Parksville, British Columbia-based Ascent Helicopters will become the primary operator of helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) across the province, after the company was awarded a $544.4-million, 10-year contract by B.C. Emergency Health Services.
“It is a big vote of confidence for us at Ascent,” said Trent Lemke, owner of Ascent. “We’re excited about growing our ambulance fleet. It’s a great thing for the province, and it’s going to bring a higher level of care, especially for the smaller communities.”
Ascent will carry out these services using a new fleet of seven Leonardo AW169s, making the B.C. company the first operator to bring the aircraft type to Canada.
According to a spokesperson from the B.C. Emergency Health Services (BCEHS), the new fleet is expected to be operational in late fall 2024 to early spring 2025, at which time, Ascent will become the exclusive operator providing rotary-wing medical services across B.C.
“We’ve always been a fairly quiet company, but we’ve actually been providing this level of service on a smaller scale to [BCEHS] already,” Lemke said. “We have a proven track record.”
For more than five years, Ascent has been contracted to provide air ambulance services in B.C. and is currently one of three HEMS operators in the province.
Ascent currently operates an MD 902 helicopter for air medical services out of its Parksville base, servicing primarily Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, and the lower mainland. The new AW169s will eventually replace that helicopter, along with two Bell 412s, operated by Summit Air, and three Sikorsky S-76s, operated by Helijet.
Lemke said the AW169s will be a “game-changer” for air medical services in the province, where the healthcare system relies on its airborne assets to transport critically injured patients across the massive region.
“You look at the geographic issues with Vancouver Island, if you have to transport somebody from Tofino on the west coast [to a hospital in Victoria], you’re looking at 14 hours by road by the time you’re done,” Lemke said. “By helicopter, you can have it done in two to three hours.”
The twin-engine AW169 instrument flight rules (IFR)-capable helicopters will be equipped with night vision goggles (NVGs) and new medical interiors, completed by HeliMods in B.C.
Lemke said the biggest factors that led the company to select the AW169 is the aircraft’s ability to comply with the H1 heliport performance requirements, as well as its expansive interior cabin that can accommodate the medical equipment needed by the medical crew.
The aircraft will include HeliMods’ powered stretcher loading system, which is designed to easily load and unload road ambulance stretchers into the helicopter. Lemke said the powered load system will be used with the Stryker Power Pro XT stretcher system — similar to the AW139s operated by Ornge, Ontario’s air ambulance operator. He said this system will help “eliminate possible injury to medics from lifting, allowing heavier patients to be carried with less risk to the medics.”
Since Ascent often flies with critical care paramedics, its helicopters will also be equipped to carry blood on board. Once the fleet is fully operational, two 169s will be based out of Vancouver, and one helicopter each will be based out of Parksville, Prince Rupert, Prince George and Kamloops, leaving the seventh aircraft as a spare.
“We are eagerly anticipating great results from the new helicopters,” the BCEHS spokesperson said. Until all of Ascent’s new helicopters come online, the spokesperson said “the contracts with Helijet and Summit were extended to cover the transition that began April 1, 2023.”
Lemke anticipates the first aircraft to be delivered by the end of next summer. This will be followed by three to four months of conformity and inspections before final approval by Transport Canada.
“Obviously, there’s always a little bit of a worry bringing a new model type into a country — there’s been no 169 operated in Canada,” Lemke said. “We hope to get the support of all parties involved to help us support that aircraft in the best means possible.”
Ascent is tapping into the expertise of Babcock Canada, which it has subcontracted to provide maintenance services and logistics support.
BCEHS responds to more than 7,800 patients annually for air ambulance services using a fleet of fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. This includes transportation for both medical emergency evacuation and transfers between healthcare facilities. In 2022, BCEHS’s helicopter fleet carried almost 2,400 patients, most of which were patient transfers.
“[The rotary-wing contract is] a big step for the province,” Lemke said. “The current government is spending a lot of time and effort trying to improve emergency services for remote communities in the province. We’re very enthusiastic to be a part of that.”
The B.C. government is also working through a similar contract for fixed-wing medical services.
