Saskatchewan Air Ambulance (also called LIFEGUARD) is the

air ambulance Air medical services are the use of aircraft, including both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters to provide various kinds of urgent medical care, especially prehospital, emergency and critical care to patients during aeromedical evacuation an ...

service for the province of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

and for the

Ministry of Health (Saskatchewan) The Ministry of Health in Saskatchewan is responsible for policy direction, sets and monitors standards, and provides funding for regional health authorities and provincial health services. External linksOfficial Website of Saskatchewan

History

Celebrating 75 years of service in 2021, the

program was established in 1946 as the first non-military air medical transport program in the world; since October 2008, the Ministry of Health administers the program with operations handled by the

Saskatoon Health Region The Saskatoon Health Region was the largest health region in Saskatchewan, Canada. Primarily based in the city of Saskatoon, the health region operated out of 75 facilities, including 10 hospitals, 29 long term care facilities, and numerous pri ...

. Lifeguard completes about 1,500 flights per year, both within and outside of Saskatchewan.

Aircraft Fleet

The program makes use of four Beechcraft Super King Air B200 aircraft based out of the Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker International Airport. The service also makes use of contracted service from providers such as

Transwest Air Rise Air is a scheduled and Air charter, charter airline primarily serving the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Its headquarters and main base are in Saskatoon. Rise Air, a First Nations in Canada, First ...

. The Saskatchewan Air Ambulance Service also coordinates with

Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society The Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service (STARS, formerly Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society) is a Canadian non-profit helicopter air ambulance organization funded by individual donors, service groups, corporate donors and government contributions. ST ...

, that is being contracted to station helicopters at both the Saskatoon and Regina airports. The aircraft are available to transport critically ill and injured patients 24 hours a day, every day in most weather conditions. The air ambulances can be dispatched for an emergency within 30 minutes of a call.

Incidents

Around 12:00pm on January 3, 2011, Lifeguard 3 touched down on a snow-covered runway at Maple Creek Airport. The left main gear contacted a 14-inch windrow, causing the pilot to lose directional control. The aircraft departed the runway surface, causing the left main gear and nose gear to collapse. The nose section and propellers were damaged. The pilot, nurse and paramedic were not injured. Lifeguard 3 is repaired and back to full service.

References

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External links

Saskatchewan Air AmbulanceDoc O'Shea's Air Ambulance trip from Yorkton to Regina in 1958
Aviation in Saskatchewan Air ambulance services in Canada