Charity of the Year
We are pleased to name The Hampshire & Isle of Wight Air Ambulance as our Charity of the Year for 2011. Please visit their stand at the Show and support this very worthwhile charity.
The Charity was established in 2005, and the service became operational on 1 July 2007. Now flying seven days a week out of our base at Thruxton, we have already undertaken over 2920 call-outs.
The helicopter, a EuroCopter EC135, is leased - the most practical way for the charity to operate the service. The helicopter can travel at an average speed of 140 mph. The crew consists of three people (one pilot and either two paramedics or one paramedic and one doctor). We have two permanent pilots, ten paramedics and currently eight doctors who make up the crews.
From receiving a call, the helicopter can be airborne within four minutes; it can reach anywhere in Hampshire within 15 minutes, and the Isle of Wight within 20. It only needs an area the size of a tennis court on which to land; instead of wheels, skids allow it to land on the wide diversity of terrain that we have within the region. Once the patient is on board they can be transferred to hospital within 10 minutes, falling well within the Golden Hour which is so crucial for emergency treatments. One of the major advantages of being transported by Air Ambulance is that, unlike land ambulances which take the patient to the nearest Accident & Emergency department, you will be taken to the most appropriate hospital for your needs.
The Air Ambulance carries not only people who have been involved in some form of accident, but also people suffering from medical emergencies such as heart attacks. It is also used for emergency transfers between hospitals.
The EC135 has a number of advantages compared to its predecessor. It has a larger cabin which allows better on board care. The larger cabin is fitted with an additional seat in the back which can allow an extra paramedic or doctor to fly, or a family member to fly with the patient. The EC135 is also cleared to instrument fly which means it is able to fly through heavy or low cloud.
It currently costs £110,000 per month to operate the service including the lease of the aircraft, fuel, maintenance - yet the charity receives no government funding. The pilots come as part of the lease, and the paramedics are seconded from South Central Ambulance Service. Therefore we must raise all of our costs ourselves.
There are three main ways in which we raise funds:
- Our "Flight for Life" lottery - for details contact the Lottery Hotline on 023 8005 7722
- Recycling clothing and fabrics through “Bag it Up” (there are over 275 yellow recycling bins throughout the region - to find your nearest look at www.bagitup.org.uk).
- We rely upon the generosity of the people and companies of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight to keep the Air Ambulance flying.