Air ambulance helicopter teams for easy emergency access

The air ambulance is an essential service that involves the use of ambulance helicopter teams, paramedics and other essential medical team members. They provide an incredible service to help those in positions that are otherwise inaccessible to road based rescue services. It is said that on average an air ambulance takes off in the UK every 10 minutes. In addition, this is happening every day of the year during daylight hours. So every single hour of the year, 7 air ambulances are busy attending medical emergencies, accidents and other such medical trauma.

Of the air ambulance services in the UK, the first was created in Cornwall in 1987 and the most recent was created in Hertfordshire in 2008. Over 19,000 missions are taken on by ambulance helicopter rescue teams, serving 177 accident and emergency departments country wide.

Estimates put rescue types at 40% of road traffic collisions, 24% of other medical emergencies, and 3% hospital transfers. This means that the air ambulance service is the busiest voluntary emergency service in the UK.

Facts and figures

There are 60 pilots flying the ambulance helicopter teams, which are made up of medical teams that encompass consultants to make judgements on injuries and illnesses, specialist registrars, emergency care practitioners, paramedics for trauma and emergency situations, technicians, and nurses.

It is said that air ambulance charities generate around £46 million annually, which works out as around £875,000 per week, or £125,000 per day. However, each mission costs on average £1,229, with the average spend per helicopter at £843,000 per year, so the money made is offset somewhat by their costs. In addition, expenditure on fundraising costs is set at only 14% annually, meaning that spending levels on such things is rather responsible and modest.

It is estimated that 130 litres of fuel is used on each mission, adding up to around 2.5m litres per year, an astonishing amount. Additionally, it is said that over £30m is spent each year on their services, in order to provide their essential service. It is also thought that around £10m of media coverage is generated by the industry, which works out at around £800,000 per month.

Well recognised

Around 2.5 million people will see air ambulance services represented at over 1500 events each year across the UK, meaning that it is widely recognised and should be known by a large proportion of the country.

If you really think about where we would be without the air ambulance services, it is a worrying thought, and it truly makes you thankful for their work. For example, if you were to collapse or injure yourself in a manner that didn’t allow you to walk to a road or hospital, and you were in a remote location such as a moor, or hill, the only way of being rescued would be by ambulance helicopter. Equally, if there was an accident on a motorway that caused a car pileup, which lead to complete gridlock, there would be no way for a conventional ambulance to access the accident, due to the lack of road access; this is where the air ambulance would become essential.

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