Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance (DSAA) will launch its 2ndHeli Appeal on Monday 8th September, calling on public support to raise the final £1 million needed to purchase and fit out a second air ambulance helicopter for the region.
The charity, which has served Dorset and Somerset for 25 years, is taking this ambitious step to meet rising demand. If successful, the appeal will allow the air ambulance crew to reach more patients, strengthen operational resilience and ultimately save more lives.
As the busiest air ambulance in the South West, DSAA responds to almost 3,000 missions every year. Its current AW169 helicopter – affectionately named Peggy – is flown more intensively than almost any other air ambulance in the UK. With patient need increasing and inevitable downtime for essential maintenance, one aircraft is no longer enough.
2ndHeli Appeal logo
A second helicopter will:
- Strengthen resilience and operational availability
- Maintain air operations when one aircraft is offline
- Feature a state-of-the-art medical interior, enabling advanced care day and night
- Provide the basis for extended operating hours in future
- Enable hundreds of additional life-saving missions each year
Thanks to careful financial planning and extraordinary generosity from supporters, the charity has already secured the majority of the funds required. The 2ndHeli Appeal represents the final push to bring a second AW169 home.
Charles Hackett, CEO of Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, said:
“We are proud of how far we have come over the years, but we have reached the limit of what is possible with just one aircraft. With daily maintenance requirements, we cannot get more than 19 hours a day of flying, and the demands on ‘Peggy’ mean that faults and issue come around all too soon.
People support our charity, because they believe in our ability to achieve extraordinary outcomes that wouldn’t otherwise happen. This care, this service, this gift to the people of Dorset and Somerset is lifesaving and very special, as every mission is funded by you. Without that wonderful support, our service would not exist.
Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance Helicopter and crew
We now have an incredible opportunity to transform emergency care even further across the region, and hope the public, businesses and local communities will support us on our quest.
With your continued support and others alike, we will bring a second helicopter into service next summer. Together, and only together, we can make this happen.”
Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is a local life-saving charity which receives no direct Government funding and relies entirely on donations and fundraising. Its operational costs exceed £10 million a year, with each mission costing around £3,500.
For more information or to donate visit: www.dsairambulance.org.uk/2ndHeli
or call: 01823 669604.
