Challenge :Create the best disaster relief force.

Unconsensual · Mar 12, 2012

The idea is simple, create the most capable disaster relief and prevention organization. Assume that it has international backing from many nations and most of the major ones. Contribution to the organization will be weighted by economic power and manpower contributions of member nations. Obviously keep a realistic budget, they probably can't afford rapid response orbital relief packages .

How will it handle floods? Earthquakes? Pestilence? ....

Where will they be based? What equipment do they have? How are they trained?.....

MattII · Mar 13, 2012

Well I don't know about anything else, but the first thing I'd put in would be a few DUKWs and an LARC-V or two. Armoured recovery vehicles as well, and armoured bridge-layers and, oh hell, if it's been useful to the military and it's not got a gun it's probably useful here.

Serenissima · Mar 13, 2012

Sorry, I just have to:

While they do have their own Pacific island, they only have less than a dozen employees, and all their equipment is funded by an eccentric billionaire industrialist. So it doesn't really fit your criteria. However, I pity anyone whose childhood didn't involve them.

The Ubbergeek · Mar 13, 2012

First, can it be a REAL disaster relief force, and there may not be political-tactical etc interests.. meddling? Not a tool for some nations to act up and gain interest, AT LEAST not biaised neutral? it would be better.

Pangur · Mar 13, 2012

The first think on the list has to be a small carrier. The reason for this is that when you go into a disaster area you have to bring every thing with you- food, water, fuel - the whole lot. Next requirement is medical faciilities up to and including operating theatres. A good comms rig as well, assume that you have to replace the local broadcast network - thats not going to be that hard. Telstra in Australia has got a number of mobile base stations for cell phones. Have some just like that and rework the others for Radio broadcast. You will need to equip the carrier with choppers, mix of heavy and medium lift. You will also need to be able to have heavy lift gear to hand. Crew wise, apart from sailors and aircrew/air support you will need USAR 1 , 2 & 3 crews (USAR 1 go for the first grabs, 2 do breaking and shoring, tunneling if you like into collasped structures, 3 are Command and control) Their skill set is good for most disasters. Next up is medical staff (go talk to medicine sans frontier for them) You will also need engineers, structural engineers are normally part of a USAR team, however you will also need all manners of both engineers and trades folk.

BTW I trained for this stuff

MattII · Mar 13, 2012

A plain carrier's no good, you really need something with a well-deck as well, maybe a Wasp Class.

Pangur · Mar 13, 2012

Thats a fair comment, a Wasp would cut it. Small enough to get through the Suez and Panama canal, 8.1 m draft so it can close enough to the coast.

On one of the previous questions this combination will have the skills to cover pretty much anything for minor disasters and a initical responce to large ones. In the latter case they could provide a immediate responce and clear runways and/or ports in the case of larger disasters

TheMann · Mar 13, 2012

^ Using a vessel with a well deck is good for movements, but its too slow to respond quickly. You would have to have some of the equipment and manpower on aircraft in order to get them there quickly, and those aircraft would have to be able to land on an unprepared runway, so you need strategic airlifters and / or airliners that could handle such runways. A Wasp is at most good for about 25 knots, which means crossing the Pacific would take at least ten days. Too slow to be an effective relief force.

CalBear · Mar 13, 2012

Simple. Take two USMC Amphib groups, including the LHA/LHD, helos, and troops. Put one in each ocean or Hemisphere, and you are good to go for about 50-60% of the world's population (anywhere within about 300 miles of an ocean/sea). Do the same thing with a U.S. Mobile medical hospital, including the C-17s for lift (or some Antonov 124) and you cover most of the rest. Second them to the UN Blue helmets and you are set.

Turn key operation.

Orville_third · Mar 13, 2012

You will need aerial recon. Satellites are great, but there are only so many of them, and they have to be maneuvered. The US's Civil Air Patrol has a good capability, at least domestically (and along the border areas).
I'd also look into aquatic rescue units, in the event of a disaster near the ocean. (US Coast Guard Auxiliary is good, but the RNLI are a bit better.)
Animal rescue may be needed, be it in an agricultural situation, urban situation, or ocean disaster. I'd have a team from the Humane Society of the US, plus the USDA, and maybe Sea World on alert.

Unconsensual · Mar 13, 2012

I was thinking something more civilian, like propositioned grain stocks, some system for redirection shipments of foodstuffs and construction material and so on. RO-RO vessel will surely help as most of the time it's about getting there. Civilian helicopters and Russian aircraft with the ability to land on patches of dirt.

A global network sorta like the WHO which can tip off people of a impending disaster. I can only imagine the expense of keeping 2 USMC groups for this, especially with the loss of some combat effectiveness.

Ming777 · Mar 13, 2012

Perhaps a larger version of current teams like Canada's DART.

jlckansas · Mar 14, 2012

You need to have a split between sea and air based deployment. For air deployment they have numerous things in the world that are air dropable. Things like trucks, bulldozers, water desalination units and such are available off the shelf and could get in early. For personnel and things like a MASH unit you could use some of these: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chase_XCG-20. The gliders could be set up as operating rooms or be used as a place for the people to live after they brought folks in to a place. Tow one or two behind a C130/Ant24 with what you need. Things like trucks and bulldozers could be airdropped into the area to clear airports to bring in the other things you need in C17/C5/Ant 124/224 heavy lifters.

MattII · Mar 14, 2012

Gliders are virtually worthless these days, since we C-17s can pull air-drops.

Pangur · Mar 14, 2012

I am sorry but there is a lot of silly talk here ~ lets air drop x y or z' Sorry folks unless you have establsihed control on the group you have nothing - start with that getting control. You have to assume that the runways are gone. got to assume that your starting position is NOTHING. Thats how it is guys, c-17 are for sure very useful, hugh payload & short runway howeverr how can you assume it can land day 0 -day 5 after the disaster? I like the idea of having at least two fleets as suggested by calbear

Prepositioning grain stocks, blankets, tents and water & food, out standing ideas;The ospreys may come in handy for this. Its all well and good to have these suppies stored in politcal and geographical stable spots in the world, just need to get them to where we need them

seraphim74 · Mar 14, 2012

Such a force would also require an armed police/paramilitary unit to protect the relief workers from marauders, scavengers etc. - otherwise all that food, blankets, equipment etc. might be easily robbed by a bunch of bandits with AK-47s; sometimes it is also necessary to impose some kind of order, if the local government is unable to do it or if the local people do not trust it. It would be a small, lightly armed unit - just enough to scar away bandits, not enough to be considered a threat by a local government.

marcus_aurelius · Mar 14, 2012

Such a relief force (persumably a UN outfit) should have an island somewhere as an operating base - say, the Azores - with two fleets (as suggested by CalBear), a fleet of C-17s/An-124s (as suggested by TheMann), and a security element to maintain order.

Marc A

jlckansas · Mar 14, 2012

I suggested Airdroppable and glider borne units. They have small bulldozers, front end loaders and dump trucks that can be air dropped in the US military and civilian models. These can be dropped in with their operators to open up the air fields to get the heavier units in. Reverse osmosis water purification units can be air dropped. Large Cargo gliders do not take the runway space or even a runway aircraft need. Yes gliders are not used in the military anymore, but to bring in things where a full sized runway does not exist they would be useful. Fleets are good but what about a disaster in a place like Northern India, Central Asia or on the eastern side of the Andes mountains? A fleet would not be able to reach there. Its an incremental approach to getting things in to where it is needed. Open up the airfield or build something to at least get the ball rolling.

MattII · Mar 14, 2012

Well if they can air-drop M155 tanks (weighing 15 tons), from C-130s, then I don't see how adding just a few more tons to the load (the C-130 can only carry 20 tons in any case) is going to wreck it. Also, gliders need to be towed, which raises aerodynamic issue, as well as having to find a still reasonably clear space to land (as opposed to air-dropping stuff, which you can do even in places that are too rough to land). Of course, that 20 tons could probably be raised to 30+ tons for a single vehicle once the Airbus A-400M is in service, and since it's a turboprop, it would probably be good for Low-Velocity Airdrops (wouldn't want to try those in a turbofan aircraft, foreign object damage would be a sod).

Orville_third · Mar 14, 2012

Why not a C-130? They may be slow, but they can airdrop and are STOL (They landed on a Carrier...)
I'd also recommend a team like THW from Germany.