From transfusion training to drone deliveries and even simulated fluid, the Army is finding ways to get blood where it’s needed most.
On May 15, soldiers with the 173rd Airborne Brigade’s Charlie “Lifeline” Company, 173rd Brigade Support Battalion conducted drone-based blood resupply in a full-scale hospital exercise at Pabrade Training Area, Lithuania, as part of Exercise Swift Response 2025.
“Aerial resupply of blood is pretty cool for us,” said Capt. Jessica Knoll, commander of Charlie Company. “One big initiative we’re working on is getting whole blood as far forward as possible. Having drone capability means we’re not risking soldiers driving into hostile areas just to deliver blood. A drone — not to say it’s expendable — but it’s more expendable than a soldier’s life.”
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Soldiers used a TRV-150 drone to deliver simulated blood to Role 1 field carte locations.
The exercise, which included elements from the 160th Forward Resuscitative Surgical Detachment, the 519th Field Hospital, the 68th Theater Medical Command and the 7384th Blood Detachment, bridged the gap between point of injury and higher-level medical care, according to the release. It also showed how troops can reduce risk to medics while increasing soldier survivability in austere locations.
“This is our third time working with Flying Basket to drop blood using drones,” Knoll said. “We’ve tested a few methods — paratroopers jumping with blood at Saber Junction, pushing blood out of airplanes — but this drone delivery is really buying down risk. Instead of sending an entire medic crew forward, we can now send a drone with Class VIII supplies or blood.
“So far, we’ve flown about 3 kilometers with the drone, but it’s capable of more. That’s just what we’ve trained for now.”
And where did those blood products come from?
The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center Blood Services Program recently partnered with the 86th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron at Ramstein Air Base to provide real and simulated blood products for the Defender Europe 25 Exercise on May 14 and 15.
Defender Europe is the largest annual Army deployment to the European Theater. An estimated 25,000 U.S., allied and partner troops, 29 allied and partner nations and 18 host nations participate in the exercise.
For the exercises, troops at the center prepared more than 1,000 real and simulated blood products for transport on U.S. Air Force aircraft to Lithuania.
A U.S. military report estimates that 15% to 20% of traumatic deaths are preventable, and 66% to 80% of those deaths occur from hemorrhage, according to the release.
“Providing both real and simulated blood products is crucial for supporting real-world contingencies and the fighting military force,” said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Raymond Clark, non-commissioned officer-in-charge of the LRMC Blood Services Program. “Real blood ensures immediate availability for transfusions during combat casualties, addressing critical needs for volume resuscitation and oxygen-carrying capacity.”
But simulated blood has its role, too.
“Simulated blood products, on the other hand, play a vital role in training and preparedness,” Clark added. “They allow medical personnel to practice life-saving procedures in realistic scenarios without depleting limited real blood supplies. This dual approach ensures readiness, improves medical skills, and ultimately enhances the survivability of our soldiers on the battlefield.”
Not to be outdone, the skills portion of the exercise was on display in the theater as well.
On May 18, combat medics and medical personnel with the 501st Aviation Battalion, 1st Armored Division conducted point-to-point blood transfusions in Hohenfels, Germany.
Medics participating in Exercise Combined Resolve 25-2 focused training on providing blood to simulated critically injured troops in a simulated mass casualty event using a “walking blood bank” tactic, according to the release.
“A point-to-point blood transfusion entails taking blood from one person and ensuring that it’s the same blood type or something acceptable for the recipient’s blood type,” said Capt. Aaron Chapman, an air medical physician assistant with the 501st Aviation Battalion, 1st Armored Division.
That’s a crucial skill for what experts expect to be a daunting casualty care environment in future battles.
“In today’s world, in a large-scale combat environment, we won’t have the luxury of someone coming to get us when we want a MEDEVAC,” he said. “What that means is when we have guys who are losing a lot of blood, this will help us save those who need that blood using battle buddies, peers and other people who we know are willing and able to help.”
The exercise involved taking blood from a patient and then returning it to them. This is known as autologous blood transfusion, according to the release.
“The idea is that this simulates real transfusion of blood in an emergency setting, but it significantly reduces the risks of having a blood transfusion reaction if we move blood from one patient to another patient,” said British Army Maj. Catriona Kemeny, a medical officer with the 4th Regiment, Army Air Corps.
“If we can train hard, maybe we can fight easy, so that actually when we have to do it in reality, we’re already well practiced,” Kemeny said.
Todd South has written about crime, courts, government and the military for multiple publications since 2004 and was named a 2014 Pulitzer finalist for a co-written project on witness intimidation. Todd is a Marine veteran of the Iraq War.
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