Saskatchewan Air Ambulance director Dan Knisley said their existing turboprop aircraft, which got a $3.5-million upgrade, can still be in service even though its service life is usually about 25 years. The government bought the plane in 2001.
The newly refurbished aircraft was unveiled on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at Hangar 17 with ministers David Marit (SaskBuilds and Procurement), Lori Carr (Mental Health and Addictions), Jeremy Cockrill (Health), and Saskatchewan Health Authority COO Derek Miller in attendance.
“We’re a very high utilization air carrier here with our short distances, so lots of cycles on the airplane increase the wear and tear on the airframe. This airplane is actually old, but we also look at airframe time, and it’s relatively young, so it’s got lots of life left with it,” said Knisley.
Airframe time is the total number of hours an aircraft’s structural components have spent in operation since it was manufactured. It acts as an odometer for the aircraft’s general wear and tear. It is also accumulated during flight regardless of engine changes and overhauls.
However, Knisley said the aircraft allows them to take off and land on short airstrips, which are common in many communities in the province, while also reducing travel time when transporting a patient from one location to another.
“This airplane can land and take off in a very short amount of space, and then once it’s off the ground, it can actually fly quite fast. We travel at about 350 miles per hour in this airplane. We can be in Estevan in about 50 minutes if we’re looking north-south,” he added.
They also regularly transport patients, who might need health-care services the province does not offer, to Edmonton, which takes them from 55 minutes to about an hour on the aircraft, depending on the weather.
Knisley said they always make it a point to have the aircraft up in the air within 30 minutes of receiving an emergency call, since time is essential in saving lives. However, Saskatchewan weather can be tricky and challenging to navigate.
“Some of the things that affect us are the weather in our field of aviation. On a day like today, [when] it’s nice and sunny outside, we can probably meet that 30-minute dispatch goal with hardly any delay,” Knisley said.
“In the wintertime, when we have weather and blizzards moving through, or the summertime thunderstorms, that’s where we might have just to slow down a little bit to make sure that we’re able to remain safe while we do this.”
The upgrades on the aircraft include expanding the entry door to make it larger, installing a bigger stretcher compared to what was previously used, and adding special seats for the medical crew to attend to patients during flights.
The air ambulance now has a larger stretcher that is four inches wider, which can accommodate patients with special needs. Other upgrades include telecommunication systems to communicate with medical personnel on the ground.
