BUMP Wondering where these pads are now and the progress / utilisation of the AW-139's. Can they land at the Foothills, U. of A. and RAH pads or do they have to close a road / parking lot? Seems to me that Ft McMurray and Grande Prairie would be better placement for the 139's (once both are on line)...

When it comes to decision making and ensuring the safety of flight I personally listen to everyone who takes the time to express their thoughts or ask a question that is relative to a planned flight. I do not get hung up on the issue of what a crew member is as I believe I have the neurons to sift ...

Just as a point of clarification -- such a situation as you describe could not happen in Canada presently. The regulatory and legislative structure of aeronautics in Canada deliniate the role and responsibility of the flight crew (which any crew member aft of the flight deck is not) and the pilot-i...

But this one also might apply...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teMlv3ripSM

I am going to continue to speak up or just not get in the aircraft to begin with and nobody will be going anywhere regardless if you think the flight can be done safely. Well, this is a medic holding the flight portion of the mission profile hostage. "and nobody will be going anywhere" This is a pe...

To your root point, if a patient is being loaded onto the medevac and destabilizes, or for some other reason becomes unairworthy.. should the pilot be able to tell you he thinks the patient will make it and to load him on the plane? You say you don't have an ego.. this situation would test it and r...

As you note, there is a difference. In Canada, it will depend on who the employer of your 'medic' is. If they are assigned to duty on board the aircraft by the air operator, they are a crew member. If they are not employed by the air operator, they are a passenger. The Regulations are quite clear a...

I can't believe that this is still going on. Pilots fly airplanes, paramedics treat patients. If the pilot is more interested in what is happening behind him then he is not doing his job. Similarily, if the paramedic is too busy watching the gauges or out the window, then he is not doing his job. S...

OK, so here's some comments from a predominantly medical board. I don't know if it's in the US or Canada but it doesn't really matter. Not being a pilot I can't really answer to the heart of the posters questions but I am sure someone here can. I am sure that one of you would be able to explain thin...

I find it hard to believe there are less FW medevac flights per capita attempted in Canada. However if the accident rate is higher in Canada you would have to take into account the facilities we are operating into and out of. ex. NDB approaches, 2500-3500 gravel strips some 50' wide on occasion glo...

Will PM you - collected a bunch of TSB reports when in Canada - but still many years to do and all the CADORS to locate... Not as easy to search as the NTSB database...

I studied the canadian system during my MBA program, so I know more than one might think....I love your system, If I were king for a day, I would model the US system per the canadian system in a heartbeat........ Thank you for the insight. Fly Safe, Respectfully, Not to burst your bubble, but there...

I did years of Medevacs, and in the beginning I made all the mistakes many others did, trying to hard to keep what I percieved to be the right thing. These forums weren't available in those days. Communicating what we know to others is the best way to prevent future errors. After the Air Ambulance ...

As a customer, if you had briefed the pilot before the flight and said if it is unlikely that we will land (you, as an experienced passenger, obviously know that airplanes are never guaranteed to land at their destinations right?), I would prefer to do X, and he tried to go to the original destinat...

FYI for the pilots who might want to contribute A new working group of the air medical transport industry met to formulate a strategy to identify and mitigate the pressures that may be placed on air medical crew members to accept or continue a flight under conditions of elevated risk. The project is...

Firtly - this is coming from a US perspective, but a Fixed Wing, SPIFR program. Programs here are all models, this one is all are employees of same (aviation) company - but vendor type operations exist (hospital contracts with an aviation company for aviation services as well as aviation company con...

If I was planning on continuing the flight and the nurse (or any other passenger) said that the flight was canceled due to flight safety, there would be a huge problem. This is where every pilot reading this thread is getting their feathers up. I think you might have hit on - bad choice of words. P...

We used to have a daily shift briefing base by base by conference call where the actual and forecast weather at all bases and at the common destination and pickup points was discussed. We also had a preflight briefing just before climbing on where the pilot would give his decision on GO/NOGO and the...

What are the pro's and con's of having a defined (written) policy that encourages (ie: no immediate consequences) all members of a team (pilots and medcrew) to have the ability to terminate/decline a flight at any time for any reason. Colloquially referred to as the "One to say NO rule" or the "51%...

I agree with the assertion that workers from other industries who travel often by air have likely been exposed to a number of different styles of flying and decision making - which may, in fact, make them more disposed to saying "no go" when the pilot is willing to say "go". Of course, if the pilot...

NOPE, I am NOT a liar, SKYSIX knows who I am and my education and experience.

As do I for many years. Flew with a program that was his competition several years ago.

I would like to know why you insist on quoting statistics from a system that has extreme inherent flaws at the regulatory level in it? Not sure Transport Canada and the TSB are all that different / better. However higher flight volume in US = more incidents and accidents, more media attention = mor...

You don't want to go? Great, get the F#@% off my airplane so I can go back home to bed. Why did you even call for the trip in the first place? If you know everything about making aviation go/no go decisions you could have saved us all a lot of trouble by canceling the trip before waking everyone up...

For any of the ex military pilots out there, are the guys in the back (loadmaster, navigator, gunner, mission specialist, spotter, crew chief, winch operator, whatever the name is for the guy that flies the refueling boom etc etc depending on airframe and role) considered part of the crew or PAX? A...

For any of the ex military pilots out there, are the guys in the back (loadmaster, navigator, gunner, mission specialist, spotter, crew chief, winch operator, whatever the name is for the guy that flies the refueling boom etc etc depending on airframe and role) considered part of the crew or PAX?