Just read a reasonably informative article about what East Anglia are planning, in Waypoint AirMed & Rescue (Iss 40 OCT 2012). Bond are also the operators here. They will be operating single pilot with NVG for pilot and front paramedic. New cabs, presumably with NVG compliant lighting. They are talking of the fitment of specialist avionics and wire detection kit.
Interestingly, the article infers that a significant use WILL be inter-hospital and tertiary transfer. E Anglia will have only one full trauma hospital at Addenbrookes, apparently.
No hills in E Anglia which must be a +.
2 pilot would be great, but with the current crop of types would be difficult to arrange.
Crab, you raise an interesting issue about coordination. You write like it is only a problem for the civi-HEMS interlopers into "military" airspace. Police heles have been operating in that same airspace for many years too. The airspace is mainly open FIR, and not owned by anyone, but it would be good to improve coordination.
In the past I have been involved in trying to get such coordination improved. It is amazing how difficult it is to get some people to cooperate in such things, and I never really understood why. Perhaps one of the few benefits of NPAS will be to aid such coordination.
Last edited by Helinut; 28th Sep 2012 at 10:39.