Flying Paramedic Project Set to Take Off

There will soon be a low rumbling in the Lake District of north-western England, once a pilot project involving paramedics and jetpacks gets off the ground.

When British inventor Richard Browning sped at 135 km/h through the air using his own Daedalus Flight Pack – produced by his own company, Gravity Industries – in November 2019, he proved that personal flight jetsuits have future potential.

Now, Great North Air Ambulance (GNNA) staff are going to receive jetpack training to make rescue operations in inaccessible areas more swift and efficient, as each second is precious in such critical situations.

GNNA Operations Director, Andy Mawson, commented: “We’re still awestruck by it, everyone looks at the wow factor and the fact we are the world’s first jetsuit paramedics, but for us it’s about delivering patient care.”

Mawson has completed the training to use the technology unassisted, and two more GNNA members are expected to undergo the course that will allow them to fly with 144kg of thrust to any particular area in 90 seconds.

Helicopters can get to a stranded/injured person within 30 minutes, but finding a flat enough area to land on is tricky – something the jetsuits have no problem with. According to GNNA’s test data, this could potentially lead to resolving 15 to 20 medical cases a week.

Designing and processing the suits is still expensive and time-intensive, but manufacturers are pushing the envelope to one day bring the technology to the masses. Indeed, the sky is truly the limit for what comes next.

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