An Cosantóir

24 AIR CORPS IN AID OF THE HSE DURING THE PANDEMIC Baldonell Aerodrome, in operation since 1917, was a witness to the Air Corps history, from its foundation to today's operations. Tonight, amid global pandemic, Air Corps is providing much needed support to the Health Service Executive, not only with Helicopter Emergency Services provided by the Athlone based Air Corps 112 or Patient Transport Services, but also with the COVID-19 PCR test cargo flights, which are carried out from Ireland to Germany. The PCR missions are carried out on board of the Casa CN235-100 MPA, which is in service with the Corps since 1994. The main role of this aircraft are maritime patrols, however with its multirole designation, it can also complete tasks of a typical military transport unit. It can also provide a full Search and Rescue top cover, and work as a parachuting platform. Multiple test samples were carried out using the latest addition to the fleet, the Pilatus PC-12/47E. This state-of-the-art turboprop can carry a wide array of tasks, from logistics, medical transport, reconnaissance, and surveillance. Both aircraft carried 500,000 COVID test samples since the outburst of the pandemic in 2019. They can operate in all weather conditions and at any time; however, most of these flights are carried out during the night. Each mission usually consists of a crew of three as a minimum crew compliment: two pilots and a Load Master. Load Master is responsible for supervising the loading, fuelling, and unloading process and ensuring that the aircraft operates within its mass and balance limits. He also provides the flight deck crew with the mass and balance information, which is then required to calculate the performance of the aircraft in flight. While the engineers are preparing the aircraft for flight with the pre-departure checks, pilots are going through their flight briefing package. This is a set of paper and digital documentation, which includes all NOTAMs (Notice to air missions), weather brief (METAR, local and international), detailed routing information and all other sets of supporting documentation, which is required to carry out the mission. Only then, the crew makes its way to the aircraft, which is essentially ready for departure. Everything in aviation follows a very strict set of rules, including the flight deck preparation. While the flight crew checks all the safety equipment in the back of the aircraft, pilots have their own checklists to go through. There is an old saying in aviation business; behind every step of the checklist is human tragedy. At some stage, various omissions of important checks caused air disasters in the history of flight, therefore while one of the pilots is reading out a given point of a checklist, another pilot carries out the check, so that both crew members are constantly cross checking each other. The CRM, or Crew Resource Management is by far, one of the most effective safety tools within the Air Corps and is being taught to the pilots from the very first day of their training. As per the definition set by the Federal Aviation Administration, CRM training focuses on situation awareness, communication skills, teamwork, task allocation and decision-making within a comprehensive framework of standard operating procedures. In simple words, it maintains a sound teamwork as the core of all flight deck and aircraft crew operations. For the No. 3 Operations Wing, this project was, and still is managed by Lieutenant Colonel Phillip Bonner, who until recently was the Commanding Officer of the helicopter unit of the Air Corps. The main idea behind it, was to involve every person working with the Air Corps responsible for the safety and performance of each task carried out within its capacities, from flight attendants, engineers, flight crews or janitor staff. There are several CRM Instructors within the IAC, who on regular basis oversee, train, and supervise the implementation of it. This covers all aspects of the mission from planning, preparation, execution, and post briefing. A very good example of CRM in use, is a common phrase for the Air Corps staff: "Three to go – one to say no". If one of the four crew members feels that the mission might not be safe either to weather factors or down to his personal wellbeing, he has a full right to say no to it. The participation of the helicopter wing in supporting operations for the HSE is nothing less than critical . No 3 Operations Wing is capable of carrying out all types of missions in all weather conditions, from Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS), Emergency Medical Services (EMS), patient transport, Search and Rescue (SAR) and top cover for emergency services on the ground. All AIR CORPS IN AID OF THE HSE DURING THE PANDEMIC Article and Photos By Pte (AR) Lukasz Gancarz PC-12 EC135

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