Investment project to buy new Warwickshire air ambulance helicopter has been launched

The Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance (WNAA) along with the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance, (DLRAA) have begun a helicopter replacement project which will come into action in early 2021.

As part of the replacement project, the clinical teams reviewed their current and future helicopter requirements and decided to replace the current iconic yellow and grey helicopters with another two new, state-of-the-art, AgustaWestland 109SPs – the world’s fastest helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) aircraft.

Richard Clayton, director of operations for WNAA, said: "As part of our scheduled programme we are replacing our two emergency aircraft as they come to the end of their working life.

“The HEMS aircraft replacement programme has provided an opportunity to ensure that our future air ambulances allow us to continue delivering the highest quality of critical care and enable us to evolve our operational capabilities with future clinical developments.

“Providing leading pre-hospital emergency care to our patients is of the utmost importance and these two new aircraft will continue to enhance our clinical services and facilitate us in extending our flight hours at both bases next year.

“I am also delighted to be continuing our longstanding partnership with Sloane Helicopters Limited to provide our next generation of HEMS aircraft.”

The WNAA will continue to operate out of Coventry Airport and have dedicated critical care paramedics and doctors on-board who are able to perform out of hospital surgical procedures from thoracotomies and caesareans, to amputations by the roadside.

Gavin Alexander, a critical care paramedic for the WNAA, said: “The new AW109SP aircraft has an integral quick start-up time which is crucial to reaching our patients as quickly as possible, and is well suited to our region with large urban areas requiring smaller landing site capabilities, along with great endurance and speed for the more rural areas.

“They will have a customised medical interior, ergonomically designed to provide the service with better access to vital functions and flexibility to carry additional medical equipment.”

The air ambulance service will fly its 40,000th mission in the spring.

The 24/7 lifesaving service relies on donations to make these missions happen.

Jim Chapman, who lost his arm in an agricultural accident, has highlighted just how vital these helicopters are.

He said: "

“The sound of the helicopter was the best sound I have ever heard in my life. I knew that help was on the way and the situation I found myself in was going to be sorted out.

"I was immediately put at ease by the kindness of the crew and the care I got was fantastic.”

To find out more on how you can support your local air ambulance’s helicopter replacement project, call 0300 3045 999 or visit www.theairambulanceservice.org.uk