An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir July/August 2015 www.dfmagazine.ie 14 | REPORT & PhOTOS by SGT KARL ByRNE W e all have that feeling of wanting to make a difference in life, always wanting bigger and better things for ourselves. but there are those out there that succeed in making a difference to other people's lives and sometimes that difference is life saving, life changing and sometimes even heroic. The Emergency Aeromedical Service (EAS) are those I am speaking of. It's a very rare day that the men and women of the EAS crew don't have some kind of positive effect on someone's life, shortening the time spent in transit from the scene of an ac- cident to the nearest, or best, hospital for the patient. The team itself is made up of six members; two pilots, a crew- man emergency medical technician (EMT), an advanced para- medic (AP) from the National Ambulance Service (NAS), and two maintenance technicians. The EAS and its AW139 are for the most time located in a very central location of Custume Bks, Athlone. The AW139 is a medium- lift, twin-engine heli that can normally carry up to 14 passengers but the ambulance-adapted version's capacity is four passengers plus a patient lying on the treatment table in the middle of the seated area. Of course the patients don't just appear on the treatment table; the EAS crew are requested by the National Aeromedical Co-ordination Centre (NACC), who are responding to a hospital or ambulance service request for assistance. The average day for the crew can sometimes seem very 'hurry up and wait' as they rush around getting their preparatory tasks done before waiting expectantly for the call to action. The day starts with the removal of the heli from the hanger by the aircraft techs for the P1 (pilot) to start, run, and complete the aircraft's ground checks. The heli is then connected to a ground power unit (GPU) to save the batteries for a flight. Then its onto the morning brief, normally carried out in the operations room where the P1 and the P2 (co-pilot) have access to the onscreen weather reports and webcams of coastal areas. (The pilots believe the use of the coastal CCTV is a fantastic way of seeing what the weather is actually like, rather than just a radar view onscreen.) The brief is very precise in its execution and includes info on the weather state, aircraft state, airports and aeromedical informa- tion. Also discussed is the weight and balance of the craft, fuel state, serviceability and upcoming maintenance. After the P1's brief the crew is given the opportunity to add any info they may have that may have any effect on the day's possible lifts. After each crew member has had their input the wait is on. The crew say that the mornings can often seem very long, as it seems most lifts take place in the afternoons. When a call does come in from the NACC, it comes in via the AP's work phone. He, or she, is given the details of the patient and the location of the lift. They immediately inform the pilots of the location of the possible job while staying in communication with the NACC. As the pilot's decision to make the lift or not must be based solely on the weather conditions or aircraft condition, the AP holds back the information about the patient in order not to influence the pilot's decision. Once the P1 makes the call to fly, the AP lets the NACC know that they are taking the job. The NACC then gives the AP the latitude and longitude to the location of the patient or a predetermined landing zone and any other info on the patient that may be of importance. Benhaffaf twins visit the air corps The Benhaffaf twins Hassan and Hussein along with mum Angie and sister Iman, returned to meet the crew that flew them to and from their separation surgery 5 years ago. The Air Corps completes over 400 aeromedical missions each year and usually only meets patients and families in very difficult circumstances. This was a far more joyous affair and as you can see Hassan and Hussein are two bundles of energy and joy, providing an inspiration to us all in their role as "Ambassadors of Happiness". Photo by: Armn Jamie Barrett, 105 Sqn

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