From the July issue of Global Traveler magazine:

By Christopher Cox

For countless travelers, the pyramids of Egypt represent the trip of a lifetime. But those tourists who happened to be in Cairo in late January got more than they bargained for when the country convulsed into mass demonstrations against longtime strongman Hosni Mubarak. Tear gas and tanks, government ministries aflame, the chaotic airport filled with thousands of stranded passengers — it was like a nightmare episode of When Vacations Attack.

As events in Egypt unraveled, Global Rescue was already on the move. The crisis response firm’s security team, comprised of former Navy SEALs and other special-ops veterans, ushered approximately 190 foreign nationals to central rally locations and then escorted them to Alexandria’s international airport for evacuation to Amman, Jordan, aboard a chartered Boeing 737.

Unfortunately, such an “extraction” isn’t an isolated travel event in an increasingly problematic world. Widespread political turmoil in the Middle East and devastating natural disasters such as the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan — not to mention a steady stream of medical-related emergencies suffered by adventurers in remote locales — have resulted in an increase in travel-related crises.

“I’m not sure there’s ever been a quarter like this,” said Daniel L. Richards, chief executive officer of Boston-based Global Rescue. “Certainly not in a decade. … It really is unprecedented. It’s kept us very busy…”

To read the entire article, click here.