Air Force Medical Doctors Trained to Fight an enemy attack?

Question

Can they successfully eliminate an opposing threat like marines if they had to?

Answer 1

While I was in Iraq EVERY MD that I met had a side arm; include USAF MDs. Remember that every service member is a soldier,sailor,marine or airman 1st and what ever the "job" is second.

Trained in use of pistols (9mm) as efficiently and effectively as compared to a front line Marine. No...not ever close.

Answer 2

I think the military actually do train the military doctors (in-field ones), surgeons, and medical personnel how to use a rifle and such but I do doubt any further since it is pretty much against the Geneva Convention for any medical personnel to attack anyone since no one is suppose to attack any one with the Red Cross, Red Crescent, and etc. Those are international signs of mercy and aid, not killing. So it would be very much illegal for any military medical doctors to fight an enemy but in self defense is questionable, attacking combatants under a flag or faction that are non-signers/ratifiers of the Geneva Convention is debatable.

Though I have read about a military doctor in the Pacific Theater during WWII who was trying to defend his medical tent with a pistol he found from Japanese combatants, after seeing a Japanese soldier bayoneting a wounded U.S. soldier. The surgeon held his tent's entrance from the charges radical Japanese soldiers as other personnel help carried wounded soldiers from the scene. Later on the doctor found a machine gun and held the position even after they evacuated everyone to cover the retreating tale of the soldiers. After U.S. forces pushed back and they came to find his body at his machine gun position with at least 90 Japanese dead in his machine gun's range. He was later awarded the Metal of Honor posthumously.

So, this doctor (I forgot his name) actually eliminated an opposing threat really well but right now. The military doesn't train any medical personnel to fight like marines, they can probably defend themselves in a given situation but not well enough as actual soldiers.

Answer 3

All Military Personnel are trained to fight any threat. The Geneva Convention allows Air Force Doctors (and all Medical personnel) to carry a 9mm. Its all that's allowed to defend themselves and or patients.

Answer 4

soldier 1st. Doctor 2nd