Wonder how long it will be before we see an announcement from Wiltshire Air Ambulance....

O&G aircraft also still operating with suspected cases onboard, procedures in place for separation and PPE etc

Yorkshire has grounded one H145 and is now reliant upon a single aircraft.

As expected there is a slightly different reason in that the complement no longer has a doctor on board ..... sending the medical staff to the hospitals where they are needed.

With the fall in trauma cases I can see more of the helicopters grounded.

Oddly that document earlier recommending that COVID-19 cases are not carried was either not widely circulated or not read by all. I guess there are lots similar documents in circulation at the moment.

Prince William wants to return to air ambulance duties to do his bit
 

Admirable as it is in these days of risk, one hopes it does not effect the livelihood of any pilots who’s living depends on it in these times of people being laid off.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/112902...ulance-return/

And in contradiction....
https://www.daat.org/news/devon-air-...-down-aircraft

What is wrong with DAAT ? Seem to remember years ago flying a Gazelle in an S10 respirator and NBC suit, wasn't that difficult

HRH H145 rating renewal
 

Duke Of Cambridge wants to return back to the cockpit and fly HEMs back in our neck of the woods Good on him....

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...nce-pilot.html

cheers

Just big PR. He could drive a road ambulance or work at the Excel NHS Nightingale Hospital. Plenty of pilots who are current can do the flying.

What an idiot.

Does anyone have any documented cases of medical retrieval flight crews, rotary or fixed, being infected and suffering serious complications as a result of Covid-19 exposure.

I had some numbers quoted to me yesterday of 2 x crew requiring ventilation and 1 x crew fatality as a result of operating in an aircraft transporting Covid19 patients within the UK. I am interested in this from a risk assessment point of view and did a cursory attempt at fact changing these details but drew a blank. Can anyone support the above with reputable data?

While not wanting to sound laissez-faire, EMS pilots refusing to soldier because of the COVID-19 risks is not really cricket is it! Flying an EMS helicopter is a great privilege, not at all, like hard work and for the most part, regarded as a glamorous job by the great unwashed. Now the great unwashed really do need our help. Abandoning them cos it just got a little bit unpleasant is distasteful in my view., You take the rough with the smooth. The courage and determination of the hospital staff should be an example to us all to keep going as long as there is fuel in the tanks and a valid CofA. Its easy to hide behind risk assessments, management policies etc but we are all born with a backbone (most of us anyway). Now is the time to exercise it a bit! Blubbing like a big jessie cos there's a nasty bug going around. D&C should be ashamed.

Thames Valley Air Ambulance asking for help with PPE

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-...52106679Thames Valley Air Ambulance has urged businesses to donate protective kit because staff are "lacking the most suitable equipment" to use during the coronavirus pandemic.

The charity is not included in the official personal protective equipment (PPE) distribution system.

But it said a "major shortage" meant its staff could be left without PPE.

It said it was "inevitable" they would come into contact with coronavirus patients.

The charity, which is based at RAF Benson in Oxfordshire, said it was "keen not to add pressure to official stocks if possible".

It currently serves Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire and has urged businesses to donate items including surgical masks and anti-bacterial wipes.

Not UK, but sadly a spanish hems pilot in babcock spain has sadly lost is life in the line of duty after contracting covid-19

DB - a small flaw in your gung-ho plan perhaps?

The point is to stop transmission, not work until you get it.

It seems clear that the level of exposure has a lot to do with the severity of what you get from it.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....f72cfbaebf.jpg

this was posted on linkedin by his colleague, condolences to his family and friends, godspeed.

Quite correct, most severe cases in otherwise healthy individuals involve exposure to a high viral load. Such a load may arise during aerosol generating procedures arising from artificial airway support and ventilation. These are common procedures in a HEMS pre-hospital setting. Despite the best precautions flight crew may be exposed, that risk needs to be balanced up by just how critical the service is at the moment. A HEMS crew mostly attending trauma calls in an urban/sub-urban setting are less in demand that a crew whose role is more frequently Specialist Transfer and Retrieval from remote rural locations. It would be sensible to take the former off line, the latter probably needs to continue throughout the Covid19 pandemic.

Thanks for that - very sad and condolences to the family. The fatality I had quoted to me was mentioned as being Babcock crew, I assumed in error that it was a UK crew.

Yorkshire to be grounded completely, probably by end of week. All paramedics going back to support new corona hospital being set up in Harrogate.

BP free fuel for HEMS and Cornwall launch AW169
 

Mate of mine flies from Babcock in Italy with H145....they started to wear surgical masks And gloves since beginning of March..,..and fine operating that way safely.. It not ideal it’s not exactly like the mil AR5 respirator etc but better than nothing.

Slightly digressing With PPE, on BBC Look East Tuesday night, interviews pair of ladies who are carers. Before they go into one of their clients houses, they don one piece green suitmand hood, and full face respirator ...(sounds familiar to those fo us who have done NBC training the old days). when they leave the premises they’re go through decontam drills ( am sure it would frighten the hell out of a lot of Some old folk dressed like that). One of the ladies said it was difficult to communicate through the respirator and am sure it be even worse for those who are hard of hearing.


Some good news though , BP wants to supply free fuel to UK HeMS ops

https://www.heliopsmag.com/air-bp-to...land-and-wales

and also Cornwall new AW169 commenced ops as of yesterday .

https://cornwallairambulancetrust.or...first-mission/

Best of luck all and hope to hell the crisis levels out and begins to go away with all the social isolation, and our HeMs charities get backing from HMG at this time

Cheers

DRF Luftrettung PPE
 

From my other neck of the wooS: in 🇩🇪🇦🇹 Could this work ?? And it would not hamper flight safety especially those who fly H145.

Cheerz


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