Air Ambulance Week Takes-off Across the UK

Air Ambulance Week 2022 takes off across the UK from is 5th – 11th September, with air ambulances across the country delivering the vital message that air ambulances act in Critical Moments to make a Lifesaving Difference. to raise awareness of the lifesaving work of air ambulance charities across the UK, conveying key messages that air ambulance crews act in Critical Moments to make a Lifesaving Difference.

Air Ambulance Week is the only week in the year dedicated to raising awareness and
funds for the vital lifesaving work of air ambulance charities and is organised by Air
Ambulances UK, the national charity supporting the lifesaving work of the UK’s air
ambulance charities, enabling them to save even more lives every day.

Air ambulance crews bring the Emergency Department to patients who have suffered
a life threatening or life changing trauma or medical emergency; providing specialist
critical care to save lives.

On average an air ambulance can reach someone in urgent need within 15 minutes.
Anyone, anywhere in the UK can become a patient at any time. Air ambulance charities
are collectively dispatched to over 100 lifesaving missions each day across the UK;
each mission is funded almost entirely by the generosity of local communities.

The average mission cost is £3,000; however, the cost varies depending on geography,
patient need, clinical and operational models of the local air ambulance charity.

To show your support for Air Ambulance Week, you can make a one-off donation to Air
Ambulances UK by visiting https://www.airambulancesuk.org/air-ambulance-week-
2022/. Alternatively, you can get in direct contact with your local air ambulance
charity.

Your support, however large or small, will make a lifesaving difference.

Air Ambulance Week Fact Finder

- There are 21 individual air ambulance charities in the UK, which provide pre-hospital
care support to the NHS and form an important part of the UK’s frontline emergency
services

- There are 37 air ambulance helicopters operated across the 21 individual air
ambulance charities

- Air ambulance charities collectively are dispatched to over 100 lifesaving missions
every day – that’s over 30,000 a year

- The average cost of an air ambulance mission is around £3000 and each one is funded
almost entirely by donations. The average mission cost is £3,000. The cost varies
depending on geography, patient need, clinical and operational models of the local air
ambulance charity

- Around 68% of all air ambulance charity lifesaving missions are to people who are
critically injured in incidents such as road traffic collisions, falls, workplace incidents
and sporting or leisure accidents

- About 32% of missions are to people with a sudden medical emergency

- Among the most frequent type of lifesaving missions are to people seriously injured in
road traffic collisions and those experiencing a sudden cardiac-related medical
emergency