California Shock Trauma and Rescue (CALSTAR) has become the first US medical air services company to acquire airbus H135 helicopters in the recently held Air Medical Transport Conference in Long Beach. CALSTAR is based out of Sacramento, California. Airbus and CALSTAR have trusted each other for years now. Previously, CALSTAR had purchased eight EC135. The company is among the largest non-profit medical air services company in the West Coast at this time. It operates through nine bases, which are spread throughout the state of California. The headquarters of the company is located in McClellan Park, Sacramento.
Airbus H135 is New to Medical Air Services
There are more than 1200 variants of EC135 and the current H135 models. These helicopters are among the top choices in the market when it comes to helicopters for medical air services in the United States and the world. These new choppers have been fitted with Pratt & Whitney PW206B3 turbine engines. The main rotor is comparatively larger giving more power to the helicopters. This power paves way for higher operations and also a greater payload. To be exact, the H135 would be able to carry 440 pounds extra when compared to EC135. These light twin-engine choppers have been approved by the FAA.
The Vehicle Boasts High Safety Standards for Medical Air Services
Safety of the crew is as important as that of the patients travelling in the medical air services helicopter. For this reason, the cockpit has been fitted with Garmin GTN 750 which is a totally integrated navigation system complete with GPS avionics. The instrument allows for seamless navigation under instrument flight rules. It also makes the medical air services chopper more reliable for nighttime rescue missions; navigation through rough weather conditions also becomes easier. H135 also has excellent one-engine operational performance.
CALSTAR hopes that these medical air services vehicles will help in its difficult rescue missions in the Sierra Nevada range and the nearby foothills.
