The 1050bhp Jet Suit was developed as a collaboration between the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) and Gravity Industries, with the amazing exercise taking place at the Langdale Pikes.
During the test flight, Gravity Industries founder and Chief Test Pilot Richard Browning flew from the bottom of the valley bottom up to a simulated casualty site on The Band, close to Bowfell. This site would have taken approximately 25 minutes to get to by walking.
The Gravity Jet Suit is capable of covering the exact same distance in just 90 seconds flat. This would potentially allow emergency responders to get to casualty areas with much faster speed, saving many lives as a result.
Andy Mawson, the director of operations and paramedic at GNAAS, identified the Lake District as being a possible location for a Jet Suit paramedic as the recorded data showed ‘dozens of patients every month’ within the area.
Mawson also said that the test has shown the potential for Jet Suits to improve upon the delivery of critical care services.
“In a time in healthcare when we are exhausted with COVID and its effects, it’s important to still push the boundaries,” Mawson said. “Our aircraft will remain a vital part of the emergency response in this terrain, as will the fantastic mountain rescue teams. But this is about looking at supplementing those resources with something completely new.”
“We think this technology could enable our team to reach some patients much quicker than ever before. In many cases, this would ease the patient’s suffering. In some cases, it would save their lives.”
“It was wonderful to be invited to explore the capabilities of the Gravity Jet Suit in an emergency response simulation and work alongside the team at GNAAS,” Browning added.point 267 |
“We are just scratching the surface in terms of what is possible to achieve with our technology.point 82 | Emergency response is one of the areas Gravity are actively pursuing, alongside launching a new commercial training location at the world-renowned Goodwood Estate.point 223 |
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The test flight is successful. Now, GNAAS and Gravity Industries are now looking towards exploring the next steps in their collaboration.