Founded | 1 March 2001 [1] |
---|---|
Type | Charitable organisation |
Registration no. | 1083645 [2] |
Location | |
Area served | Wales |
Chief Executive Officer | Dr Sue Barnes [4] [5] |
Aircraft operated | Airbus H145 |
Revenue (2022) | £15.4 million [2] |
Employees (2022) | 82 [2] |
Volunteers (2022) | 414 [2] |
Website | www |
The Wales Air Ambulance Charitable Trust (Welsh : Ymddiriedolaeth Elusennol Ambiwlans Awyr Cymru), known as Wales Air Ambulance Charity (WAAC) or (Welsh : Elusen Ambiwlans Awyr Cymru (EAAC)), is a charity air ambulance service providing a free, life-saving helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) for the critically ill and injured in Wales. It is an independent charity that relies on charitable donations to supply and maintain a fleet of emergency aircraft and rapid response vehicles.
WAAC has four helicopters and medical crews stationed at Caernarfon Airport, Welshpool Airport, Cardiff Heliport, and Dafen (near Llanelli). The teams are capable of reaching a critically ill patient anywhere in Wales, from any base. Each helicopter team consists of a pilot and two medics, typically a doctor and critical care practitioner, or two critical care practitioners. [6]
At present the aircraft operate (weather dependent) seven days a week from 08:00 to 20:00 at Caernarfon and Welshpool, 07:00–19:00 at Llanelli, 07:00–19:00 at Cardiff Heliport, and 19:00–07:00 at Cardiff Heliport to ensure that there is 24-hour emergency cover across the whole of Wales. [7]
The air ambulance service in Wales is delivered via a Third Sector and Public Sector partnership. The Wales Air Ambulance Charity needs to raise £11.2 million every year to supply and maintain the aircraft and rapid response vehicle fleets. The consultants and critical care practitioners who work for the service are supplied by EMRTS Cymru, a part of NHS Wales. [8] Pilots are provided by specialist emergency services helicopter company, Babcock Mission Critical Services Onshore. The specialist medical teams can provide a range of critical care interventions, previously only found in hospitals, at the roadside, reducing the time taken for lifesaving care to take place. This includes giving a general anaesthetic to patients, providing sedation for painful procedures and undertaking critical surgical procedures. All vehicle platforms carry a range of equipment to facilitate this including monitoring, high level portable ventilator and specialist transfer equipment. More recently, the service has commenced carrying blood products. This includes red blood cells for transfusion to bleeding patients, as well as freeze-dried plasma and fibrinogen to help with clotting and monitors and drugs to help reverse bleeding in patients who are on blood thinning medicine (warfarin) in an emergency situation.
In the year ending 31 July 2022, the Charity had an income of £15.4 million. [2] Expenditure was £13.5M, which included £8.4M operating the charitable service. [2] The remaining 37% was spent on fundraising and governance.
Three of the aircraft operating for the Charity are Airbus Helicopters H145. [9] Llanelli-based aircraft (G-WENU) has callsign Helimed 57, Welshpool (G-WOBR) is Helimed 59, while the Caernarfon-based aircraft (G-WROL) has callsign Helimed 61.
There is also a Eurocopter EC135 based in Cardiff. This aircraft is staffed by two pilots and a specialist helicopter transfer practitioner (HTP). Alongside attending emergency incidents, the service also works conducts neonatal, paediatric and adult inter-hospital transfers. This EC135 aircraft, G-WASC, callsign Helimed 67, [10] has specialist equipment and can be fitted with purpose designed equipment for transfer of young children and neonates, including a transport incubator.
All helicopters are owned by Babcock Mission Critical Services Onshore, who also provide the pilots, base engineers and maintenance for the aircraft.
In addition to the four aircraft, the Charity has a fleet of rapid response vehicles (RRV), spread across its four bases. These are adapted Audi Q7 or Volvo XC90 with full audio and visual warning systems that carry the same standard equipment as the aircraft, and are utilised if the aircraft is offline, for example due to weather conditions, or as an additional responding resource.
Swansea Airport is located in the middle of Fairwood Common on the Gower Peninsula 6 miles (9.7 km) to the west of Swansea, Wales.
London's Air Ambulance Charity is a registered charity that operates a helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) dedicated to responding to serious trauma emergencies in and around London. Using a helicopter from 08:00 to sunset and rapid response vehicles by night, the service performs advanced medical interventions at the scene of the incident in life-threatening, time-critical situations.
The Scottish Ambulance Service is part of NHS Scotland, which serves all of Scotland's population. The Scottish Ambulance Service is governed by a special health board and is funded directly by the Health and Social Care Directorates of the Scottish Government.
Caernarfon Airport, is a general aviation airport located 4 nautical miles southwest of Caernarfon, Gwynedd, Wales. It is on the site of the former RAF Llandwrog which was operational between 1941 and 1946. From the end of the 1960s, civil light aircraft started to use the aerodrome in greater numbers and eventually gained a full operating licence in 1976.
Yorkshire Air Ambulance (YAA) is a dedicated helicopter emergency air ambulance for the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It was established in October 2000, and currently operates two Airbus H145 aircraft. It is an independent charity that relies solely on the donations of individuals and organisations.
The Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust is a charity that provides a dedicated helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. The service also has two critical care cars that operate when the helicopter is unable to fly. Together they attend about 1,100 incidents per year. As of December 2018, the helicopter service had flown over 28,000 missions since 1987.
The Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is a registered charity, which uses a helicopter to provide an air ambulance service to the English counties of Dorset and Somerset. The air ambulance came into service in March 2000, following the success of similar schemes, such as Devon Air Ambulance and Cornwall Air Ambulance. The air ambulance headquarters are at Wellington in Somerset, but the helicopter is based at Henstridge Airfield in Somerset.
Air ambulance services in the United Kingdom provide emergency medical functions, patient transport between specialist centres, or medical repatriation. Services are provided by a mixture of organisations, operating either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. All emergency air ambulance helicopters in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland are operated by charities, while Scotland has one charity service in addition to its two NHS-funded helicopters. Fixed-wing air ambulances, used for patient transport, may be government or privately operated. Air ambulance helicopters are complemented by Coastguard SAR helicopters.
Cardiff Heliport, is a heliport located in Tremorfa, Cardiff, Wales, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) from the city centre.
The Midlands Air Ambulance Charity (MAAC), formerly County Air Ambulance, is a charity operating a Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Worcestershire and the West Midlands. It operates three aircraft.
The East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) is an air ambulance providing Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) across the English counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire. The appeal to fund the service was launched in the summer of 2000 by top jockey Frankie Dettori, who had been a casualty in a serious plane crash a couple of months earlier. When flying commenced in January 2001, the service was initially available only one day a week. The East Anglian Air Ambulance operates two helicopters, 365 days a year, from its bases at Cambridge Airport and Norwich Airport, covering over 5,000 square miles (13,000 km2) and a population of approximately 3.5 million.
Babcock Mission Critical Services Onshore, formerly Bond Air Services , is an operator of air ambulance, police, and offshore windfarm helicopters in the UK. Babcock operates a mixed fleet of light twin-engine helicopters custom designed to perform specific and specialised tasks. It operates from 17 bases around the UK. It has base maintenance facilities in Staverton and Glasgow.
North West Air Ambulance is the helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) that covers the North West England region, consisting of the counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside.
Wiltshire Air Ambulance is a helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) serving Wiltshire and surrounding areas. The service was launched in 1990, but since 2015 it has been run by Wiltshire Air Ambulance Charitable Trust, a registered charity.
The Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance is an air ambulance based across the A15 from RAF Waddington on HEMs Way. The Air Ambulance covers the administrative counties of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire and the unitary authorities of Nottingham, North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire, England. The Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance Charitable Trust is a registered charity that receives no government or NHS funding for its daily missions.
Essex & Herts Air Ambulance Trust (EHAAT) is a charity air ambulance service providing a free, life-saving Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) for the critically ill and injured of Essex, Hertfordshire and surrounding areas.
Scotland's Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA) is a registered charity which assists the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) with emergency medical services through the provision of helicopter-based air ambulances.
The Great Western Air Ambulance Charity (GWAAC) is a charity air ambulance service in South West England. It operates for the relief of sickness and injury, with a specialist paramedic in critical care and a critical care doctor, providing response by helicopter or car between the hours of 7:00 am and 1:00 am, 365 days a year. The service covers Bristol, North Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Gloucestershire, and surrounding areas.
Air Ambulance Northern Ireland (AANI) also known as Air Ambulance NI is a registered charity that operates a helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) dedicated to responding to serious trauma and medical emergencies in Northern Ireland.
The Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service Cymru is a pre-hospital critical care service in Wales. It is partnership between Wales Air Ambulance, Welsh Government and NHS Wales.