Afghan baby named after US military evacuation plane where she was born
The Afghan baby born on a U.S. military evacuation plane her family boarded to flee the Taliban has been named after the plane.
The baby's parents named their newborn daughter Reach, after the C-17 aircraft's call sign, according to Gen. Tod Wolters, commander of the U.S. military's European Command.
"That child's name will forever be Reach," Wolters told reporters Wednesday. "And if you can well imagine, being an Air Force fighter pilot, it's my dream to watch that young child called Reach grew up and be a U.S. citizen and fly United States Air Force fighters in our Air Force."
Wolters said U.S. military officials had "further conversations" with the baby's mother and father after the birth and confirmed the name.
The baby's mother, who was not named, went into labor mid-flight Aug. 21 while on a U.S. Air Force C-17 that was flying from Qatar to Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
As the woman's contractions got heavier and she progressed further into labor during the flight, the aircraft's commander made the decision to decrease altitude, which increased the air pressure inside the plane, the U.S. military shared in a series of tweets.
The action "helped stabilize and save the mother's life," according to the military.
Once the flight landed at Ramstein Air Base, additional U.S. troops boarded the plane and delivered the baby in the plane's cargo bay.
"The baby girl and mother were transported to a nearby medical facility and are in good condition," according to a U.S. military tweet.
Although the baby born at Ramstein Air Base was born on an Air Force plane, she will not automatically acquire U.S. citizenship.
The U.S. State Department's Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) states that, "A U.S.-registered aircraft outside U.S. airspace is not considered to be part of U.S. territory. A child born on such an aircraft outside U.S. airspace does not acquire U.S. citizenship by reason of the place of birth."
Over the past week, the U.S. has evacuated tens of thousands of people from Afghanistan, where chaos has erupted after the government collapsed and the Taliban seized control.
The evacuees are being taken to temporary safe haven locations across Europe and the Middle East. Four military installations in the U.S., as well as Washington Dulles International Airport, are also now receiving Afghans, according to Pentagon officials.
Three babies, including the baby born on the C-17, have been born during the evacuation efforts, according to Wolters.
All three babies are doing well, he said, noting the other two babies were delivered at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, a U.S. Army hospital in Germany.
