PRESS RELEASE

th Issued: 9 June 2017

LIGHTING UP AIR AMBULANCE’S AIRFIELD THANKS TO THE HELP APPEAL

WILTSHIRE Air Ambulance has secured funding and taken delivery of a new airfield lighting system that will assist its helicopter whilst taking off and landing safely at its airbase in at night.

The purchase of the new lighting, a HEMS-Star portable helipad lighting system, has been funded by a donation of £6,950 from the HELP Appeal. The HELP Appeal is the only charity in the UK that funds the development of helipads at Major Trauma Centres, key A&E hospitals and air ambulance bases across the country.

This donation follows the £250,000 funding that the HELP Appeal has already pledged for Wiltshire Air Ambulance’s helipad and associated costs at its new airbase at Outmarsh Farm, , which is currently under construction.

The new LED lighting units are placed on the ground to mark the aiming point and wind direction for helicopter departures and arrivals from its base at Police Headquarters, Devizes. The new lighting has been supplied by FEC Heliports Worldwide Limited, of Chesham, Buckinghamshire.

Kevin Reed, Head of Operations at Wiltshire Air Ambulance, said: “The donation from the HELP Appeal for our new airfield lighting is extremely welcome. The safety of our aircraft is imperative and this new portable lighting will aid our pilots and paramedics when tasking to an incident and when arriving back at base in Devizes in the hours of darkness. We fly up to 19 hours a day, until 3am, so airfield lighting is essential to our operation.

“The portable lighting will be taken to our new airbase at Semington as part of the lighting infrastructure when we move there next year. We are so grateful to the HELP Appeal for enabling us to purchase the new airfield lighting and for the £250,000 it is donating for the helipad and associated costs at our new airbase.”

Robert Bertram, Chief Executive of the HELP Appeal, said: "We are delighted to have been able to provide further funding for the Wiltshire Air Ambulance, and are pleased our donation will ensure the safe takeoff and landing of the Air Ambulance at their current airbase.

"The Wiltshire Air Ambulance has been providing an outstanding service for many years, and we are delighted to be able to provide this additional funding of £6,950, on top of our £250,000 grant, which will allow the airbase to continue to run at night – saving more lives than ever before. Time is life, and just a few minutes saved for air ambulances to reach an incident can make all the difference to the survival and recovery of a patient in critical care." ----ENDS-----

Caption: Kevin Reed, Head of Operations at Wiltshire Air Ambulance (left), and Mike Doran, Sales Consultant of FEC Heliports Worldwide Ltd, with the new portable helipad lighting system funded by a donation by the HELP Appeal.

For more press information/to arrange interview opportunities please contact Jill Crooks, Media Coordinator, on 01380 739453/07557 952755 email [email protected]

For more information on the HELP Appeal, contact [email protected]

Notes to editors:

• Wiltshire Air Ambulance is available up to 19 hours a day, 365 days a year.

• Wiltshire Air Ambulance has been saving lives for 27 years. The charity shared a helicopter with for 24 years until it became a stand-alone air ambulance and began operating its own helicopter, a Bell 429, on 9th January 2015.

• Wiltshire Air Ambulance attends, on average, three incidents a day. In 2016 one in four incidents were road traffic collisions and almost one in ten incidents involved children.

• Wiltshire Air Ambulance is a charity and relies almost entirely on public donations to keep flying. It costs £3.25 million a year to keep the air ambulance flying, that’s £8,904 per day.

• Wiltshire Air Ambulance has launched a capital appeal for its new airbase at Outmarsh Farm, Semington, near . The new airbase will be custom-built for its helicopter, aircrew and charity team. For more information about how you can help with the capital appeal go to www.wiltshireairbaseappeal.co.uk

About the HELP Appeal

• The HELP Appeal is aiming to significantly increase the number of onsite hospital helipads through its HELP Appeal grant scheme which offers non-repayable grants to hospitals to help fund new helipads or upgrade existing helipads.

• The HELP Appeal relies solely on charitable donations and does not receive a single penny in government funding or from the National Lottery.

• Donations can be made by calling the donation helpline on 0800 389 8999, visiting the website www.helpappeal.com or donating by text, just type HPAD22 plus the amount into the message box and send it to 70070. Donations will be charged to your mobile bill.

About FEC Heliports Worldwide Ltd

• FEC Heliports Equipment is a one stop shop offering products for every type of helipad installation, from offshore oil and gas, to onshore hospitals and heliports, plus portable solutions that can be in used in any location.

• HEMS-Star® is a rechargeable battery powered LED helipad lighting system. It is designed for rapid deployment to provide safe and effective marking at designated or ad-hoc helicopter landing areas. HEMS-Star® extends operating hours and is ideal for secondary and community landing sites.