Mercy Flight Central, operating in N281MC (2022 AW119 MkII), reportedly suffered a loss of engine power on approach to home base at Canandaigua Airport (KIUA) in Canandaigua, New York. First reports indicate the crew, consisting of the pilot, medic and nurse, were not injured. Mercy Flight Central was returning home from Strong Memorial Hospital.
Photo from the 13 WHAM ABC Facebook feed.
Date: July 12, 2024
Release: For Immediate Release
From: National EMS Pilots Association
Subject: NEMSPA EMS Pilot of the Year Award & NEMSPA Lifetime Achievement Award
The National EMS Pilots Association is now accepting nominations for the NEMSPA EMS Pilot of the Year and the NEMSPA Lifetime Achievement Awards. Both awards will be presented at the annual Air Medical Transport Conference (AMTC) in Salt Lake City, UT November 2024.
Nominees should embody the best that the air ambulance industry has to offer in Professionalism, Technical Expertise, Safety, and Leadership to include being involved and having contributed to the air medical and aviation industries.
Due to competition, it is highly recommended that all submitters provide specific details as to why they think their nominee should be chosen. While the quality of the information for the nominee is very important so too is the number of nominations submitted for each individual. So please tell all your friends to submit a nomination in their own words as well.
Online Submission site: www.nemspa.org/awards
Deadline: August 15, 2024
About NEMSPA: Formed in 1984, the National EMS Pilots Association, otherwise known as “NEMSPA” is a professional pilot’s association dedicated to giving a voice to and fighting for all pilots working in the air-medical transport industry. To learn more about NEMSPA go to www.nemspa.org and like us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.
June 14, 2024 | Mercy Flight Central | Canandaigua, NY
Since July 2023, Mercy Flight Central has placed four new AW119 helicopters into service, the last arriving in New York at the end of March 2024.
The four new aircraft are N281MC, N319MC, N651MC and N810MC. All are 2022 AW119MKII models. Also remaining in fleet are N196LL, a 1989 BK117B2; N636MC, a 1990 BK117B2; and N911SM, a 1990 BK117B2. Looking at flightradar logs, N911SM is the only BK117 still getting flight time.
Mercy Flight Central, established in 1992, operates from bases in Canandaigua, Marcellus and Rome.
Photo from the Mercy Flight Central Facebook Feed.
June 14, 2024 | Boston MedFlight | Bedford, Massachusetts
Last month, New England Life Flight Inc (Boston MedFlight) sold N273NE to Metro Aviation. In service with Boston MedFlight for the past 10+ years, the recent upgrades and additions to the BMF fleet left this 2013 MBB-BK 117C2 (sn 9586) available for sale.
Since being acquired by Metro Aviation, N273NE went to the Metro service center just outside Pittsburgh before being assigned to IU LifeLine in Indianapolis for a 2 week assignment. Earlier this week the aircraft departed Indiana and is now sitting at Hampton Roads Executive Airport in Virginia.
First thought is this Virginia assignment would be with Nightengale at Sentera Norfolk as N145NG is in Pennsylvnia for maintenance. But, N955AL arrived in Virginia last week as the replacement.
Photo from the IU Health LifeLine Facebook Feed.
April 4, 2024 | WellFlight 4-90 | Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Air Methods WellFlight 4-90 officially relocated today at 15:00 from Steven’s Fire Company in Lancaster County to the Lebanon County Department of Emergecny Services building.
Please note that despite the relocation, the dispatch phone number remains unchanged and will continue to connect to AirCom.
New Address:
Lebanon County DES
1805 Conrnwall Road
Lebanon, PA 17042
Helipad FAA ID 99PN
Flight Dispatch: (866) 851-9355
A complete map of NE USA bases can be viewed by clicking on the Base Map link at the top of this page.
March 20, 2024 | LVHN MedEvac | Allentown, Pennsylvania
Earlier this week, the LVHN MedEvac 1 primary aircraft returned to service sporting a new registration, The change from N241AM back to the well known N811LV has been anticipated since the summer of 2023 when MedEvac 1 transitioned from an EC130 to the EC135.
This 2007 EC135 P2+ (SN 0573) entered service as MedEvac 1 in May, 2023. Base location is Kutztown, Pennsylvania.
Photo from the LVHN MedEvac Facebook Feed.
February 19, 2024| KAGC Pittsburgh, PA
N911PX, previously in service with Promedica in Ohio, is now sporting a new livery and will be heading to Florida to join Tampa General Hospital AeroMed. Operated by Metro Aviation, N911PX is shown here on February 19th at KAGC in Pittsburgh, PA going through some test flights.
Photo from Matt Skelton.
February 28, 2024 | Air Methods Press Release | Westernville, New York
LifeNet 7-14 announced its official relocation from its sister location in Watertown, NY to Westernville, NY—where life-saving service continues to the Mohawk Valley region and beyond. The LifeNet team partnered with the Town of Western and the Fire Company to break ground on the new location in October 2023. The newly built helicopter pad, hangar, and living quarters for the flight crew are adjacent to the Fire Company.
Without skipping a beat in service, the relocation to Westernville marks LifeNet 7-14’s permanent base location.
“Final operational preparations and move to our new home went very well,” said LifeNet of New York Account Executive Colleen Gleeson. “We are excited to be home, and we look forward to continuing to serve the region and be a critical resource to the community.
”This community resource—operating 24/7/365—has a crew consisting of a pilot, flight paramedic, and flight nurse. Not only has LifeNet 7-14 been serving the area for a year, but most of the crew is from Central New York and the Midstate region, establishing long-standing relationships and partnerships. Additionally, the seasoned crew collectively has more than 100 years of aviation and medical experience among them.
“For many of the crew members, this is home. We grew up here. We know the area, the culture, and the people.” said David Sandbrook, a native and LifeNet 7-14 flight paramedic/clinical base lead. “We come to work every day honored to serve the Mohawk Valley region because we want to ensure that everyone can trust that in an emergency, they’ll have access to the highest level of critical care.”
The entire LifeNet of York program has been serving upstate New York for more than 30 years and has transported over 65,000 patients. The program’s air medical services are often referred to as flying ERs and intensive care units (ICUs) as each clinical crew carries the critical resources needed to provide ICU-level care while in flight, including the ability to carry and administer blood products in flight. The clinical team is extensively trained through Air Methods Ascend, an in-person and online training program that allows clinicians to perform at the top of their licensure, providing the highest level of prehospital care, and enabling clinicians to work in lockstep across the region no matter the community they are serving. Ascend is also available to medical personnel across the nation.
All LifeNet of New York programs offers ‘Air Medical Utilization and Landing Zone Safety Courses’ for local first response agencies. In addition, the crew enjoys the opportunity to attend local events to bring the aircraft when available for community members to see services upfront. Anyone can request these offerings, visit the LifeNet of New York website to submit a request.
In the coming months, LifeNet 7-14 will be hosting a ceremonious event for the community, marking the opening of the new location. In the meantime, the dedicated critical-care crew stands ready to serve when called upon by contacting emergency dispatch at 1-800-435-3822.
Photo from LifeNet 7-14 Facebook Feed.
February 27, 2024 | Airbus Press Release | Anaheim, California
HealthNet Aeromedical Services, headquartered in Charleston, West Virginia, will soon expand its all-Airbus fleet with the addition of four H135 helicopters. As one of the largest hospital-based air medical programmes in the country, the helicopters will be used to serve adult, pediatric and neonatal patients across the state of West Virginia.
“HealthNet has been a valued partner of Airbus Helicopters, Inc. since 1986, and we look forward to supporting their mission as they elevate their fleet with the addition of four new H135s,” said Bart Reijnen, President of Airbus Helicopters, Inc. and Head of the North America region. “These helicopters will be the first in their fleet equipped with Helionix avionics, allowing for increased mission flexibility and safety that benefits their employees and the communities they serve.”
Airbus’ light, twin-engine H135 incorporates the most advanced technologies available, including Airbus Helicopters’ Helionix avionics suite, which, in addition to the 4-axis autopilot, offers an innovative cockpit layout to enhance situational awareness. Designed with three large electronic displays, the H135’s cockpit is night vision goggle compatible and includes a First Limit Indicator, which highlights the appropriate engine instrument data for the pilot in one indicator.
“HealthNet Aeromedical Services and our three owner health systems are proud to continue to partner with Airbus to enhance our helicopter fleet,” said Clinton Burley, President and CEO. “The purchase of these aircraft exemplifies our programme’s commitment to advancing the delivery of safe and high-quality transport medicine to those we serve.”
HealthNet has exclusively operated Airbus helicopters since the programme’s inception nearly four decades ago, caring for more than 100,000 patients during that time. Their current fleet of eleven aircraft is comprised of H130, H135 and EC145 helicopters.
The H135 is the helicopter of reference for helicopter emergency medical service operators worldwide. It combines a wide, unobstructed cabin with excellent performance, range and payload capacity, as well as low sound levels. The oversized sliding side doors and rear clamshell doors enable fast loading/unloading of patients, with additional safety during ground operations provided by Airbus’ signature shrouded Fenestron tail rotor. The H135 is the global market leader for helicopter emergency medical services with more than 700 helicopters all around the world being used for life-saving missions.
To date, more than 1,500 helicopters of the H135 family have been delivered worldwide, all mission segments included, clocking in more than 7 million flight hours.
Photo from HealthNet Facebook Feed.
February 24, 2024 | Bedford, Massachusetts
On February 24, 2024 – N143NE arrived in Bedford from Grand Prairie, Texas after undergoing a 5 blade upgrade. N143NE left Bedford back in August 2023 for the Airbus facility, taking almost 6 months to complete the upgrade. On the flight back to Bedford, the aircraft spent the night in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While at KAGC (Allegheny County Airport), our friend Matt Skelton was able to capture this awesome photo.