Air Ambulance Victoria (AAV) celebrated 60 years of pre-hospital care today on Monday, May 2.
The AAV wing of Ambulance Victoria (AV) launched in 1962 and included one rotary wing aircraft and one fixed-wing plane.
Sixty years on, the AAV has a fleet of four fixed-wing planes and five Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) helicopters, which provides a vital link between rural communities and metropolitan health services.
AV manager of air operations Anthony de Wit said AAV has been at the forefront of pre-hospital patient care in Australia, including in Ocean Grove.
“While it’s difficult to confirm the number of lives saved since 1962, over the past decade AAV has assisted more than 50,000 people throughout Victoria and our bordering communities,” he said.
“Our fixed-wing arm is the backbone of AAV and it cares for so many patients per year, really helping to connect regional and rural Victoria with the health services that metropolitan Melbourne has to offer.”
