving support to those injured and their relatives. It is worth observing that chaplains are especially equipped to offer spiritual comfort in critical situations. Some 30 people have been working at Gardermoen military air station in support of the air operations. The transport branch of the Norwegian Defence logistics Organisation (NDLO/Trans) at Gardermoen has also played an important part in this work. NDLO/Trans has considerable experience of international operations, including the leasing of Antonov heavy lift aircraft, weekly charter flights to Afghanistan and the administration of C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. The “stand-by” contract concept with SAS/Braathens has also proved invaluable in helping to ensure a rapid response.

Defence Medical Services The Norwegian Defence Medical Services/Military Medical Education and Competence Centre (MUKS) have assisted the civil authorities both with advice and with operational support in connection with the preparation and execution of the medical evacuation tasks. 35 officers and eight other ranks have been involved in providing this support.

Two C-130 Hercules transport aircraft Armed Services have sent two Hercules transport aircraft to Southeast Asia. These aircraft are to assist with the transport of medical emergency equipment from Norway to support the relief work of the UN agencies and the Norwegian Red Cross. The aircraft are also able to operate from improvised airstrips to make so-called air-drops of emergency supplies. The first aircraft left Norway on 2 January and has delivered medical emergency supplies to the Maldives before flying on to Singapore. The aircraft is now being used to support the Red Cross in an “air bridge” role between Singapore and the Indonesian province of Aceh. The second transport aircraft arrived in Singapore on 6 January. This aircraft will also be used in an air bridge role between Singapore and Indonesia.

There are four flight crews and a number of support personnel on board these transport, a total of 43 persons in all. On 6 January, two further doctors and two service nurses travelled to Singapore to accompany the flights and to assist with the possible further evacuation of injured victims of the disaster.

Dentists to support the National Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS) in Thailand
Six dentists from the Defence Medical Services are in Thailand to assist NCIS officers in the work of identifying victims of the disaster.

Stress management / disaster trauma treatment team to assist in Sri Lanka and Thailand Four professionals from the armed services’ stress management / disaster trauma treatment team are providing support for the embassy and the Nordic Observer Corps in Sri Lanka. The team, led by a specialist in medicine and disaster trauma psychiatry, also includes a senior psychologist, an occupational health specialist and a nurse. In addition, a psychologist from the Defence Medical Services is providing similar support in Thailand.

Body bags for Sri Lanka The Armed Forces have donated more than 4,800 body bags to the Norwegian Red Cross for use in Sri Lanka.