Kent Air Ambulance

I was outraged to read this story about two louts aged 17 and 19 who were swinging on an Air Ambulance tailfin while it was on a mission to take a badly burned baby to hospital.  Then they attacked the pilot when he remonstrated with them, and the Air Ambulance had to be stood down for 18 hours!

Read the story HERE

This is a copy of an email I sent the Kent Air Ambulance Trust:

Dear Kent Air Ambulance Trust

I have just read about the Kent Air Ambulance being grounded for 18 hours after yobs were swinging on the tailfin, and the pilot who was attacked when he remonstrated with them. The scalded baby then had to be transported by road ambulance.

I have heard many disgusting things over the years, but this takes the biscuit! I am shocked, outraged, horrified and disgusted that supposedly 'adult' men would behave like this.

When my daughter was 3, she was in a road accident with her father in Africa. She was flung out of the car and landed 30 yards away - on her head. A normal journey to the nearest place with a neurological intensive care unit was almost 3 hours away by road, and a fair part of the road was potholed or untarred with corrugated dirt surfaces.

How do you stop an open brain injury bleeding? You can't use a tourniquet or direct pressure. Its a case of packing the wound and putting a drip up and getting the victim to the right hospital as carefully and quickly as possible. The jolting on less than perfect roads would have dislodged any clotting, and she would not have survived. If it wasn't for a crack team in an Air Ambulance, she would have died, so I am absolutely furious with those horrid little louts. They were putting some other mother's child's life at risk. For their sake, I hope she doesn't find out who they are.

I hope you prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law! There is absolutely no excuse whatsoever for their disgraceful behaviour.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Kent Air Ambulance is a charity and not funded by the NHS.  They have to raise their own operational funds, and one of the ways they do that is by having a weekly lottery.  Here is some information about the Air Ambulance Lottery:

The Air Ambulance Lottery is promoted across the counties of Kent, Surrey and Sussex. Each chance is £1 per week and you will be allocated a 5-figure membership number that is unique to you.

This unique membership number is entered into the draw, which will take place every Wednesday when our computer randomly selects 12 weekly winners.

Your prize will be sent to you automatically after the draw has taken place so there is no need to claim.

A list of all weekly winners can be found at on the web sites and are published in some local, weekly newspapers across your area.

Visit their site here:  http://www.kentairambulance.co.uk/home

They have other ways of raising money too, such as a magician donating his time, as copied below.  But there is always something going on, so please check their website to see if there is anything you would like to go to.

World class magician will be bringing his box of tricks to Tenterden next month to help keep the Kent Air Ambulance flying.

Ashford-based Etienne Pradier has performed in front of Royalty and a string of celebrities during a glittering and award-winning career.

He will be bringing his “immensely entertaining and incredible” act to Sinden Theatre on June 14 at 7.30pm.

Cash raised from the night will help boost funds for a bike ride around Cuba in November to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Kent Air Ambulance Trust.

Members of Team KAAT - staff at the Marden headquarters - are hoping to raise £20,000 for the life-saving charity which needs £1.7m-a-year to stay airborne.