AERO AIR EXPANDS COMMANDER-BASED
MEDEVAC OPS
The unique combination of attributes that makes Twin Commanders the top choice for tasks ranging from aerial observation and reconnaissance to executive and personal transport are proving to be the right combination for another important job—transporting medical patients in need of advanced care. That's certainly proving to be the case for Aero Air in Hillsboro, Oregon. The factory authorized Twin Commander service center recently added two more Twin Commanders to its expanding hospital patient transport program.
Aero Air has been operating a pair of medevac-configured Twin Commanders for over a decade for the LifeFlight Network, a consortium of Portland, Oregon-area hospitals including Oregon Health & Science University, Legacy Health System, and Providence Health System. A Commander is dispatched from either Hillsboro or The Dalles east of Portland to bring a patient back to Portland to receive expanded or specialized care at one of the participating hospitals.
This year Aero Air placed an additional pair of 690A Twin Commanders at Boeing Field in Seattle to fly patients for Airlift Northwest, which represents Harborview Medical Center and the University of Washington. As in Oregon, patients are flown in from throughout the northwest to the Seattle hospitals in the Commanders to receive advanced treatment.
Why Twin Commanders? “They stand out because of the low operating cost relative to the competition, and wonderful performance specs that allows us to operate in areas many other aircraft cannot,” explains Jeff Tobolski, who as Aero Air's vice president of operations oversees all flight operations including medevac. Ease of patient loading also is a significant positive factor because of the high wing—there are no stairs to climb.
The Commanders' short-field capability is suited to smaller airports that Aero Air's other Seattle-based fixed-wing medevac aircraft—Lear 31As—could not operate from because of balanced field limitations. The Commanders also are dispatched to smaller airports in IFR weather conditions that preclude the use of medevac helicopters.
The performance, load-carrying capability, and cabin space allow for a patient and three people to be carried in the passenger cabin. Two jump seats and a regular forward-facing passenger seat accommodate three medical professionals or two and a family member traveling with the patient. Dispatch reliability also is a critical consideration—Aero Air expects to log as much as 2200 hours a year between the two operations.
The air ambulance Commanders are fitted with an Aero Air cabin door mod that allows the door to swing completely open so it does not interfere with loading and unloading of a full-size stretcher. A step mod keeps the step retracted when the door is opened. The passenger cabins are fitted with Lifeport medical stretcher units for patient care and comfort in flight. Isolettes for neonatal units also are used extensively. The cabins also have been modified with a special noise-reduction kit.
Aero Air has 13 pilots assigned to the four medevac Commanders, with five more to be added plus a management pilot. The Oregon-based aircraft fly single pilot, while the Seattle-based Commanders operate with a two-pilot crew as specified by Airlift Northwest. All the Twin Commanders have Garmin G600s with synthetic vision.
“The Commander’s reliability has proven valuable day-in and day-out,” Tobolski said. “New modifications—especially in avionics—coupled with OEM upgrades make it a platform to rely on for years to come.”
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