Redstar Aviation in Turkey has taken delivery of a Learjet 45, which it will be using for air ambulance missions. The aircraft has been converted to a dual stretcher configuration. Accountable manager Emre Dursun (see front page picture) says that the latest aircraft will offer him more range than the Jetstream 32 that he has been using as the primary aircraft up to this point: “The Jetstream 32 is a great aircraft, but with the Learjet we will be able to cover a larger territory, and hopefully as we increase the number of crew we will be able to conduct global operations.

“It is a fully dedicated air ambulance. We do not do vip at all, but position ourselves as an air ambulance operator. We see a lot of demand in Turkey for our service, and we have been a service provider for international insurance and assistance companies for quite a long time. Now, with this extended range, more demand is coming to our operations.”

The company recently flew a patient from Baghdad to Dubai, having been in Baku, Azerbaijan the previous day. Many of its missions are flown along the eastern border of Turkey to move patients from underdeveloped medical facilities to advanced care facilities.

As well as being able to accommodate two stretchers, the LR45 has five additional seats for seated patients or companions. “We did a comparison with the Learjet 60,” continues Dursun. “The LR60 offers more range but this LR45 is a newer version with better avionics and equipment, and from the advice we took we decided that the 45 is better suited to us.

“We are already in the market to double our 45 fleet, but next time we will probably be looking for an XR. We have some other future plans, but it is too early to disclose them. What I can say is that we will be looking at longer range aircraft.”