Originally Posted by
Hedski
No other EU OPS (binding law) country has a military HEMS operation. The closest is the German Bundespolizei who still operate with civilian licences, Part145, oversight, EASA ATO and now even a full EASA AOC as they realised it was a requirement legally. And they are the paramilitary police of the state. In France the Gendarmerie and Securité Civile EC145’s will not carry a casualty from a HEMS scene to hospital except when life is at immediate risk as they are a paramilitary rescue asset, a civilian HEMS airframe is always dispatched in such a scenario unless unavailable due to other tasking.
When a contract is paid for and money changes hands then a tender process is legally required under EU law as it forms a commercial transaction. There is also an insurance question. If a civilian ambulance paramedic is on board as a crew member then who insures them in the event of an incident, same for casualties carried etc. Is this an Irish solution to an Irish problem? The lack of oversight, safety culture and experience showed when the service originally began with an EC135 which then was almost written off within days of the service starting in 2012. Similar issues were highlighted in the accident report for the PC9 crash. This is why full accountability via an EASA AOC/ATO etc is mandated by law yet somehow Ireland chooses not to follow this.
You are correct and well explained. Ireland appears to ignore Article 3 of the Chicago Convention in this regard.
As a matter of concern, the sycamore seed akin to the falling cabin door is an analogy attempting to mitigate the unmitagatabe - that’s technically incorrect and pathetic as a descriptor.