Poland has received it's first Eurocopter EC135, which landed at the Krakow Emergency Services Airport Monday evening.The new, modern, twin engine helicopter is one of 23 machines set to replace the older, Russian-built LPR Mi-2, all of which are to be delivered by the end of 2010.
The Eurocopter is a small machine – effectively a flying ambulance – capable of carrying a crew that will include a pilot, a doctor, an Emergency Medical Services Technician and one patient. Equipment available onboard includes similar equipment to a ground ambulance, including a defibrillator, respirator and transfusion pump.
The new helicopter is faster than the Mi-2s and, within 20 minutes, can take off and land in a new location 90 km away. On one tank of fuel, the EC135 can travel about 500 km.
“The cost of one machine is over 22 million zloty [about 5.5 million euro],” says Robert Galazkowski, director of the Krakow Emergency Services Airport, adding that the value of the entire contract for 23 machines and flight simulators amounts to over 500 million zloty (123 million euro).
Galazkowski added: “The addition of the first Eurocopter to the fleet is a historical moment. The next, after Krakow, will be based in Gdansk [on the Baltic Coast], Plock [in central Poland] or in Warsaw. Currently, 16 pilots are trained and more will be trained as more helicopters are received.”
“Pilots, after finishing training in Germany, must have additional training in Poland. In the first stage, we want to have 78 trained pilots so that there are several available to fly daily on all of the country's bases,” said Galazkowski.
There are 17 total medical helicopter bases in Poland and which, on average, complete between 6,000-6,300 flights per year. The basic mission of such helicopters is to transport patients from accidents or with serious illnesses between hospitals.
(mmj)