Scotland’s first charity-funded rapid response air ambulance helicopter is to be based at Perth.
Operating out of Perth Airport and serving all of Courier Country and beyond, the “people’s air ambulance” must capture the imagination of the public if it is to survive and thrive.
Around £1.5 million will need to be raised each year to keep Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA) in the skies.
SCAA chairman, Perth businessman John Bullough, said: “We will be looking to corporations, trusts, businesses, communities and the public in general in the weeks, months and years to come to keep this additional air resource flying.
“SCAA needs everyone’s support to launch the country’s first charity-funded air ambulance and provide additional aid where it’s needed most.”
The SCAA proposal will see an additional helicopter air ambulance supplementing the work of the Scottish Ambulance Service in delivering an extensive frontline emergency response service.
The venture has won Government backing, with Health Secretary Alex Neil and Perthshire North MSP John Swinney embracing the proposal.
Flying from Perth, the light, twin-engine, multi-purpose utility helicopter will serve communities the length and breadth of Scotland.
Carrying highly skilled Scottish Ambulance Service paramedic crews, the air ambulance should save vital time in responding to emergencies, possibly meaning the difference between life and death for casualties.
Four years in the planning, the new service is modelled on similar ventures in England and Wales.For full details of the proposal and the appeal, see Tuesday’s Courier