Essex and Hertfordshire Air Ambulance Trust is our supported charity for 2025/2026 and Kate aranged a visit to one of their Visitor Centres so we could discover more about the charity.
Arriving at the EHAAT visitor centre on North Weald Airfield was an “interesting experience” as it involved driving around the perimeter of the working airfield, hazard lights on and keeping a look out for moving aircraft.
Once inside we were greeted by volunteers Mark and Geraldine and kitted out with hi-viz jackets before moving into the education room where Mark explained a bit about the history of EHAAT.
We then took advantage of the fact that one of EHAAT’s two helicopters was on the ground, to go outside and learn a little about the helicopters themselves. The helicopters are the largest in use as air ambulances in the country and the newest one cost around £8 million with a further £2 million for fitting the specialist equipment. They do, however, have a long life span and we were assured that the second-hand market is buoyant!
Returning inside (after a break for coffee and chocolate biscuits) we discovered how a decision to deploy the air ambulance is taken and some of the more practical details about the whole operation.
Each critical care team consists of a pilot and co-pilot, a pre-hospital care doctor and a critical care paramedic. They can be rushed to the scene with life-saving support equipment to deliver advanced clinical care, usually only available in the hospital emergency department.
Although they do have permission to fly in the dark, and the pilots are qualified to do so, it is usually only in the winter months that this happens, the helicopters are “stood down” at around 8pm with the pilots working 12-hour shifts.
The medial staff also work in 12-hour shifts but there is a team on call 24/7. If it is not possible to launch the helicopter (night time or poor weather) , then a rapid response vehicle can be despatched. These carry very similar supplies to the helicopter and are driven by the on-call paramedic who is qualified to use the “blues and twos”.
Like all air ambulance trusts across the country, EHAAT is a charity and receives no financial support from the Government. Indeed, should the medics need to use any of the blood products that they carry (with fresh supplies being delivered daily by a team of motorcycle volunteers) then the NHS will charge EHAAT around £350 per unit! (Unused supplies are returned to the local hospital on a daily basis as well.)
It costs over £1 million per month to run the service and there is a team of over 450 volunteers who run the tours, help with admin and fundraise in various ways across the two counties. EHAAT’s strap line “we can’t fly without you” is so true…….
With impeccable timing, just as our visit came to an end, the helicopter was called out on a mission, so we were able to watch it take off – naturally we had mixed feelings about this as the launch necessarily meant that someone, somewhere, was in serious trouble.
Many of us then enjoyed a light lunch at the nearby café, the outdoor seating being perfect for the weather and offering a great view of the comings and goings on the airfield.
EHAAT.org
