Because they are large and relatively difficult to move, combat support hospitals are not the front line of battlefield medicine. Battalion aid stations, the medical companies of brigade support battalions and forward surgical teams are usually the first point of contact medical care for wounded soldiers. The CSH receives most patients via helicopter air ambulance, and stabilizes these patients for further treatment at fixed facility hospitals. Ideally, the CSH is located as the bridge between incoming helicopter ambulances and outgoing air force aircraft.