Portuguese Air Force evacuates wounded in the Azores and Madeira
The first days of 2010 put the responsiveness of the Portuguese Air Force to the test.
On 1 January, an EH-101 Merlin based at Montijo Air Base, rescued one crew member injured in the eye from a merchant ship off the coast of Portugal,
On January 3, helicopters were in action in the Azores and on Madeira where they were called to transport the injured people.
The first operation took place in Madiera at 0430 when an EH101 helicopter based on Porto Santo, Funchal transported a patient who had suffered a stroke. Eight hours later, at 12.30, the same helicopter transported a diabetic patient to Funchal who was in urgent need of hospital care.
In the Azores an SA330 Puma was called in to recover a crew member of a merchant ship. The sailor, a Polish national, was sailing on board the ship Cap Preston when he dislocated his shoulder. The Cap Preston sailed to about 300 miles south of Terceira (Lajes) to rendezvous with the Puma which flew the sailor to the heliport at the Hospital of Angra in the Azores.
Source: Translated from a Portuguese Air Force Press Release
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