Air ambulance launches critical aircraft appeal

THE Great North Air Ambulance Service's future could be threatened unless it can raise £2.5m to pay the deposit on a brand new helicopter.

- SAM VOLPE

That is because its existing helicopters are reaching the end of their service lives.

The charity has now launched an urgent appeal to raise the cash and unveiled an ambitious plan to invest in three new state-of-the-art helicopters.

Bosses said that unless they can purchase a third helicopter, they could be forced to "scale back" operations.

Currently, the charity operates two helicopters across a vast geographical area - from North Yorkshire to the Isle of Man and the Scottish Borders.

However, a third helicopter had to be decommissioned in March last year and given the ageing nature of the remain two aircraft, this makes maintenance especially challenging.