In the UK’s Lake District National Park, an average of 15-20 leg or hand-break incidents occur every week, and these will soon be handled by paramedics in Gravity Industries Jet Suits.
The GNAAS (Great North Air Ambulance Service) operates an air ambulance service in the north of England, including using helicopters to approach people who sometimes fall in hard-to-reach places. However, aircraft cannot reach everywhere, and in many cases pilots can only land a plane up to a kilometre from the scene of an accident, which needs a flat surface to land safely. In addition, there are not always enough helicopters available, which are mainly sent to rescue the more seriously injured. Paramedics therefore often have to reach patients on foot, carrying tens of kilos of equipment over often steeply sloping paths.
One of the organisation’s members, Andy Mawson, came up with the idea a few years ago, which could potentially make the situation easier and allow a much quicker getaway in any circumstances: he believes the solution could be to use a jetpack when working in difficult terrain.
To test the viability of this new form of transport, GNAAS approached Gravity Industries, whose founder Richard Browning regularly flies the device in various demonstrations. Browning personally tested the Jet Suit in a simulated accident in September 2020 in the Cumbria region of England, and the results showed that the Jet Suit could be a really useful tool for rescuers, especially on steep gradients. However, some details still need to be worked out, such as how paramedics can carry medical equipment while using this new form of transport, which is not an easy task given that the Jet Suit takes up both hands of the user and leaves no room for cargo on the back. The solution is to have containers strapped to the legs or chest, which can carry over ten kilos of medical equipment.
The other obstacle is that flying and balancing with a rocket backpack requires special training, but some of the organisation’s paramedics have not shied away from the challenge and training of personnel to use the device has already begun, with Andy Mawson having completed training and completed his first free flight and two more paramedics soon to be certified to fly, according to GNAAS. Gravity Industries has also since developed the rocket backpack, which is now produced entirely using 3D printing technology.
The next step will be field testing and deployment in live situations, starting in the summer in the UK’s Lake District National Park.
“The next step […] will bring the paramedics’ flying skills to a level where it will be possible to assess real operational experience – and real help will arrive in the form of Jet Suit paramedics in the Lake District.” – GNAAS announced on 22 March.
According to Mawson, the current 25-30 minutes it takes for air ambulances to reach the injured can be reduced to one and a half minutes with the rocket backpack, and the device also provides a cost-effective way to transport them.
“We monitor calls from mountain rescue teams, so we see a lot of people on our control panel screens who are injured, probably scared and in a lot of pain, but don’t fall into the category of requiring urgent care – that’s where the idea for the Jet Suit actually came from. ” said Mawson at the GNAAS Business Club meeting last February, “The jet backpack is a very cost-effective way to get a paramedic up to the top of a mountain to provide immediate assistance to someone who has broken an ankle or arm.”
Source: greatnorthairambulance.co.uk
Recent article
Air taxi News & Articles
Development of Airbus’ air taxi could accelerate
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
NASA’s new engine in action
Drones News & Articles
India also sees potential in agricultural drones
Drones News & Articles
Airbus launches drone production
Flying Cars News & Articles
SkyDrive Japanese flying car to enter commercial service in 2026
Additional aircraft
ARC Aerosystems’ newest aircraft the Linx P9
Drones News & Articles
Expect lots of drones in the future
Propulsion-Fuel
NASA funds development of a new type of nuclear engine
Drones News & Articles
The world’s fastest flying four-rotor drone
Drones News & Articles
The drone market is a good long-term investment
Drones News & Articles
In Romania, a drone is already taking samples from hospitals to the robotic laboratory
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
ZeroAvia’s Dornier with hydrogen-electric propulsion system flies for the first time
EVTOL & VTOL
What growth can we expect in the Evtol market in the coming years ?
Drones News & Articles
Flying drone home delivery is also being tested in Budapest
EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles
How are air traffic control and air navigation services adapting to eVTOL ?
Flying Cars News & Articles
What safety measures would be introduced in flying cars to prevent accidents ?
EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles
Revolutionising crop production with aircraft
Drones News & Articles
Valkyrie drone placed in the US Air Force National Museum
Drones News & Articles
Black Swan unmanned aircraft can handle transport in Europe
Drones News & Articles
Drone-operated motorway planned in the UK
Air taxi News & Articles
What impact will the development and introduction of air taxis have on the workforce and the labour market ?
Drones News & Articles
Edible wing drone could save people in distress
Additional aircraft News & Articles
Could modernised versions of airships return ?
Additional aircraft News & Articles
Aviation on the verge of a revolution
Drones News & Articles
Chinese drone could stay in the air almost forever
Additional aircraft News & Articles
The world’s first flying motorcycle is about to fly
Drones News & Articles
Walmart’s drones now deliver in seven Member States
EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles
How are companies and governments working to develop and regulate electric Evtols and what challenges do they face in bringing these vehicles to market ?
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
What developments have been made in the field of electric motors ?
Air taxi News & Articles
Stellantis joins forces with air taxi developer Archer
Flying Cars News & Articles
The Alef A flying car is on sale – taxis could be on the way in three years
Flying Cars News & Articles
The Israeli flying car on AIR
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
The first supersonic aircraft engine to run on sustainable fuel
Drones News & Articles
Drones could help weather forecasting
EVTOL & VTOL
The Volocopter is also expected to be commercialised in 2024
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
Joint electrification between Renault and Airbus
Air taxi News & Articles
Air taxis are almost here in everyday transport
Flying Cars News & Articles
Xpeng wants to mass produce its flying car in 2024
Drones News & Articles
The European Commission has unveiled a plan to boost the growth of the drone industry within Europe
EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles
First drop test with an eVTOL lithium-ion battery
More articles you may be interested in...
Flying Cars News & Articles
What safety measures would be introduced in flying cars to prevent accidents ?
EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles
Revolutionising crop production with aircraft
Drones News & Articles
Valkyrie drone placed in the US Air Force National Museum
Drones News & Articles
Black Swan unmanned aircraft can handle transport in Europe
Flying Cars News & Articles
The Alef A flying car is on sale – taxis could be on the way in three years
The Alef A model is a flying car being sold by Alef Aeronautics for around.......... READ MORE
Flying Cars News & Articles
The Israeli flying car on AIR
An Israeli start-up is attempting to distinguish itself by creating an eVTOL intended for widespread.......... READ MORE
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
The first supersonic aircraft engine to run on sustainable fuel
Boom Supersonic's Overture aims to revolutionize supersonic passenger travel with its new engine. The Overture.......... READ MORE
Drones News & Articles
Drones could help weather forecasting
A drone with a wind sensor was used to collect weather data in the Sea.......... READ MORE
EVTOL & VTOL
The Volocopter is also expected to be commercialised in 2024
Volocopter's evtol made its first live flight near Paris in November, and it is hoped.......... READ MORE
News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel
Joint electrification between Renault and Airbus
Renault Group and Airbus have entered into a partnership to develop technology that will speed.......... READ MORE
Air taxi News & Articles
Air taxis are almost here in everyday transport
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has recently expanded the list of aircraft and helicopters.......... READ MORE
Flying Cars News & Articles
Xpeng wants to mass produce its flying car in 2024
The founder of the company, Csao Tölinek, expects that mass production of these vehicles could.......... READ MORE