-ADAC Luftrettung to collaborate with Volocopter on next-generation eVTOL for emergency medical services
BRUCHSAL, Germany, June 19, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, ADAC Luftrettung and Volocopter entered into a collaborative partnership to customize next-generation electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for rescue services. Two major agreements were signed at the Paris Air Show: one to purchase two VoloCity aircraft and another with the intention of securing an additional 150 Volocopter eVTOL units as part of this collaboration. The two VoloCity aircraft will start testing at the end of 2024 to provide ADAC Luftrettung Emergency Medical Services (EMS) as complementary aircraft in Germany. Upon successful completion of this test, the additional eVTOLs will be considered for use in future rescue missions.
Since 2018, the non-profit ADAC Luftrettung and Volocopter have been part of a joint feasibility study of eVTOL in EMS and rescue operations, sponsored by the ADAC Foundation with the Institut für Notfallmedizin und Medizinmanagement (INM, Institute of Emergency Medicine and Medical Management) from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. The study theoretically demonstrated that the introduction of eVTOLs in aeromedical situations would add a significant tactical advantage. Today, the two companies have signed two contracts: ADAC Luftrettung will purchase two VoloCity aircraft, and intends to secure an additional 150 eVTOL units for its future EMS missions.
The two VoloCity aircraft are scheduled to enter research operations in Germany after receiving the type certificate from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in 2024. A pilot and an emergency doctor will be dispatched to the incident sites - to complement, not replace, rescue helicopters to provide rapid assistance from the air. After successfully completing a research operation of at least two years in the German cities and regions of Idar-Oberstein and Dinkelsbühl, ADAC Luftrettung will be able to deploy the new generation of Volocopter eVTOL in its rescue service operations.
"Since the beginning, we have been convinced that these aircraft can also shape and improve the rescue service of the future," explained Frédéric Bruder, CEO of ADAC Luftrettung, stressing: "With increased ranges and operating speeds, as well as a significantly higher payload of the next generation of eVTOLs, we can also put the benefits for emergency care into practice - and fulfill our statutory mission to further develop the air rescue service with pioneering innovations."
Dirk Hoke, CEO of Volocopter, said: "There is no better way to start Volocopter eVTOL operations in Germany than by saving lives. ADAC Luftrettung is Europe's leading rescue service, with highly trained pilots and successful missions who believe in us. to create a better future together. We have proven that the emergency rescue use case works in theory, now we are concentrating on delivery and execution to start test operations in Germany in 2024."
The ADAC Luftrettung feasibility study and rapid emergency response opportunities using eVTOLs have also been met with great interest by Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris, as they have joined forces with Groupe ADP to explore the deployment of the ADAC Luftrettung concept. for multicopter operations in EMS also in the Paris region.
About ADAC Luftrettung GmbH With more than 50 rescue helicopters at 37 bases, the ADAC air rescue charity service is one of the leading HEMS organizations in Europe. ADAC rescue helicopters are part of the German emergency medical services system. If necessary, they are requested by a rescue coordination center after an emergency call to 112 and deployed to rescue injured or sick people. "Race against time and for life" is the motto of ADAC Luftrettung GmbH. One rule applies especially in the case of serious injury or illness: the faster patients are transferred to a suitable hospital for treatment or seen by an emergency physician on site, the better their chances of survival or convalescence. Since 2017, the organization has operated under the umbrella of the ADAC charitable foundation.
About Volocopter Volocopter is building the world's first sustainable and scalable urban air mobility business to bring affordable air taxi services for goods and people to megacities around the world. Volocopter leads and cooperates with partners in infrastructure, operations and air traffic management to build the ecosystem needed to "Bring Urban Air Mobility to Life." Volocopter has 500 employees in offices in Bruchsal, Munich, and Singapore, has successfully completed more than 1,500 public and private test flights, and has a number of investors including Geely, NEOM, Mercedes-Benz Group, Intel Capital, and BlackRock. www.volocopter.com
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