Why are you launching an overnight service during a pandemic? Expand Planning and preparation for the introduction of a 24/7 service has taken several years. This has included the upgrading of aircraft and extensive night-flight training for our crews. While the pandemic has brought about challenges for charities, the introduction of an extended air ambulance service will help the NHS Wales frontline, and the people of Wales, during an extremely difficult period. Therefore, we believe it is right to introduce our overnight helicopter on 1 December as planned.
What support is Wales Air Ambulance getting from NHS Wales/Welsh Government? Expand The Wales Air Ambulance service is a unique partnership between the Wales Air Ambulance Charity and NHS Wales (supported by Welsh Government). The Charity raises the required funds to deliver the helicopter operation and rapid response vehicles. NHS Wales contributes the doctors and critical care practitioners, and electro-medical equipment. It is important to state that the Charity is an independent organisation that relies entirely on charitable donations to maintain the helicopter operation. It receives no direct government funding.
How can I help Wales Air Ambulance maintain an overnight helicopter? Expand To deliver a 24/7 service we need to raise £8 million every year. With your support, we can achieve this. There are many ways you can help us. Every pound and every spare hour makes a vital difference to what we do. Here are a few ways to give: Join our Lifesaving Lottery Fundraise Make a donation Donate your pre-loved items to our charity shops Visit our shops across Wales Volunteer Leave a gift in your Will Visit www.walesairambulance.com or call 0300 0152 999 for more information.
Why is the helicopter based in Cardiff? Expand As part of our research, we have analysed the ‘unmet need’ for our service – the incidents that we were unable to attend due to being outside of operational hours. This analysis found that there is a need for an extended air ambulance service overnight and that incidents are most prevalent in South East Wales. In response to the findings, our existing base in Cardiff Heliport is the most appropriate location for an overnight aircraft. It allows us to respond to the largest proportion of cases but with the capacity to cover the whole of Wales. In addition, when dealing with poor weather, we can use an instrument approach using the technology at Cardiff Airport. Cardiff Heliport is based away from residential areas, reducing the disturbance of aircraft noise at night.
Why will there only be one helicopter overnight? Expand During the day, we have three emergency helicopters operational across Wales. Despite the demand for our service overnight, it is significantly less than in the daytime and we are initially providing the night service with one crew operating from a helicopter or rapid response vehicle. We continue to evaluate our data and if the overnight demand increases, we will explore further opportunities to expand.
Is it safe to fly and land a helicopter at night? Expand Yes. There are additional rigorous Civil Aviation Authority safeguards and procedures for night flying compared to the day. The helicopter is equipped with the latest weather radar technology and traffic and terrain avoidance systems. It also has advanced lighting systems. Our crew have received extensive night-flight training and will use night-vision goggles.
Why do we need a 24/7 air ambulance service? Expand It has always been the vision of the Wales Air Ambulance to offer a 24/7 service. The new service will ensure that pre-hospital care is available Wales-wide, 24 hours a day. Over the past few years, we have analysed the ‘unmet need’ for our service – the incidents that we were unable to attend because they were outside daytime operational hours. This analysis found that: There is a need for an extended air ambulance service overnight. There were approximately 990 cases of ‘unmet need’ between the hours of 8pm and 8am over a 12-month period. There is a particular increase in demand between 3pm and midnight. This is most prevalent in the South East Wales area. Life and limb-threatening incidents between 8pm and 8am were managed by the Welsh Ambulance Service. In these cases, Wales Air Ambulance was not available to support with its ED-standard treatments.