Hello
Tim Bunting, Chief Executive
Our #HELi2 appeal is now well and truly underway and took off with an incredibly strong start. I’m delighted to reveal that our 2023 Christmas campaign, the magical animation called Jess’ Journey, raised an impressive £152,000 towards the purchase of your second lifesaving helicopter. This amount was then doubled, thanks to some generous match funders, and accumulated to a phenomenal total of £302,000 – so we’re already 10% of the way there! Thank you to every single person who donated, what a way to launch our #HELi2 appeal. This 10% target milestone comes alongside a 10% rise in mission numbers over the last year. Your crew were tasked to help a record 1,160 people who needed our critical care, showing that the need to bring a second AW169 helicopter to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly is now greater than ever.
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We still have a long way to go to raise the £2.85million needed, and there is a whole host of ways that you can join the mission to help us get there. From events and challenges, to helping to fund our flights and support from businesses, I hope you’ll find something inside this edition that inspires you to get involved. I’m also very excited to announce #HELi2 heroes, where you can fly with us on every mission by having your name, or the name of a loved one, on your new helicopter. You can find out more about that on this page.
2024 is going to be an incredibly exciting year for your charity, as we look to land the second aircraft, but we can’t do that without people like you – our incredible supporters. It’s only working together, that we can provide advanced care, fly more missions and save even more lives.
Thank you.
2023 MISSION stats
Total missions in 2023
Ways you can help secure your second helicopter
- Organise your own event
Playing the lottery not only gives you the chance to win one of 13 weekly cash prizes including our £1,000 jackpot, but a monthly ticket that carries forward into our annual super draw with a top prize of £2,500. It’s a fantastic way of supporting Cornwall Air Ambulance from just £1 per week.
- Take on a challenge
Whether it’s dusting off your hiking boots for a trek, oiling up the brakes of your bike and hitting the road on a cycle or pounding the running trail, we have a range of fantastic adventure challenges. We have a great mix of UK based or overseas challenges which you can take on individually or as part of a team!
- Schools for #HELi2
Your school can join the mission to help us save even more lives. Why not hold a non-uniform day by getting dressed up or wearing something red, and ask staff and students to make a small donation, or create your own piece of helicopter art? Submit one entry per class by summer half term for the chance to win a trip to our airbase or a visit from our team. You could even hold a competition within your school.
- Fund a mission in 2024
Help to fund a lifesaving mission by raising £5,000, which is the average cost of a mission by air. When you achieve your target, you will receive a special plaque and certificate and will be featured on our website as our way of saying thank you!
- Stepping out to save more lives
Do you work for a local business who might be able to support us in our #HELi2 appeal year? Why not encourage your company to step out with us on every helicopter mission by sponsoring a step that leads the crew from the Operations Wing to the helipad. Sponsorship of a step is £1,000 each year and gives businesses their branding on this pivotal route to saving lives. You’ll also get a wide range of PR opportunities and resources.
We support Cornwall Air Ambulance because they are number one in our eyes. It’s a service that gives you peace of mind, as you hope that you never need to use it, but we are very proud to help ensure that it is there for those who do.
Brian, Dobwalls Beer Festival, who have raised over £24,000 since 2012
BECOME A
HELI2 HERO
Do something amazing! Fly with us on every #HELi2 lifesaving mission with your name on the base of your brand new AW169 helicopter.
For a gift of £100, you can become a #HELi2 hero. Your name, the name of a loved one, or your community group can play a significant part in bringing a second aircraft to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Whenever you look up and see your crew flying overhead, you can be proud knowing that you are flying with them. Every name added will help to save many more lives for years to come.
With your support, we’re one step closer to securing a second AW169 helicopter. We are incredibly excited to embark on this journey together with you, flying hundreds more missions helping many more patients. Spaces are limited and will be registered on a first come first serve basis.
For a gift of £100, become a #HELi2 hero
What you will receive:
- Your name featured on the base of your second AW169 helicopter
- A personalised certificate for you to proudly display
- A #HELi2 pin badge
Them not being here for us it’s just not worth thinking about. It’s something we can’t ever afford to lose.
18-year-old Aimee McGall was on her way home from work when she was involved in a crash on the A30 in north Cornwall, sustaining multiple serious injuries.
Her car hit the central reservation between Bodmin and Launceston, after colliding with another vehicle.
Cornwall Air Ambulance was tasked to the scene as part of a multi-agency response. It was feared Aimee may have been suffering from internal bleeding. Critical care paramedics Thomas and Lisa administered ketamine so she could be safely extricated from the vehicle for a full assessment of her injuries. Aimee was conveyed to Derriford, on route to hospital the crew monitored her observations and made sure her condition did not deteriorate.
Aimee had suffered a five-centimetre tear to the body’s main artery known as a thoracic aorta dissection, a broken collar bone, three broken ribs, kidney damage, liver damage, and she had shattered her pelvis in four places. She underwent several surgeries and spent two weeks in hospital. She said: “They’re amazing really, if they didn’t come and help me, I would have died.”
2024 EVENTS TO
help save lives
Our Alternative Triathlon is back | Sunday 28 April
Get set and ready for our amazing challenge event! Taking place at Siblyback Lake, Liskeard. The Swim-SUP-Run challenge is suitable for all skill levels from novice to seasoned triathlete.
The event will start with a 750m swim, followed by a 1.5km paddleboard and finishes with a 5km run around the lake. It’s open to individual and team entries, and all entrants must be 16+ years old.
Proudly sponsoring this year’s Alternative Triathlon.
Our Alternative Triathlon is back | Sunday 28 April
Get set and ready for our amazing challenge event! Taking place at Siblyback Lake, Liskeard. The Swim-SUP-Run challenge is suitable for all skill levels from novice to seasoned triathlete.
The event will start with a 750m swim, followed by a 1.5km paddleboard and finishes with a 5km run around the lake. It’s open to individual and team entries, and all entrants must be 16+ years old.
Proudly sponsoring this year’s Helifest.
Check out all of our events and challenges this year on our helpful calendar page.
Meet Trainee Critical Care Paramedic Chris Ward
Chris officially joined the team as a Trainee Specialist Paramedic in Critical Care in January, as one of two newly recruited members of the aircrew.
Having spent the past 20 years as a paramedic and Education Lead within the South Western Ambulance Service, Chris is looking forward to developing his clinical skills and providing an enhanced level of care to patients.
“My training will involve going back to university and studying towards a relevant higher education qualification, and also a TCM course, which will enable me to sit next to the pilot and assist them with navigation and landing safely in the aircraft. I will also be required to undertake a great deal of in-house training with fellow paramedics and doctors, who have already been incredibly supportive towards me”.
Outside of work Chris is a keen surfer and loves exploring the coast of Cornwall and Devon searching for new surf spots, something which his new role on the helicopter has helped with immensely!
What does it take to become part of our clinical crew?
Critical Care Paramedic Martin Bunt explains what the recent recruitment entailed: “We look for Paramedics with a good degree of existing clinical experience and some academic studies showing they are able to work to master’s level, alongside leadership and communicative strengths.
“The process this time received over 80 applications, which was shortlisted down to 20 to go through to the assessment stage. This involved a full day of assessments including swimming and physical competency testing, challenging clinical scenario stations, and a written test. A gruelling assessment day then left us with five candidates who went through to interview, with two performing the best and being offered positions as Trainees.
“Their training will involve further master’s level study, alongside a thorough in-house training programme to enable them to use specialist prehospital emergency medical equipment and enhanced drugs and skills.”
This vital training is one of the many things funded by our amazing supporters – thank you.
UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL
Take a look around your AW169 helicopter
1 Search Light
This light is an 800w xenon bulb that is able to be focused and steered. Providing the equivalent brightness of around 22 car headlights, it is essential when assessing a safe place to land at night. It is so bright it has a 50m safety distance!
2 Emergency flotation devices
Your aircraft often conducts missions to the Isles of Scilly or where over water transits are required. The floatation bags are used in the event of the aircraft needing to conduct an emergency landing on water. They can keep the aircraft afloat up to sea state 6 – 6m waves!
3 Wheels
The wheels are retractable therefore causing less drag making the helicopter more efficient and faster when in flight. The white “Bear Paws” are designed to stop the helicopter sinking into the sand when landing at the beach.
4 Emergency life raft
As we fly to the Isles of Scilly, in the event of the aircraft needing to make an emergency landing on water, the life rafts provide a safe place for the crew, patient and any passengers to vacate to. While the float bags should keep the aircraft upright, they do sometimes roll over so it’s best to get out.
5 Engines
Despite each engine being small enough to easily fit in the bonnet space of a super-mini car, they can produce over 1000 shaft horse power. Designed to the highest specification, they are also super reliable ensuring the safe operation of your aircraft. We have 2 Pratt and Whitney PW210A engines.
6 Rotor blades
The 5 rotor blades help the helicopter to fly at a top speed of 184mph! Although with all the specialist equipment we carry it’s difficult to reach this top speed.Like the rest of your AW169, the main rotor blades are a technological marvel. Designed to take the huge loads in flight yet to be light and super efficient, the shape changes along the length. They are made from advanced materials like carbon, kevlar fibre and titanium.
Win up to £2,500 and help save lives
Win up to £2,500 and help save lives
Playing the lottery not only gives you the chance to win one of 13 weekly cash prizes including our £1,000 jackpot, but a monthly ticket that carries forward into our annual super draw with a top prize of £2,500. It’s a fantastic way of supporting Cornwall Air Ambulance from just £1 per week.
Join thousands of people already winning big every week.
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Meet John Griffin
He is swimming ONE MILLION METRES to raise money for the HELi2 appeal
The 70-year-old is swimming 4,000 metres a day (160 lengths), six days a week, for a whole year to reach the target. And he’s aiming to raise £1million for your charity!
“I’ve worked with air ambulances in my previous existence when I was working in London, I grew up in the Lake District and the air-sea rescue helicopter used to work with the mountain rescue teams I was associated with. Living in a rural community, if you’re off the beaten track you’re not going to get a road ambulance to you quickly, and the ability to get you to hospital quickly in an air ambulance is so important.”
John is completing his challenge at Newquay Leisure World and Truro Leisure Centre, both run by leisure operator GLL.
Meet Tom Cary
Cornish country singer Tom Cary is raising money for the HELi2 appeal by taking on a ‘Country across the Country’ challenge.
Tom, from Truro, will be cycling from John O’ Groats to the Isles of Scilly and each evening will stop off to perform a gig at a different pub or venue.
Setting off on 24th July, Tom’s challenge will take around 20 days to complete with 20 different gigs along the way, featuring a brand-new song called ‘Cowboy Coming Home’ which is being recorded especially for the challenge.
Tom’s venture will finish with a final show taking place on 12th August on the Isles of Scilly.
“As soon as you mention Cornwall Air Ambulance to somebody, they love it. And Cornwall being the first one in the country is pretty special. It was a no-brainer to support the charity, I’m a big advocate for water and coastal safety, that coupled with the fact I’ve spent a lot of time in the sea, rowing, swimming and surfing, I’ve seen them go out on calls numerous times and it’s incredible to actually watch it. It’s almost like an invisible safety net that people have here in Cornwall, and they know it’s there, it’s that mental security knowing that it’s there.”
Photos: ©Exposure Photo Agency
Meet Steven Webb
Airlifted patient Steven Webb is embarking on a 500-mile coastal challenge in his wheelchair to raise money for the HELi2 appeal.
Steven was left tetraplegic following a swimming pool accident in 1991. Cornwall Air Ambulance airlifted him from Truro City Hospital to a specialist spinal unit in Salisbury for emergency surgery, saving hours of vital journey time which he believes saved his life.
Since his accident, Steven has made every attempt to live life to the full, including serving as Truro’s Mayor from 2021-2023.
Now Steven is aiming to create the first inclusive route all around the Cornish coastline, ‘The Cornwall 500’, to enhance accessibility.
The challenge will take around 20 days, and he plans to cover around 25-30 miles of the Cornish coast each day.
And as a dedicated supporter of your charity, he is hoping to raise £20,000 along the way for the HELi2 appeal, which works out as £1,000 each day of the challenge!
Steven will set off from the Alverton Hotel in Truro on 1st September 2024, marking 33 years since his life-changing incident.
Voices of Cornwall
Voices of Cornwall are raising money for Cornwall Air Ambulance’s second aircraft through sales of their latest album en-sol!
Cornwall is recognised the world over as a land of song. From chapel hymns and male voice choirs to balladeers and brass bands, singing and playing music is strongly rooted in the Cornish psyche. This tradition of creative energy, stretching back into the mists of time, continues today, embracing every genre. Drawing their inspiration from a deep sense of place, the artists featured on Voices of Cornwall III provide a rich, original and eclectic taste of all that’s happening in the world of Cornish acoustic and electric rock, folk, punk, funk, soul, indie, dance, pop, blues and more. Go on, do your ears a favour!