Our service

Maac There Are Two Red And Yellow Helicopters Hanging From The Ceiling

What do we use?

The fleet

We own and operate a fleet of 3 Airbus helicopters, one H135, one H145 D2 and our newest aircraft a H145 D3 which commenced service in January 2025. The fleet of aircraft is supported by a car fleet, which operate during our night shifts and on the rare occasions that the aircraft are offline for any reason (e.g. severe weather or if unserviceable).

The charity’s three owned helicopters, G-OMAA is located at Strensham in Worcestershire. The second helicopter, G-HWAA is based at our HQ in Cosford, Shropshire and G-HMAA is based at Tatenhill in Staffordshire.

We also have back up vehicles at each base so the aircrew can respond when the helicopter offline. This could be during times of bad weather.

In addition, the charity has critical care cars, which sees our crew now responding on a 24/7 basis.

All Midlands Air Ambulance Charity vehicles have been specially adapted to carry out lifesaving missions, enabling our aircrew to treat patients at the incident scene before they are transferred to the most appropriate specialist hospital for their injuries. Our minimum crew consists of one pilot, one CCP/TCM and either a second CCP or Doctor. We regularly have a fourth team member undergoing training.

Each air ambulance mission costs on average £2,950 and each mission by critical care car £288.

A Midlands Air Ambulance helicopter flying over a field with a blue sky and green trees in the background.

G-OMAA & G-HWAA

Airbus Helicopter H135

The Airbus Helicopter H135 is a twin-engine civil light utility helicopter produced by Airbus Helicopters (formerly known as Eurocopter). It is capable of flight under instrument flight rules (IFR) and is outfitted with a digital automatic flight control system (AFCS).

The H135’s (formerly known as EC135) high endurance and extended range enables this helicopter to perform a full range of mission requirements, while carrying more payload over longer distances than any twin-engine aircraft in its class. The H135’s superior payload-range performance offers an impressive 3,303 lb in useful load.

Incorporating a modern cockpit and avionics – as well as Airbus Helicopters’ Fenestron® tail rotor and bearingless main rotor – the H135 is recognized for its high performance and outstanding maneuverability. As one of the quietest helicopters in its class, the H135 is approximately 7 db below ICAO standards. This level represents a perceivable noise reduction of approximately 50 percent compared to older-generation helicopters in the same category – which is of particular importance to customers regularly flying over cities and in densely-populated areas, including emergency medical services and law enforcement agencies.

H135 Stats

The EC135 is a compact and agile light helicopter, measuring 12.16m in length, 3.35m in height, and 2m in width. With a fuel consumption of 250 litres per hour, it strikes an efficient balance between performance and operational capability.

140 knots

Top speed

2,950kg

Maximum take-off weight

£4.5 million

Cost

710 litres

Fuel capacity

1 hr 48 mins

Operational endurance

234nm

Operational range

G-HMAA

Airbus Helicopter H-145

Located at our HQ in Shifnal, Shropshire.

As a next generation aircraft, it comes with additional capabilities to assist the delivery of enhanced patient care including a fifth rotor blade, which will ensure an even smoother flight, making it more comfortable for patients in transit to hospital. This also reduces fuel consumption, ensuring the new helicopter will be more economical to operate in the long term.

Advanced technology on-board, including external cameras, will aid the pilot when landing in complicated surroundings near the scene of an incident. Plus, the increased internal capacity means additional lifesaving hospital-level equipment can be carried. This will enable the clinicians to provide additional treatments to help those in critical need, giving them the greatest chance of survival and a good recovery.

BMW X5

Equipped with the same advanced medical kit and equipment as our helicopters. It has been operational since June 2018. The car can be manned by both our specialist critical care paramedics and flight doctors.

BMW X5 Stats

150mph