The Service - Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue

The South Island of New Zealand is a unique place.
Rugged coastlines and vast rural landscapes to lush
forests and towering alpine peaks; it is an environment
that has few equals. When things go wrong in these
environments we are vulnerable and isolated.

Our rescue helicopters provide a critical lifeline. The Westpac and ROA Mining Rescue Helicopters and crew watch over 600,000 people in our community keeping us safe day and night – from Kaikoura down to Waitaki and from Karamea to Haast.

Christchurch Base

H-145 Westpac Rescue Helicopter – 24/7

BK-117 Westpac Rescue Helicopter – 12/7

Greymouth Base

BK-117 ROA Mining Rescue Helicopter 24/7

Our Helicopters

The Canterbury community is served by Airbus H145 and BK117 rescue helicopters.

MAKE/MODEL	AIRBUS H145
ENGINE	2x turbomeca arriel 1e2 turboshaft
SHAFT HORSEPOWER	850 HP each engine
CREW	1 pilot, 2 paramedics
MAX SPEED	150 knots / 268kph
CRUISE SPEED	120 knots / 238kph
RANGE	651 kilometres
SERVICE	2 HELICOPTERs AND CREW ON CALL
MISSIONS	600+ AVERAGE PER YEAR

WESTPAC RESCUE HELICOPTER BK117

MAKE/MODEL	BK117
ENGINE	Twin Allied Signal, LTS101-850B2
SHAFT HORSEPOWER	850 HP each engine
CREW	1 pilot, 2 paramedics
MAX SPEED	150 knots / 280kph
CRUISE SPEED	120 knots / 222kph
RANGE	540 kilometres
SERVICE	2 HELICOPTERs AND CREW ON CALL
MISSIONS	600+ AVERAGE PER YEAR

The crew respond to around 1000 missions each year

The Golden Hour

In trauma cases such as accidents and medical emergencies, getting emergency care treatment to a patient at the scene within 60 minutes of an accident or incident increases the patients chance of making a full recovery by over 80%. This is known as the Golden Hour and can mean the difference between life and death.

The two main benefits of helicopter rescue are…

Speed + Access

If a patient can have access to the specialist medical care they need within one hour of the onset of illness or injury their chances of making a full recovery increase by…

up to 80%

News and stories from our staff, patients, families and investors that make the difference…

Brent on the hillside with Scott and Matt

Our Stories

Find out how your donations continue to support  Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue.

Ways to donate

Discover the ways you can help make a difference.

Discover more

Principal Sponsor

About the Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Service

The South Island of New Zealand is a unique place. Rugged coastlines and vast rural landscapes to lush forests and towering alpine peaks; it is an environment that has few equals. When things go wrong in these environments we are vulnerable and isolated.