Air ambulances are functional all over the world and this is a short list of a few selected air ambulances around the world. We briefly also explore how they function.
- The Australian Flying Doctors Air Ambulance Service
The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia is one of the largest and most comprehensive aeromedical organisations in the world. One third of Australia’s population lives in rural and remote Australia making a healthcare and emergency service vital for those that live, work and travel in the outback. It has operated for almost 100 years.
Their fleet of 69 aircraft flew 26,412,555 kilometres just last year. That’s the equivalent of 34 trips to the moon and back, or more than 600 flights around the Earth.
Years of operation: 90 years
Aircraft: As of June 2016 the RFDS fleet numbers 69 aircraft in total including:
17 Beechcraft B200 King Air
13 Beechcraft B200C King Air
2 Beechcraft B200SE Super King Air
2 Beechcraft B300C King Air
2 Cessna 208B Grand Caravan
1 Hawker 800XP
32 Pilatus PC-12
Key Statistics
According to the RFDS National Office 2015/16 Annual Report the service owns 67 aircraft, and operates 23 bases with 1,225 employees.
Each day, on average, the service:
- Travels 73,554 kilometres by air
- Performs 211 landings
- Has 800 patient contacts (includes patients at clinics, patient transports and telehealth)
- Transports 177 patients per day, over 5000 patients per month and over 60,000 per year
Funding: Government/Corporate/Donations
Source: Wikipedia, RFDS website.
- Swiss Air Ambulance (REGA)
REGA’s objective is to be able to reach any location in Switzerland – except in the canton of Valais – within 15 minutes’ flying time. To achieve this aim, there are 12 Rega helicopter bases and one partner base spread across the country.
Years of Operations: 70 years
Funding: Membership scheme/Government (Indirect)
- Air Methods Air Ambulance, America
Air methods is the largest air ambulance provider in America, with over 300 bases of operations serving 48 states and conducting over 100,000 air ambulance missions per year. Air methods flies both within states and between states.
Years in operations: 40 years
Funding: Government/Insurance
- Doctor-Heli , Japan
Doctor-Heli is the largest air ambulance operator in Japan today. There are 42 bases across the country.
Years in operation: 30 years
Funding: Government
According to a research conducted by the HEM-Net, Doctor Helicopters have raised patient survival rate by nearly 30 percent compared to conventional emergency transportation by ground ambulance. Source – https://www.emergency-live.com/news/japanese-prefecture-integrates-physician-staffed-medical-helicopter-into-regional-ems-system/
- Norway’s Air Ambulance
The Norwegian Air Ambulance is the air ambulance service in Norway organised through the government owned limited company Luftambulansetjenesten ANS (Air Ambulance Service). The service provides helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) and fixed-wing air ambulance operations.
Dedicated planes are provided at six airports, and helicopters at 11 hospitals.
Air ambulance services in Norway have been operated by private companies and the military since the 1920s, but the first dedicated service came in 1972
Funding is by the government
References: Wikipedia,
About Us
The Flying Doctors Nigeria is a member of the British Safety Council that specializes in providing medical solutions such as air ambulance and medical evacuation, ground ambulance procurement and leasing, remote medical services such a medical staffing, online company clinic set-up, site clinic management, occupational health, medical evacuation insurance and other health consultancy services for the oil & gas industry as well as other corporate, military and non-governmental organizations.
For information about how we can support your organization please:
Visit our website: www.flyingdoctorsnigeria.com or email us at: sales@flyingdoctorsnigeria.com, management@flyingdoctorsnigeria.com, doctors@flyingdoctorsnigeria.com
Call us on: 0700 FLYINGDRS/ 0700 3594 64377
