In the most critical moments, when life hangs in the balance, there’s comfort in knowing that help is on the way, racing through the skies to bring life-saving care. No one ever imagines their loved one in a life-threatening situation, but when the unimaginable strikes, AdventHealth’s Flight 1 program stands ready to answer the call. Its swift response and expert care offer a lifeline — when every second counts. For people like Contessa Graebert, this reality strikes painfully close to home.
“My sister was two years old when she was slipping into a diabetic coma,” Graebert told Vertical Valor. “We lived in a rural community in Wyoming, with limited access to healthcare, especially for pediatrics.”
The quick actions of Intermountain Life Flight in Salt Lake City ensured her sister received immediate intervention care en route to the children’s hospital.
“My parents credit that helicopter team with saving her life,” said Graebert, reflecting on how that traumatic event ultimately shaped her future.
Today, Graebert is not just a nurse — she’s a flight nurse for AdventHealth’s Flight 1 program in Central Florida. Now, she’s on the other side, delivering the care that her family once so desperately needed.
A lifesaving legacy
AdventHealth’s Flight 1 program has been a beacon of hope for patients across Florida for nearly four decades. Starting 39 years ago with a vision to transport cardiac patients from remote campuses to the Orlando main campus, Flight 1 has grown into a state-of-the-art air medical service.
Back then, the team flew a Sikorsky S-58T, a far cry from the fleet they operate today. “Over the years, we’ve moved through several iterations of faster, more powerful helicopters,” said Margot Ververis, senior manager of Flight 1.
Today, Flight 1 operates two state-of-the-art Airbus EC145 helicopters. Metro Aviation delivered the first “Archangel 1” in 2005, and the second “Archangel 2” in 2021.
“Airbus has been a great partner,” said Kevin Wall, director of EMS/Flight 1. “The EC145s allow us to carry all the equipment and personnel we need.”
These helicopters are designed to thrive in Florida’s challenging environment, equipped with advanced technology like traffic alert and collision avoidance systems (TCAS), weather radar, state-of-the-art ADS-B, radar altimeters, and night vision goggles (NVGs).
The EC145’s spacious cabin accommodates the medical team and intensive care unit-level equipment, making it possible to safely transport critically ill patients.
The helicopters are designed with patient care and safety in mind, with a smart configuration that allows the crew to access medical equipment while remaining seated and buckled in during flight.
“With safety being paramount, we ensure everything is accessible so that we can care for the patient and stay safe ourselves,” Graebert added.
Rising to the challenge
The work is not without its challenges, especially given Florida’s intense climate.
“There is some physiological stress on our body,” Graebert said. “There’s the heavy vibration, the noise level, and we’re always keeping one eye out, looking for traffic or any obstacles or obstructions in our flight path.”
With Flight 1 being a visual flight rules (VFR) program, pilots also contend to rigid limitations with unpredictable weather.
“In Florida, the thunderstorms restrict us in the afternoon hours, and operating in the tropics, it’s actually a daily challenge dealing with that,” said Jens Jehnes, lead pilot with Flight 1. “In the wintertime, we’re really well known for fog because of all the moisture we have in the air and all the water on the ground.”
On top of that, the state’s busy airspace, filled with everything from general aviation planes to commercial jets to tour helicopters and police aircraft, requires constant vigilance.
Despite these obstacles, Flight 1’s EC145s rise to the challenge every day. Based in Central Florida, the two helicopters respond to calls across the state, completing over 1,000 patient transports annually, including adults, neonatal and pediatrics, according to Wall.
“Our primary role is interfacility transports. That’s the majority of what we do,” Wall said. “We do participate in mutual aid for 911 calls when some of the other providers in the area call us, and we also participate in the Kennedy Space Center’s community medevac support program where we will respond to any disasters at the Kennedy Space Center.”
Expert team, specialized care
A key differentiator of Flight 1 is its crew configuration. Every mission includes both a critical care flight nurse and a registered respiratory therapist (RRT), a rarity in most air medical programs. For Flight 1, this setup is vital given that 40 percent of the program’s patients require mechanical ventilation, sometimes for flights lasting up to two hours.
“We’re fortunate to work with respiratory therapists who have a fondness for aviation and are at the top of their clinical game with providing advanced care that our cardiac and respiratory patients need,” Ververis said, adding that Flight 1 has flown with this crew configuration since day one, realizing it best serves their patient profile.
Jon Inkrott, an RRT with Flight 1, echoed the importance of this setup, which allows the crew to bring the ICU directly to the patient, overseeing mechanical ventilation and providing critical care in the air.
He said the only difference between an ICU in a hospital and the one at the back of the helicopter is “there’s only two of us. So being able to work in this environment with two people, great decision-making skills, and great teamwork are all aspects of this profession.”
Dedication and safety
With a total of 16 crew members, including seven RRTs and nine flight nurses, Flight 1 provides rapid transport for critically ill patients to receive definitive care. The clinical crew works 12-hour shifts, covering both day and night, recently standing up a mid-shift when it took delivery of its second aircraft.
“Our practitioners are passionate, dedicated and exceptionally talented in their clinical area of expertise,” Ververis said.
But Ververis and Inkrott are not just members of the clinical team. At Flight 1, they are also a key part of the flight crew as well, with responsibilities that involve tending to the aircraft itself.
“Before a flight, we will always do a walk around, not just one of us, but the entire crew,” Inkrott said. “What we’re looking for is any sort of leaks, fluids, smells that aren’t normal, and making sure that all of our doors are closed, that there’s nothing that was left undone mistakenly.”
On transport calls, Inkrott will sit in the cockpit communicating with the dispatch, while the pilot communicates with air traffic control.
“We have an acumen when it comes to talking to our dispatchers and letting them know how long it’s going to take us to get there, how many souls are on board, the fuel we have going to the facility and coming back from the facility,” Inkrott said.
Becoming part of this elite team takes time and skill. To join the team, nurses and RRTs must have at least five years of ICU and emergency experience. The onboarding process is rigorous, taking months to ensure every crew member is fully prepared for the challenges of air medical transport.
“You’re going to need to be able to work with your partner in an austere environment with some very sick patients, so experience is key,” Inkrott said.
Ververis said Flight 1 takes safety seriously. “We operate under an umbrella of safety,” Ververis said. “The clinical care we provide is in a different space. We’re in the air, and sometimes that takes a little getting used to.”
This level of expertise and commitment has led to exceptional retention within the team. Many crew members have been with Flight 1 for more than 20 years, a testament to the program’s positive work environment and shared mission.
“We’re so fortunate to have individuals who are dedicated and passionate about what they do that they choose to stay for very long periods of time,” Ververis said. “I have multiple crew members who have been here greater than 20 years.”
A program with heart
As a traditional hospital-based program, in addition to the 16 clinical staff members, AdventHealth also has five pilots and four mechanics, all employed by Metro Aviation.
Wall said this setup allows Flight 1 to “focus on the clinical expertise, the operational logistics of where the patient is going and what they need, and allows Metro to focus on aviation — the maintenance, all of those things that they’re excellent at. It really takes the best of both of us in the partnership and puts together a really good system to serve the patients of Florida.”
Flight 1 isn’t just about clinical expertise — it’s about seamless integration with AdventHealth’s broader mission. Located in Central Florida, Flight 1 covers the Orlando metropolitan area but also responds to calls across the state, connecting smaller communities with specialized care.
Looking ahead, Flight 1 has plans to expand, integrating ground services to further enhance patient care. The program plans to build out space to house its ground service and air operations together, ensuring the team can always serve their patients — even when the weather prevents flying.
“That’s just really going to make us more efficient, able to capture more of the patient request volume and provide quicker service to our patients,” Wall said.
For Graebert, the opportunity to provide the kind of care that once saved her sister’s life is deeply meaningful.
“We’re not just taking care of the patient — we’re also taking care of their family,” she said. “A lot of times, it may be the worst day of their life, so to be part of a team that is able to deliver that care with compassion, it really is an honor that I don’t take lightly.”
In the skies above Florida, AdventHealth’s Flight 1 continues to serve as a lifeline for patients in need, bringing expert care and compassion where it’s needed most.
