| Public Service Aviation |
United Kingdom
Medical Aviation
Unit History
County Air Ambulance
Role: Air Ambulance
(West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust).
County Air Ambulance covers Herefordshire & Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Shropshire, Staffordshire and the West Midlands. Commenced operations in May 1991 with a single helicopter based at Halfpenny Green Airport. In October 1991 the helicopter relocated to RAF Cosford. In March 1993 the service was renamed County Air Ambulance to recognise the variety of counties covered across the region.
In May 1997 a second helicopter was introduced, based at Strensham Motorway Services Area. In November 1999 a third helicopter was introduced at Nottingham East Midlands Airport, operating five days a week. May 2001 saw the introduction of an EC.135 'new generation' helicopter - the first in England as an air ambulance. In April 2005 the Strensham helicopter was replaced by a new EC.135.
Following the merger of Staffordshire Ambulance service and West Midlands Ambulance Service, the basing of the helicopters was revised, with the East Midlands machine moving to Tatenhill in Stafforshire. The East Midlands region was taken over by the neighbouring Derbyshire Air Ambulance. All three helicopters are operated by Bond Air Services Ltd.
| Base | Duration |
|---|---|
| Halfpenny Green Airport | May 1991 - Oct 1991 |
| RAF Cosford, Shropshire | Oct 1991 - Present |
| Defford Airfield, Croft Farm, Worcs. | 19?? - May 1997 |
| Strensham M5 J8 North-bound Services, Worcestershire | May 1997 - Present |
| East Midlands Airport | Nov 1999 - Apr 2008 |
| Tatenhill Airfield, Staffordshire | Apr 2008 - Present |
| Type | Qty | Service | Example Serials |
|---|---|---|---|
| MBB Bo 105DBS-4 | 1 | May 1991 - 2002 | G-WMAA, Halfpenny Green/Cosford, c/s 'Air 5'/'Helimed 3', East Midlands 2001-02 |
| MBB Bo 105DBS-4 | 1 | May 1997 - 2006 | G-BTHV, Strensham, East Midlands 2003+, c/s 'Helimed 6' |
| MBB Bo 105DBS-4 | 1 | Nov 1999 - Apr 2005 | G-????, East Midlands til 2001, Strensham 2003+ |
| Eurocopter EC.135T2 | 1 | 2001 - Present | G-WMAS, RAF Cosford, c/s 'Helimed 3' |
| Eurocopter EC.135T2 | 1 | Apr 2005 - Present | G-HWAA**, Strensham, c/s 'Helimed 9' |
| Eurocopter EC.135T2 | 1 | 2006 - Present | G-EMAA, East Mids/Tatenhill, c/s 'Helimed 6' |
** Named: Spirit of Capt. "Gaz" Bennett
 |
| G-BTHV (photo, Iain Kitchen) |
|---|
 |
| G-WMAA (photo, Matt Bacon via Chris Jones) |
References:
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| First Created: 27 July 2007 - Last Revised: 6 September 2008 | ||||
| Copyright © 2007 John Hayles. e-mail: john@aeroflight.co.uk | ||||