Royal Navy Helicopters: supporting the NHS in the South West
Royal Navy helicopters are providing 24/7 support to the NHS: in particular the South Western Ambulance Service, ready to support a population of over 4.5 million.
The whole of Royal Navy Air Station Culdrose, based in Helston, Cornwall, will be working behind the scenes to help the NHS while running regular duties to keep the UK and its waters safe. Every role from medics and air traffic controllers, to meteorologists and even caterers, will be helping the effort.
The Royal Navy Merlin Mk2 are the best submarine-hunting helicopters in the world, and three are being adapted to assist the NHS during the COVID pandemic. They are able to carry multiple stretchers, passengers and stores quickly and efficiently over long distances.
820 Naval Air Squadron and Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose will be at high readiness to provide support across Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Somerset, the Channel Islands and the Isles of Scilly — serving a population of over 4.5 million residents.
820 NAS Commanding Officer, Commander Chris ‘Grassy’ Knowles says that he and his team are ready and proud to deliver:
The whole Squadron is incredibly proud to be able to assist our colleagues from the NHS during these testing times, it’s a real moment for everyone to pull together and it’s great to be able to provide such a capable aircraft, maintained and flown by a fantastic team, to do our part.
