After marching approximately a kilometre in heavy rain from the Taupo Fire Station to the town centre, they gathered inside the Great Lake Centre for speeches.
The National Ambulance Sector Office has proposed a new national structure for air ambulance services, with Taupo no longer included.
The Greenlea rescue helicopter - based at Taupo Airport - has been called out hundreds of times a year to jobs ranging from medical emergencies to lost trampers and survival situations on the mountains of the Central Plateau.
It was called out 10 times during the four-day Easter break.