Norwegian fixed wing EMS

In 2018, Babcock was awarded the air ambulance support contract by the Norwegian Government with operations starting summer 2019. The contract has been awarded for an initial six years with an option to extend by a further five years. The contract is worth around £500 million across the 11 years.

Through this contract, Babcock will operate 11 specialist fixed-wing aircraft including 10 King Air 250 aircraft and a Citation Latitude jet providing thousands of patients with access to specialist healthcare centres across Norway.

The aircraft have been designed to operate in Norway’s harsh arctic environment. The King Air 250 fleet will feature CAT II capability and will each be fitted out with custom-designed medical interiors, featuring hospital-standard equipment. The aircraft will also allow operations in reduced visibility and have steep approach landing capability. The Citation Latitude aircraft will allow the Norwegian EMS teams to transport patients further and faster than ever before – it will be the first of its kind to be used in a medical configuration for use in EMS operations.

Marius Hansen, Managing Director, Babcock SAA, said: “By introducing a jet, we can provide direct flights for the first time, dramatically reducing the time it takes to move a patient to a specialist care unit – no matter where in the country they are.”

Operating from seven bases, the new contract will form a key part of Norway’s overall healthcare infrastructure, where hospitals are increasingly developing specialist skills and capabilities for particular areas of treatment.