U.S. Army North trains personnel recovery teams

U.S. Army North conducted training and rehearsals for reintegration of isolated personnel at a variety of locations on Fort Sam Houston and in San Antonio June 27-30.

Personnel recovery stems from the Department of Defense’s commitment to “leave no one behind” and is the sum of military, diplomatic and civil efforts to prepare for and execute the recovery and reintegration of isolated personnel.

Lt. Col. Allen Hahn, ARNORTH air operations chief, organized the training event, bringing in representatives from the 502nd Air Base Wing, U.S. State Department, U.S. Marshals Service and U.S. Northern Command to ensure an integrated approach. “This isn’t a mission we expect to be given on a frequent basis, but when we are given it, it’s a ‘no-fail’ mission,” Hahn said.

ARNORTH representatives, along with other agencies, gathered at the Fort Sam Houston
Mission Training Complex June 27 to listen to Brig. Gen. James Blackburn, ARNORTH deputy commanding general, provide opening remarks.

“You all need to put yourselves in their position,” Blackburn said, referring to the isolated person. “You would be shaken. We have to consider the needs of the individual and remember that there is no cookie-cutter solution.”

ARNORTH has been designated the lead for Phase 1 and Phase 2 reintegration for all Army personnel assigned to ARNORTH and USNORTHCOM and will likely be designated to lead efforts for all military services. The ARNORTH personnel recovery team is made up of smaller teams, such as the initial reception party, transition point team, debriefing team and family assistance team.

Phase 1 began when ARNORTH is notified of the imminent recovery of an isolated person. As part of this training event, personnel designated to be part of the initial reception party simulated arriving at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto to meet with the acting consul general and conduct initial medical and psychological screening to determine if the recovered person was fit to fly back to the U.S.

In this scenario, the recovered person was a female U.S. Army captain who had been taken hostage by a terrorist cell while on leave in Toronto with a fellow Soldier. Her rescue occurred six months after her abduction thanks to a joint raid led by the Canadian government. Upon initial medical screening, she was determined to be pregnant, malnourished, and experiencing severe emotional trauma.

Role-playing the acting consul general was Andrea Gastaldo, ARNORTH foreign policy advisor and career foreign service officer with the U.S. Department of State. Having served as American Citizens Services chief in Saudi Arabia and South Africa, she’s had considerable experience in situations dealing with Americans under duress and was able to provide many insights to the

ARNORTH team on what to expect in such a situation.

Gastaldo explained to the team that a consular officer would stay with the recovered person as long as that individual wanted them to do so and would be looking for signs of distress that indicated the recovered person was overwhelmed and needed a break.

“We’re there to make sure an American citizens rights are protected and to essentially act as a refuge for them,” Gastaldo said.

The ARNORTH medical doctor, psychologist and debriefing expert on the initial reception party all rehearsed the actions they would take and the questions they would ask with the role-playing recovered person.

After each portion, the entire ARNORTH personnel recovery team was able to ask questions about what had happened and receive counsel from Hahn, Gastaldo and other members of the training team.

Phase 2 began with the arrival of the returnee back to the United States.

To ensure members of the ARNORTH team had the most realistic sense of what to expect and what they’d be doing, the entire team traveled to the San Antonio airport, where the initial reception party walked through the procedures they would go through with airport security and Customs and Border Patrol agents upon arriving in San Antonio.

At the same time, members of the transition point team walked through their roles in coordinating for transportation, potentially an ambulance, for the returnee as well as coordination with the San Antonio Police Department for security en route to Brooke Army Medical Center.

As Hahn explained, the arrival of a recovered person attracts considerable media attention as well as the attention of many other people.

“Everyone wants to ‘touch the stone,’” he said, emphasizing the importance of protecting the privacy of the returnee and the security steps taken to keep them from being overwhelmed by people wanting to see and talk to them.

The team then traveled to a ward at the Fort Sam Houston Nursing Center to simulate the ward designated for returnees at Brooke Army Medical Center. Hahn explained the medical care that would be given to the returnee and again emphasized security precautions.

The debriefing team rehearsed debriefing the returnee back at ARNORTH headquarters, learning more about the importance of encouraging the returnee to “tell their story” and recognizing the signs of distress right away so that they don’t become upset.

Hahn also described how the family assistance team would be with the returnee’s family during both Phase I and 2 to ensure they are kept updated, receive emotional support, and receive assistance in dealing with media queries and requests for interviews.

At the end of Phase 2, family members are reunited with the returnee. Responsibility for Phase 3 of personnel recovery transfers to U.S. Army South and can last as long as is necessary to reintegrate the returnee back to a normal personal and professional life.