New Zealand Flying Doctor Service launches new plane on 25th anniversary
The New Zealand Flying Doctor Service has come a long way since first taking to the skies 25 years ago, and today in Christchurch it officially unveiled a new specialist medical aircraft to add much-needed critical care capacity.
One of the first high profile missions was to transfer medical teams from Christchurch to Greymouth to assist staff at Greymouth Hospital following the Cave Creek disaster on 27 April 1995, using a Cessna 421 Golden Eagle. That mission will be remembered at a gathering to launch the new plane today (29 October 2020) — six months after the 25th anniversary due to COVID restrictions.
The new Beechcraft Super King Air 200C is equipped with two patient stretchers plus seating for up to four medical crew and patient support people, equipment and two pilots. The aircraft is a perfect fit as its performance and versatility allows us to operate efficiently around the country, including the Chatham Islands. It operates at 480km per hour and has a 1500 nautical mile range, servicing the entire South Island and the remote Chatham Islands. The journey from Invercargill to Christchurch takes just over one hour, rather than eight hours by road ambulance.
New Zealand Flying Doctor Trust Chair, Dr David Bowie says the state-of-the-art plane will boost delivery of critical health care services across New Zealand.
“The new plane is needed as numbers of missions have significantly increased in recent years. We have flown over 1200 missions in the past year, up 17 per cent. Chances are, there is at least one aircraft airborne right now transferring a seriously ill patient for specialist care.
“This is a life-saving service, and the plane is set up as a flying intensive care unit. When time is of the essence and distance is an issue, the New Zealand Flying Doctor Service is the only option for many patients,” Dr Bowie says.
Chief Executive of the New Zealand Flying Doctor Trust, Christine Prince says the service works to ensure patients get the right care at the right specialist facility as soon as possible.
“As a charity, the NZ Flying Doctor Trust thanks the community for supporting this service over the years. It can be quite emotional when patients come back to visit us at the base at GCH Aviation. They are all extremely grateful the service exists.”
GCH Aviation General Manager Simon Duncan, who attended the Cave Creek disaster 25 years ago, says from small beginnings the NZ Flying Doctor service now operates 24/7 delivering critical care patients to the appropriate medical facilities to improve patient outcomes.
“The NZ Flying Doctor aircraft and air rescue helicopters complement each other, with helicopters being the primary response in emergency situations from the scene to hospital, and fixed wing aircraft taking over when a different type of care or transfer is required, most often for interhospital transport of patients requiring acute treatment offered at a larger tertiary centre.” Mr. Duncan says.
The head of clinical retrieval at Canterbury District Health Board, Dr Neil Davidson says with the service’s highly trained medical, nursing staff and specialist equipment, patients can be transferred seamlessly to a hospital for advanced medical treatment.
These aircraft can maintain a sea level cabin pressure which is important for critically ill patients. Most of all these patients need to have specialised intensive care through the flight from one hospital to another, until treatment is available at the destination,” Dr Davidson says.
