Airbus’ products and services are used for some of the most critical missions.
Through humanitarian aid, we support our partners in times of crisis, providing aircraft, satellite imagery and other services when relief teams are literally fighting against the clock.
Our aircraft help transport patients for urgent medical care, and they assist in search efforts to find those marooned at sea, stranded in the mountains, or isolated in remote regions.
When a crisis occurs, our Earth observation satellites are tasked to acquire images of the concerned area. This imagery is delivered to relevant authorities, together with archived data, to rapidly assess the extent of damage and support rescue planning by allowing actions to be prioritized, and identifying if roads, bridges and airport runways are still operational.
At Airbus, we know this matters most – driving us in how we work and what we do
Air medical services
When lives are at stake and emergency care is needed, air medical services are invaluable.
For most of the 20th century, an accident in a remote location or on a distant highway meant long lapses of time before medical care arrived. Afterwards, victims underwent an often equally long journey to a hospital. For many, this delay was too long.
Thankfully, emergency response systems have improved in countries around the world – particularly when it comes to air medical services.
When every second matters
The biggest advantage of Helicopter Emergency Medical Services - what many in the industry refer to as “HEMS” - is that emergency teams can reach a location three-to-five-times faster than ground vehicles. And in some cases, helicopters are the only vehicles capable of accessing inhospitable terrain. Thanks to HEMS, patients receive medical treatment earlier and the chance of survival in critical cases goes up.
At Airbus, we take pride in the fact that many of our helicopters were instrumental in the development of the HEMS systems in service today.
As we operate in a time-sensitive environment where every second matters, it is important for us to be equipped with the right helicopters for these demanding aeromedical missions.
- Mitsuhiro Hirata, Vice President, Aviation Operation Division of Japan's Hiratagakuen Aviation Operation Division.
Evacuations in times of crisis
In crisis situations, when time is of the essence, Airbus-built A400M and A330 MRTT airlifters are used for medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) missions. Providing both speed and the capacity to carry a large amount of onboard medical equipment, Airbus military aircraft are counted on during catastrophic events where evacuations are needed to save lives.
Flying these missions is of national importance in helping the National Health Service safeguard the health of every person in the United Kingdom – even in its most remote corners.
- Ian C., the Maintenance Operations Coordinator for the Airbus team based at RAF Brize Norton air base in Oxfordshire, UK.
Search and rescue
Whether lost at sea or in the mountains, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft are often the most rapid and efficient means of bringing people to safety. With the ability to access isolated areas and inhospitable terrain, they often are the difference between life and death situations.
Maritime search and rescue
When a boat or ship is lost at sea, the following hours and days that follow can be perilous. With speed and the ability to retrieve passengers in even difficult sea conditions, aircraft and helicopters are essential to finding and rescuing our loved ones.
Mountain rescue
Often, the only option for finding a person lost in rugged and remote locations is by helicopter. Able to search over large swaths of terrain quickly, in areas that would otherwise be arduous and time-consuming to cover by land, the helicopter is a game-changer for rescue teams in mountainous regions.
These are operations you don’t forget.
- Rupert Gleissl, Airbus Engineer and volunteer operations manager and mountain rescuer for the mountain rescue service in Rottach-Egern in Bavaria, Germany
Humanitarian aid
Airbus believes it is every company’s responsibility to give back to society.
Through the humanitarian branch of the Airbus Foundation, we are in the unique position to not only donate financial support, but our products and personnel available in the event of a disaster. With Airbus-built aircraft and helicopters, we assist recovery missions and deliver critical supplies. Our Earth observation satellites provide imagery to assess disaster management, predict weather conditions and help rescue teams coordinate during their missions. And with our data analytics services, we support victims in their journey following a disaster, assisting them to restore a sense of normalcy as quickly as possible.
Partnering with Humanitarian Community
Extreme weather conditions such as storms, floods, heat waves and droughts trigger the majority of the world’s natural disasters, and have accounted for more than 600,000 deaths in the past 20 years (based on United Nations figures). With climate change expected to intensify these events in the coming years, the role of humanitarian organisations around the world is critical.
As an airline committed to living up to our social responsibilities, we have been ferrying humanitarian shipments as part of our initiatives to give back to society. The humanitarian aid we are carrying with the delivery of the new Airbus A350-900 aircraft is an extension of our social commitments. I would like to thank Airbus for joining us in this noble initiative as it has been doing in the past.
- Ethiopian Group CEO Tewolde Gebre Mariam
