During a ceremony at the Social Support Center of the IASFA – Social Action Institute for the Armed Forces in Lisbon, Nuno Melo announced that a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter will be introduced on Thursday in Ovar, Aveiro district.
The centrist government official stated that this addition will bring the total to four aerial emergency medical vehicles available 24/7: two helicopters (the Black Hawk and the Merlin EH-101) and two airplanes.
Nuno Melo emphasized the “gratitude” owed to the Air Force for its role in medical emergencies, noting they operate “neither for business nor for interest.”
The Defense Minister also noted that the issue with some military helicopters being unable to land on hospital helipads lies not with the helicopters but with the “infrastructures, which will need to be adapted for necessary emergency actions over time.”
“Should Portugal experience a sudden catastrophe, heavy helicopter transports will be necessary, not light ones. If our hospitals and rescue facilities are not equipped—and I believe they soon will be, as the government is usually attentive to everything—with infrastructures to accommodate all types of rescue aircraft, the issue is not with the aircraft but with the crucial capacity,” he argued.
When asked if he feared the Air Force’s public image might be tarnished by recent news on medical emergencies, Nuno Melo dismissed the notion, affirming that without the branch “there wasn’t anyone else,” and that the Air Force emerged “commended” for fulfilling its missions “successfully.”
The minister also refuted claims that it took over five hours to transport a 49-year-old patient with a cranial injury from Covilhã Hospital to the Coimbra University Hospitals, highlighting the Air Force’s role in the transport.
The centrist added that the Air Force’s role is limited to patient transport and that all procedural matters “are decided at different levels.”
Since the 1st of the month, the Air Force has been providing emergency medical transport with four helicopters, announced to operate 24/7, as a temporary measure until Gulf Med, the service contract winner, has sufficient resources.
Last Saturday, Nuno Melo mentioned that the Air Force has one helicopter in Beja authorized to operate from 5:00 AM to 9:30 PM, a helicopter and two planes in Montijo operating around the clock, and one helicopter in Ovar available between 5:00 AM and 9:30 PM.
A second helicopter, available 24/7, will now join these resources in Ovar.
The helicopters employed by the Air Force for patient transport include Merlin EH-101s, significantly larger than those usually utilized by INEM, measuring almost 20 meters in length and 18 meters in wingspan, with the capacity to transport 30 passengers or 16 stretchers.
The UH-60 Black Hawk measures 19.50 meters in length and 16.15 meters in wingspan, can carry up to 12 passengers, and its missions include air transport and firefighting.
[News updated at 5:33 PM]
