US Navy USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier conducts first CMV-22B Osprey Medevac exercise


According to information published by the United States Department of Defense, the U.S. Navy sailors assigned to Nimitz-class nuclear aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) Two have conducted the Navy’s first medical evacuation (medevac) exercise utilizing the CMV-22B Osprey in February 2021.
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Russian Vyborg Shipyard laid the Purga ice class coastguard ship of project 23550 925 001 A medical team carries a simulated patient during a medical transport drill on the flight deck of Nimitz-class nuclear aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70). The drill was the first-ever medevac by a Navy CMV-22B Osprey aboard an aircraft carrier. (Picture source U.S. Navy)


Medevacs ensure the fast and efficient movement of patients while also enabling medical personnel to simultaneously care for patients en route. Seconds can make all the difference in a patient’s condition while transporting them from sea to shore for additional medical assistance.

The USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) is the third Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier in service with the United States Navy. The ship was launched in 1980 and commissioned in March 1982. Currently, ten Nimitz-class supercarriers are in service with the U.S. Navy.

The USS Carl Vinson has a displacement of 101,300 tons when fully loaded. She has a length of 332.8 m and a beam of 76.8 m. She can reach a maximum speed of over 30 knots (56 km/h) and can accommodate 3,532 military personnel.

A Nimitz-class aircraft carrier can accommodate a maximum of 130 F/A-18 Hornets or 85–90 aircraft of different types, but current numbers are typically 64 aircraft. The air wing can include 24–36 F/A-18E or F Super Hornets as strike fighters two squadrons of 10–12 F/A-18C Hornets, with one of these often provided by the U.S. Marine Corps (VMFA), also as strike fighters; 4–6 EA-18G Growlers for electronic warfare, 4–6 E-2C or D Hawkeyes for airborne early warning (AEW), C-2 Greyhounds used for logistics or MV-22 Osprey.

Ospreys have been flown by the U.S. Marine Corps and Air Force since 2007. Medevac operations and exercises have been flown over land with Ospreys before, but this marks the first medevac exercise of a Navy CMV-22B on an aircraft carrier.  It is a tiltrotor aircraft with vertical takeoff and landing capabilities designed to combine the adaptability of a helicopter with the range and speed of fixed-wing aircraft. This allows it to reach farther distances than the average helicopter while also taking off and landing in more restrictive zones than the previous method of carrier onboard delivery with the C-2 Greyhound. The CVM-22B is built with a reconfigurable cargo bay which can create space for twelve stretchers for MEDEVAC evaluation and transport.