UK aeromedical charity Cornwall Air Ambulance is looking to purchase a second AW169 helicopter.

Due to the extreme demands on the current helicopter, owning a second will significantly boost the charity's resilience and availability. It will provide the team with the versatility to operate two aircraft simultaneously during peak high demand periods in the future and, most importantly, it will enable the aircrew to fly hundreds of extra missions.

It will also cover planned or unplanned maintenance on the first helicopter. Currently, when the AW169 is away having its annual maintenance, the charity leases a backup AW109 from air operations partner Castle Air. However, the AW169 is far more advanced and capable.

CEO Tim Bunting says: "This is a huge moment for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly as we look to significantly enhance our service provision. We have had some of our busiest months on record this year, and our priority is to ensure that we can continue to give the highest quality of care to those who are critically ill or injured. We were the very first air ambulance service in the UK and owning two high specification helicopters for the first time will significantly increase our operational capacity, helping us improve our service over the coming years.

Chief pilot Adam Smith adds: "Owning a second AW169 will increase the safety for the team of pilots, as we'll be operating a single type of helicopter. This will remove the need for pilot training hours in different types of aircraft. The second helicopter will have more advanced lighting providing better awareness of scenes at night in particular. It will also have a lower 'empty' weight, allowing us to carry more fuel and attend, when required, more missions back-to-back and/or transfers to hospitals out of county. The AW169 has some of the most advanced navigation capabilities in the industry. This means we'll be able to provide the same standard of service day and night when flying conditions allow, 19 hours a day, 365 days a year."

The charity has received a considerable sum towards the purchase already, and is launching a Heli 2 Appeal to raise the remaining $3.6 million needed.

Bunting continues: "We're aware that we're launching this appeal at a challenging economic time, but thanks to the support of our generous donors, we already have most of the money towards the $12.6m cost of the helicopter. We hope the public will get behind us as we look to secure the remaining $3.6 million needed by the end of December next year."

The appeal runs from 20 November, 2023 until the end of December 2024.