The Lowe Corporation rescue helicopter crew attempt a rooftop rescue of a woman and child in Esk Valley during Cyclone Gabrielle. Video /
Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter Trust
It’s with a heavy heart that Ian Wilmot is saying goodbye to the Hawke’s Bay Rescue Helicopter Trust.
After 13 years as trust general manager, he recognises that the challenges of the job are potentially too much for someone about to turn 70.
In an average year, the trust hasto raise $1.25 million to $1.5m to “make ends meet,” he says.
But that’s a drop in the bucket compared to the capital expenditure that will be required to ensure Hawke’s Bay continues to have a rescue service it can rely on.
Wilmost says the trust’s chopper is almost 40 years old and a new one will cost in the vicinity of $18m.
“The big challenge that’s ahead now is moving from a $3m to $4m helicopter to an $18m helicopter and that’s going to require my role to become a fulltime role,” Wilmot said.
Ian Wilmot is retiring from his role as Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter Trust general manager. Photo / Paul Taylor
He says that’s a tall order “for somebody who’s at retirement age”, not least because there’s no certainty of tenure for the trust.
While sponsors, businesses, various fundraising initiatives and “what we affectionately call the mums and dads on the street” generously allow the trust to generate the $1.25 to $1.5m it needs annually, that only covers about 25 per cent of the operating budget.
The rest comes from government contracts, primarily a partnership between Te Whatu Ora and ACC in the Hawke’s Bay Rescue Helicopter Trust’s case.
That’s partly why they’re continuing to rely on “a very old helicopter”, says Wilmot.
The maintenance regime is a strict one, but it won’t be sufficient forever and a new chopper will eventually become essential.
“Now, the reason why we haven’t gone that way is the government contracts we’ve been getting have always been reasonably short-term,” said Wilmot.
“So we’ve only got another three years remaining so, as a charity, you don’t go out chasing $18m if you’ve only got three years remaining on your contract.”
The current contract expires in October 2026.
For Wilmot, it’s the people he’ll miss once he completes his handover to Quayle at the end of this month.
The dedicated band of pilots, crewmen and paramedics that deliver the trust’s service are very dear to Wilmot, but it’s the generosity of Hawke’s Bay that’s touched him most.
“That’s probably one of the highlights of the job for me. I’m just overwhelmed with the support we get,” Wilmot said.
The vast majority of folk who’ve supported the trust, since its inception in 1992, hopefully won’t require its services.
“But you never know when you’re going to need it and, when you do need it, it’s still a free service to the individual,” said Wilmot.
Te Whatu Ora’s Astuti Balram, group manager, primary care – living well, said Te Whatu Ora and ACC jointly purchase emergency air ambulance services (EAAS) from providers such as Central Air Ambulance Rescue Limited (CAARL).
“CAARL is contracted to cover the Hawke’s Bay region,” he said. “It has relationships with local trusts in its coverage area (noting the trusts do not have a contractual relationship with Te Whatu Ora and ACC). This means Te Whatu Ora and ACC do not own the air ambulance helicopters. The EAAS contracts do not state whether the providers should own or lease the helicopters. The contracts are for the entire service, and include helicopters, bases, crew, and infrastructure.”
The same helicopters are occasionally used by search and rescue services. These missions are funded by SAR (NZ Police) or the NZ Rescue Coordination Centre, he said.
“We acknowledge that the short-term nature of our current EAAS contracts can be a constraint when deciding how to fund helicopters. There is currently an Aeromedical Commissioning Programme underway, based within the Ambulance Team (which is jointly funded and governed by Te Whatu Ora and ACC). The Ambulance Team will be working with EAAS providers on longer (10+ year) contract terms in the near future.”
Hamish Bidwell joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2022 and works out of the Hastings newsroom.
