Page 42 - JSOM Fall 2025

Search and Rescue Missions Conducted by the
French Army Between 2015 and 2019

Elsa Gines, MD ; Oscar Thabouillot, MD *
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ABSTRACT
Introduction: The French Air and Space Force conducts search aid service (SAMU). SAR teams also search for injured people
and rescue (SAR) missions across France. Given the large net- ejected from combat aircraft or involved in air crashes.
work of prehospital helicopter services, questions have been
raised regarding their national-level efficiency. This study de- Several retrospective studies have analyzed SAR missions spe-
termined how many lives were saved through SAR missions cific to individual French bases, but no multicenter study has
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at seven French bases over 5 years. Methods: We analyzed been conducted. Given increasing pressure to economize on
completed mission reports from seven metropolitan bases be- public resources, we believed it essential to quantify the true
tween 2015 and 2019. The primary endpoint was the propor- effectiveness of SAR missions. To answer this question, we se-
tion of patients considered to be in imminent danger when lected a strong criterion: the number of lives that appear to
the SAR team arrived. Missing person missions were excluded have been saved by SAR missions over a 5-year period.
if patients were not located (n=4). We created a composite
criterion based on the patient’s clinical state or their clinical Methods
classification in mobile emergency and resuscitation structures
(CCMS). Secondary endpoints included response time and the This was an observational, multicentric, retrospective study
most frequent mission triggers and medical procedures per- covering a 5-year period. It analyzed SAR missions conducted
formed. Results: Of 175 mission reports, 61 patients (34.9%) by seven French military bases between 1 January 2015 and
were considered to be in imminent danger, and imminent 31 December 2019. The study was based on data extraction
danger could not be determined for 21 (12%). Trauma, sec- and analysis from mission reports completed by military phy-
ondary transport, neurological distress, and cardiac distress sicians after each mission.
combined accounted for 62% of all cases. The leading causes
for mission deployment were traumatic pathologies (18.9%), Patients were included if they were rescued by SAR teams from
secondary transfers (16%), and neurological distress (14.3%). these seven bases during the study period, and a completed
The most common procedures were volume expansion (77 mission report was available. Missions were excluded if they
times), morphine administration (33), and oxygen therapy were canceled, involved a missing person who was not located,
(30). Conclusion: SAR missions primarily assist seriously ill or or had incomplete documentation.
injured patients in isolated areas where traditional emergency
services are limited. They are often deployed as a last resort. Primary Endpoint
They regularly fill a capacity deficit where conventional rescu- The primary endpoint was the number of patients considered
ers cannot operate and contribute to improving the prognosis to be in imminent danger when they were taken into medi-
of rescued patients. cal care by the SAR team. This imminent danger designation
implies that the patient would likely have died without SAR
Keywords: emergency medical services; helicopters; military intervention.
health service; search and rescue; prehospital care; air medical
transport; winching operations To quantify this imminent danger criterion, which can be sub-
jective, we created a composite criterion encompassing clinical
and environmental data. A patient was considered to be in im-
minent danger if they met one or more of the following:
Introduction
The French Air Force is responsible for search and rescue • Oxygen saturation 90% or lower
(SAR) missions involving military personnel and civilians who • Systolic blood pressure (SBP) <90mmHg
are missing or involved in accidents on French territory. These • Shock index >1.1 (normal range: 0.5–0.7)
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missions allow medical teams to evacuate and treat patients in • Altered consciousness with a Glasgow Coma Scale score <8
isolated areas, to transfer critically ill patients between hos-
pitals (i.e., secondary transports), and to complement the re- Additionally, the physicians who perform SAR medical inter-
sources of the Civil Security agency and the emergency medical ventions also classify each patient using the CCMS classification
*Correspondence to Thabouillot@hotmail.com
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1 Dr. Elsa Gines is affiliated with the French Military Health Service, 12th Medical Center of Bordeaux, France. Dr. Oscar Thabouillot is affiliated
with the French Military Health Service, 2nd Medical Center of Versailles, 78000 France.
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