Air Ambulance Service Award

This award recognises the hard work and dedication of the Air Ambulance sector, which operates as 18 separate charities that raise over £35 million per year in funding.

2009 WINNER: Wales Air Ambulance Service

Air ambulance cover can make a crucial difference in a medical emergency. The helicopter’s speed and its ability to access remote areas make it an ideal solution to the particular problems posed by the more rural parts of the UK.

Wales was the last country and region in Europe to have an air ambulance service, but it has since grown to become one of the busiest and fastest growing operations in the UK. From one helicopter flying limited hours each week, the organisation now operates three helicopters and provides cover across the whole of Wales every day of the year. Since 2001, the aircrews have flown more than 11,500 missions throughout Wales, saving countless lives in the process. The aircrews can be anywhere in Wales in less than 15 minutes.

The charity needs to raise over £5 million per year to operate the service, with each mission on average costing £1200. In April 2009, Wales Air Ambulance launched its first New Generation helicopter, the EC-135, which is stationed at the south airbase in Swansea. In addition to one pilot, two paramedics and one patient, the new EC-135 can also carry the parent of an injured child. The brief story below details one life saving mission carried out by Wales Air Ambulance two years ago.

"..Paraglider Adrian Keys was barely alive after he lost control of his craft and crashed into the side of a mountain between Merthyr Tydfil and Fochriw. A Sea King helicopter had to airlift Adrian off the mountainside because it could not land. Air ambulance crewmen Julian Cummings and Martin Price helped support Adrian before he was strapped to a spinal board and winched into the Sea King helicopter, and transferred to nearby Prince Charles Hospital, where he underwent many hours of surgery. Adrian Keyes is still recovering from his horrific injuries, but is now planning to cycle up Snowdon and then ride from the base of Wales’ highest peak to Pen-y-Fan to raise money for the Wales Air Ambulance..."

COMMENDED

Devon Air Ambulance Trust
Essex & Herts Air Ambulance Trust
East Anglian Air Ambulance
Midlands Air Ambulance