SANTA ROSA, Calif., Sept. 18, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In an ongoing program to modernize and upgrade its fleet of emergency air medical helicopters, REACH Air Medical Services has taken delivery of a new Eurocopter EC135 helicopter. The aircraft will be based at REACH's Santa Rosa, CA base, known as REACH 1. The new aircraft will be the seventh EC135 for REACH, a 26-year-old emergency air medical services provider, bringing the fleet to 21 helicopters and eight fixed-wing aircraft and an additional ten ground ambulances.
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"We are very excited to be upgrading our fleet with this addition at our Santa Rosa REACH Base. This EC135 will be able to serve our patients with enhanced capabilities including greater distance and more room for our neonatal specialty teams who require an isolette to move our tiniest patients," says Darin Huard, General Manager for the Santa Rosa and Lakeport bases.
Huard continues, "This is the second EC135 being delivered to replace our Agusta Fleet. The third aircraft will be at our Yuba/Marysville base. We will have an increase in aircraft demos locally to assure a safe acclimation process for the pre-hospital providers and hospital staff who will be seeing this aircraft regularly."
REACH was the first air ambulance company in the United States to receive approval by the FAA to operate off published instrument airways using its own proprietary GPS routes to specific hospitals. Founded in 1987, REACH currently has bases throughout California, Oregon and Texas. Each base provides 24/7 emergency helicopter service to the surrounding areas. REACH has performed more than 75,000 air ambulance missions since its inception.
REACH's President Sean Russell adds, "An essential element of our success is that we can respond to most situations and customer needs because of our talented flight crew, aircraft interior configuration, aircraft performance, payload and IFR capability, and the EC135 is a key component to this success."
About REACH Air Medical Services
A subsidiary of Air Medical Group Holdings (AMGH), REACH Medical Holdings, LLC operates REACH Air Medical Services and Cal-Ore Life Flight. The companies support operations in Concord, Crescent City, Eureka, Imperial, Lakeport, Marysville, Oceanside, Redding, Sacramento, Santa Rosa, Stockton, Thermal, and Upland, California as well as Brookings, Gold Beach and Corvallis, Oregon and San Antonio, Pearsall, and Houston, Texas. The companies provide air medical transport services utilizing helicopters, airplanes and ground ambulances, regionally and nationally. REACH and Cal-Ore are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services (CAMTS). For more information, visit www.REACHair.com or www.cal-ore.com.
