And the saga continues...
Fear lives would be put at risk by moving police helicopter to Birmingham
by Clare Hutchinson, South Wales Echo
Sep 28 2011
LIVES could be put at risk by plans to relocate a replacement police helicopter 80 miles away in Birmingham, the South Wales Police Authority has warned.
At the moment, both the regular and replacement helicopters used by South Wales Police are based at St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan – which is five minutes by helicopter from Cardiff city centre.
But under the proposed National Police Air Service (NPAS), it is feared the nearest replacement helicopter would be based 40 minutes away in Birmingham.
The new nationwide air support agency would see 23 aircraft spread across 20 bases in England and Wales, with three spare helicopters on standby, producing savings of £15.27m.
But authority councillors and independent members have raised serious doubts about the scheme’s financial viability, as well as its potential to increase response times.
In a report, Assistant Chief Constable of South Wales Police, Nick Croft, said it was “highly unlikely” a replacement helicopter would travel from Birmingham to South Wales, due to the distance and the likelihood of it being called out to emergencies closer to home.
South Wales Police’s contract with private firm Bond Air Services, which is due to end in 2015, ensures a replacement helicopter is always available if the regular one is grounded.
Councillor Tim Davies, of the South Wales Police Authority, said: “Helicopters are very fragile machines and they have to have frequent maintenance and sometimes that can take a very long time, which would mean a relief helicopter would probably have to come from Birmingham.
“There was a recent example of a 13-year-old boy who was stuck in a bog in Tonyrefail as darkness fell and without the quick response of the Air Support Unit things could have been much worse.”
He said the business case for the proposal was also “substantially lacking” in detail. At the meeting members refused to support the “overall strategic direction” of the proposal, opting to ask for more details first. Chief Constable Alex Marshall said the organisation was working with the Welsh forces to “provide the reassurance they are seeking”.
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