Wed, Mar 09, 2011
Metro Aviation Will Convert Three Helos For University Of
Michigan
As the result of a recent competitive bid award, Metro Aviation
will finish three Eurocopter EC155B1 critical care transport
helicopters for The University of Michigan Health System Survival
Flight program. Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Survival Flight will
enter service with their first EC155B1 in September 2011 and will
replace the current fleet of Bell 430s with the three new
helicopters. Survival Flight initiated service as the first air
medical program in the state of Michigan in 1983 and will be the
first to operate civil air medical EC155s in the United States
Prior to delivery of the first new airframe to Metro Aviation,
the company developed a full scale cabin, baggage, and cockpit
mock-up in order to reduce the configuration development and
completion timeframe. The airframe mock-up includes cabin and
flight crew seating with a LifePort MedDeck patient handling
platform. Working in conjunction with the product design group at
Metro Aviation, Survival Flight program director, Denise Landis,
recently visited the company headquarters with the interior
development group from the longtime air medical program, to
finalize interior appointments and equipment fitment plans. The
airframe mock-up will also provide air medical crew training and
systems familiarization opportunities without utilizing an
operational aircraft.
The EC155 air medical development program at Metro Aviation will
include cabin seating for five medical attendants, two piece
aluminum floor with integrated tracking, a secondary patient
restraint system, as well as custom interior lighting and audio
systems. An innovative flat screen multi-function system at three
cabin stations to control and indicate condition of equipment is
utilized. Milton Geltz, Managing Director, states, "The large cabin
size of the EC155 created a unique problem for the crew. Through
the Cobham DACS system we are installing they could communicate but
the larger issue was how to effectively control the functions of
the installed patient care support equipment. We believe we have
solved this problem with the flat screen multifunction control
system." Geltz also stated, "Survival Flight will receive the
innovative iPAD familiarization tool that will describe all the
installed equipment functionality and operation."
File Photo
Ben Tung, a flight nurse from the University of Michigan Health
System Survival Flight says they intend to integrate this system
into their recurrent training program to maintain the currency of
flight team members. Metro Aviation will integrate other
specialized systems on the aircraft for the critical care transport
team in addition to providing a custom paint scheme specified by
Survival Flight. Metro Aviation is also responsible for developing
the first air medical interiors for both the EC135 and EC145. The
company will receive the first new airframe from American
Eurocopter in May 2011.
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