Ed Holmes' Soundings - Aeromed Picture Gallery Page

This page acknowledges the special contributions of those who fly—day and night—fair or foul weather—to assist those who are critically ill—or injured—or in distress.

1968 to 1981—The early years

Click Thumbnails for full size picture Links to Gallery Part Two & other pages are at page bottom

1968—Navy Prior to the advent of the dedicated hospital-based helicopter ambulance in 1972, hospitals and public safety agencies relied almost totally upon the military for emergent patient airlifts. In Virginia's Hampton Roads area, local military units regularly assisted with civilian medical transports. A classic example took place on Nov. 9, 1968 when a Navy helicopter from Helicopter Combat Support Squadron Six (HC-6) transported a Norfolk General Hospital burn patient to the Medical College of Virginia Burn Center in Richmond.

1972—NGH Helistop In 1965, only 34 of 4,800 American hospitals had helistops. In 1972, after a graduate study outlined the benefits, Norfolk General Hospital built a permanent helistop. Just two weeks after its dedication, the US Coast Guard, using two helicopters, delivered three critically injured victims from an Outer Banks (NC) plane crash. The patients, all physicians at the National Institutes of Health, were discharged alive & well. This "pad" materially facilitated the more routine use of helos for such emergencies.

1973—USCG The Coast Guard, with its federally chartered rescue role, has a long tradition of assisting civilians - with off-shore rescues and land-based inter-hospital transports. This picture, taken in 1973, shows a cardiac patient from an off-shore cruise ship being off-loaded from an Elizabeth City Coast Guard helicopter. The location is the new helipad at Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk, VA.

1973—USMC In addition to patient airlifts, the military was also called upon to assisted with other types of medical emergencies. Here we see a Marine Corps helicopter waiting for a kidney team and transport module that were flown to a patient waiting in an operating room at the the University of Virginia Hospital in Charlottesville, VA. This picture was also taken in 1973 at NGH.

1982 to 1997—The recent past & the present

1982—Nightingale In 1982, Sentara Health System started the Nightingale Air Ambulance service. This program was one of the earliest dedicated, hospital-based services in the nation. The first aircraft, a Bell Helicopter 206-L1, was configured as a "flying ICU". As it was often required to overfly water, this single engine aircraft was equipped with floatation gear. This extra weight effectively limited the ship to one adult patient.

Comment: The advent of dedicated civilian helicopter services did not end local military assistance. Specifically, after Nightingale started operations, a uniquely cooperative relationship began with Navy squadrons at NAS Norfolk. This resulted in joint safety sessions and the Navy training all of Nightingale's flight crew in water survival techniques. An equally strong relationship evolved with the US Coast Guard Search & Rescue Center in Portsmouth. The SAR center controls all maritime flights (inner harbor, coastal and off-shore) and coordinates mutual aid "meet-me" or relay flights between USCG helos and Nightingale.

1982—NG Crew All programs are blessed with a special blend of professionals. This picture of the original Nightingale crew shows its nurses, paramedics, pilots, mechanic, medical director, and administrator. Unique among early programs, medical crew members were required to fly for a full year before being awarded their "wings". Also unique, the original dispatching and in-flight following was performed by the City of Norfolk's Emergency Communications Center. - See Part 2 section re NG's 25th Anniversary!

1985—Nightingale During 1985, the Nightingale 206 was replaced with a MBB (now American Eurocopter) BO-105. The newer ship was much faster, had better range, and could carry more weight (two patients). It was the first operational ship to use "external oxygen tanks" (a capacity and safety innovation the author had a role in), as well as the first to use "high skid gear", a new streamlined search light, and boating hardware in its patient litter and support configuration.

1987—PennSTAR The majority of hospital based services use aircraft from MBB. The 105's big sister is the BK-117. This ship is slightly faster and has a much larger patient compartment physically separated from the flight deck. This photo is of the Univ. of Penn's PennSTAR 117 flying over the skyline of Philadelphia. The PennSTAR ship, put into service in 1987, was the first BK-117 to use an external oxygen system as well as have special storage compartments, both heated and cooled, for medical liquids / products.

External O² This is a close-up view of one of the two external oxygen tanks & covers on the BK-117. This two bottle system is easily trans-filled / refilled, is very stable re gas loss, and holds enough medical grade oxygen to support two patients on extended flights. Just forward of the O² system is a "Locator" search light. Some services use a more powerful light - the "NightSun" or a similar but smaller version—the "StarBurst".

Note: Click here or the below menu for Part 2—"Continuation of 1982 to 2007" plus "The newest ships..." & "Credits..."

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1968—Navy	Prior to the advent of the dedicated hospital-based helicopter ambulance in 1972, hospitals and public safety agencies relied almost totally upon the military for emergent patient airlifts. In Virginia's Hampton Roads area, local military units regularly assisted with civilian medical transports. A classic example took place on Nov. 9, 1968 when a Navy helicopter from Helicopter Combat Support Squadron Six (HC-6) transported a Norfolk General Hospital burn patient to the Medical College of Virginia Burn Center in Richmond.
1972—NGH Helistop	In 1965, only 34 of 4,800 American hospitals had helistops. In 1972, after a graduate study outlined the benefits, Norfolk General Hospital built a permanent helistop. Just two weeks after its dedication, the US Coast Guard, using two helicopters, delivered three critically injured victims from an Outer Banks (NC) plane crash. The patients, all physicians at the National Institutes of Health, were discharged alive & well. This "pad" materially facilitated the more routine use of helos for such emergencies.
1973—USCG	The Coast Guard, with its federally chartered rescue role, has a long tradition of assisting civilians - with off-shore rescues and land-based inter-hospital transports. This picture, taken in 1973, shows a cardiac patient from an off-shore cruise ship being off-loaded from an Elizabeth City Coast Guard helicopter. The location is the new helipad at Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk, VA.
1973—USMC	In addition to patient airlifts, the military was also called upon to assisted with other types of medical emergencies. Here we see a Marine Corps helicopter waiting for a kidney team and transport module that were flown to a patient waiting in an operating room at the the University of Virginia Hospital in Charlottesville, VA. This picture was also taken in 1973 at NGH.

1982—Nightingale	In 1982, Sentara Health System started the Nightingale Air Ambulance service. This program was one of the earliest dedicated, hospital-based services in the nation. The first aircraft, a Bell Helicopter 206-L1, was configured as a "flying ICU". As it was often required to overfly water, this single engine aircraft was equipped with floatation gear. This extra weight effectively limited the ship to one adult patient.
Comment: The advent of dedicated civilian helicopter services did not end local military assistance. Specifically, after Nightingale started operations, a uniquely cooperative relationship began with Navy squadrons at NAS Norfolk. This resulted in joint safety sessions and the Navy training all of Nightingale's flight crew in water survival techniques. An equally strong relationship evolved with the US Coast Guard Search & Rescue Center in Portsmouth. The SAR center controls all maritime flights (inner harbor, coastal and off-shore) and coordinates mutual aid "meet-me" or relay flights between USCG helos and Nightingale.
1982—NG Crew	All programs are blessed with a special blend of professionals. This picture of the original Nightingale crew shows its nurses, paramedics, pilots, mechanic, medical director, and administrator. Unique among early programs, medical crew members were required to fly for a full year before being awarded their "wings". Also unique, the original dispatching and in-flight following was performed by the City of Norfolk's Emergency Communications Center. - See Part 2 section re NG's 25th Anniversary!
1985—Nightingale	During 1985, the Nightingale 206 was replaced with a MBB (now American Eurocopter) BO-105. The newer ship was much faster, had better range, and could carry more weight (two patients). It was the first operational ship to use "external oxygen tanks" (a capacity and safety innovation the author had a role in), as well as the first to use "high skid gear", a new streamlined search light, and boating hardware in its patient litter and support configuration.
1987—PennSTAR	The majority of hospital based services use aircraft from MBB. The 105's big sister is the BK-117. This ship is slightly faster and has a much larger patient compartment physically separated from the flight deck. This photo is of the Univ. of Penn's PennSTAR 117 flying over the skyline of Philadelphia. The PennSTAR ship, put into service in 1987, was the first BK-117 to use an external oxygen system as well as have special storage compartments, both heated and cooled, for medical liquids / products.
External O²	This is a close-up view of one of the two external oxygen tanks & covers on the BK-117. This two bottle system is easily trans-filled / refilled, is very stable re gas loss, and holds enough medical grade oxygen to support two patients on extended flights. Just forward of the O² system is a "Locator" search light. Some services use a more powerful light - the "NightSun" or a similar but smaller version—the "StarBurst".