To Date :

• Over 2,800 air ambu lance missions have been conducted by Air Corps Alouette helicopters.
• Over 750 air ambulance missions conducted by Air Corps Dauphin helicopters.
• Over 240 air ambulance and organ harvest missions conducted by Air Corps fixed wing aircraft.

Advantages of Helicopter Air Ambulance and
Pre-Hospital

• Rapid transmission from scene to critical care facility.
• Accessibility to remote sites.
• Smooth travel over long distance beneficial to patient, especially in spinal cases.
• Ability to travel rapidly and smoothly over water high y advantageous in island medevac missions.
• Ability to divert rapidly to nearest hospital if patient condition deteriorates en route.
• Snow or ice on roads does not effect a helicopter!

The Future?

• Irish Air Corps is a service provider.
• Future HEMS and emergency response must be customer driven i.e Dept of Health.
• Irish Air Corps and DoD currently procuring new utility helicopters with potential of providing service as is currently available.
• Expanding to HEMS is possible if sufficient numbers of helicopters are procured and if customer driven.

Why a joint HEMS service?

• Air Corps has 40 years experience of helicopter air ambulance operations in Ireland/U.K. day and night.
• Operating protocols for this type of service already in place in the form of long established operating procedures.
• Operating procedures and protocol as established between Air Corps/Dept. of Health easily expanded into service level agreement incorporating a HEMS operation.
• Fully trained and experienced pilots technicians and aircrew are already available as is a ready supply of military real estate from which to operate e.g. FINNER.

Paul Fry