Preparation work on a helicopter, soon to fly life-saving paramedics around the north-east, is nearing completion.
Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA) has shared a video of the finishing touches being made to the EC135 T2E, ahead of final testing.
Teams at Babcock have spent the last few months overhauling the air ambulance ahead of its move to the Aberdeen.
Now, as well as the aircraft being loaded with life-saving equipment and having been upgraded to allow it to carry more weight, the copter looks the part.
Footage from Babcock’s Staverton facility in England shows workers fixing decals to the helicopter – which is now adorned in SCAA’s yellow, green and blue livery.
The charity’s fundraising director, Nick Harvey, said he and his team were very excited to witness the progress being made in Helimed 79’s development.
He said everything was on track.
“It is great to see SCAA being emblazoned on a second life-saving air ambulance,” Mr Harvey said.
“We work to meet the aero-medical needs of the people of Scotland and this second helicopter air ambulance is a significant step towards achieving that goal.”
Helimed 79 – now branded with its registration name G-EMAA – is expected to take off on its first missions at the end of this month.
Babcock project manager Gavin Baxter said: “The work to launch the UK’s newest air ambulance at Aberdeen is really progressing well.
“The aircraft’s interior has been fitted and the brackets are in place for the equipment installation.
“Now the logos have been installed, the helicopter really is getting close to becoming operational.”
The charity’s second aircraft will be based at Aberdeen International Airport and will dramatically improve the time it takes to treat the most seriously injured patients in remote and rural parts of the north-east.
The crew will also extend the reach of the major trauma centre at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital.
Answering to the call of the Scottish Ambulance Service control room, the Granite City crew will also fly to help seriously ill patients across the country.
Crew members are currently undergoing training and will be attending calls with other air ambulance teams across Scotland
Mr Baxter added: “Next up, we are focussing on getting the other preparations in place and we are making sure everyone from ground staff to logistics and medical teams are properly trained, the aircraft is fully certified for flight and all safety aspects are accounted for.
“The base itself at Aberdeen International Airport is the focus of a huge amount of activity, with building works and branding all taking place right now.”
Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance has made a huge impact since 2013, saving lives and preventing suffering.
That is why the P&J campaigned successfully for SCAA’s second helicopter to be based in our region.
The countdown is now on for the aircraft – call sign Helimed 79 – to start flying missions from Aberdeen Airport.
But this is an emergency service that relies entirely on donations.
Each call-out costs about £2,500 and SCAA needs P&J readers to help hit its £6million target and get things off to a successful start.
So please do anything you can to raise those funds and show that We’re Backing Helimed 79.
Ways to donate to SCAA
- Website: www.scaa.org.uk/donate
- Text: Text ‘SCAA’ and the amount to 70085
- Phone: 03001231111
- Cheques: Made payable to ‘SCAA’ or ‘Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance’ and sent to: Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA), The Control Tower, Perth Airport, Scone, PH2 6PL
