Background. The Naval Medical Research Center and Biopure Corporation developed the proposed Restore Effective SUrvival in Shock (RESUS) trauma trial of HBOC-201. A military research agreement, a planned field contingency, an investigational new drug application and permission to start a trial represent different steps. This review examines what the public record establishes about each step. Methods. We reviewed selected public records from 2003 to 2008: the RESUS agreement and amendment, a Department of Defense budget justification, an FDA advisory meeting notice and contemporaneous Biopure filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. We classified each action by actor, date and documented status. This is a focused historical review, not a systematic search or an evaluation of clinical efficacy. Results. The agreement assigned Navy and company roles and later included a conditional defense contingency provision for a possible request for 1,500 units. That provision did not itself authorize clinical use or establish delivery. NMRC submitted a RESUS investigational new drug application in June 2005, and FDA placed the proposed trial on clinical hold in July. An FDA advisory committee discussed the proposal in December 2006. Biopure reported an 11 to 8 vote, with one abstention, against proceeding with the design then proposed; the revised Phase 2 protocol remained on hold in 2007. A separate DoD budget line and subsequent preclinical supply arrangements document research activity, not battlefield deployment. Conclusion. The records trace RESUS from military research planning through IND submission, clinical hold, advisory review, revised protocol and preclinical product work. They do not establish that the proposed RESUS human trial began, that the contingency supply clause was executed, or that HBOC-201 received US authorization for operational military use.