EMDEN – Northern Helicopter GmbH will continue to be responsible for offshore rescue in the offshore wind farms Albatros and Hohe See in the German exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the North Sea. The follow-up contract with EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG started on February 1, 2021 and covers a term of four years with the option of two extensions of one year. Located around 100 kilometers north of the island of Borkum, the two offshore wind farms form an overall project with 87 wind turbines.

The Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) has already been provided by NHC Northern Helicopter for the offshore wind farm Hohe See since February 15, 2018 and for Albatros since February 1, 2019. “We are pleased to continue our cooperation with NHC as a reliable and professional provider for HEMS in order to ensure fast and appropriate emergency medical care for our employees in the North Sea,” Friedrich von Storch, Operations Manager Offshore Wind at EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG, says. The offshore rescue helicopter is based in St. Peter-Ording and is operated 24/7.

The air rescue service from NHC Northern Helicopter is part of the holistic medical care concept WINDEAcare for the offshore wind industry. “We set high standards for the safety of our customers, but also of our crews. These include optimally equipped offshore rescue helicopters for emergency situations and teams with above-average qualifications. In joint exercises with the technicians on the wind turbines, the necessary procedures for emergencies are regularly trained,” Christian Müller-Ramcke, Managing Director of Northern Helicopter GmbH, says. In 2020, the crews of the rescue helicopters in the North Sea and Baltic Sea completed 254 training hours for winch maneuvers on wind turbines, platforms, and vessels. A total of 1,146 flight hours were reported for the past year for offshore rescue missions, exercises, and other rescue missions.

For more than ten years, NHC Northern Helicopter has specialized in acute and emergency medical care as well as the transport of injured and sick people from offshore wind farms in both the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Every offshore rescue helicopter is equipped with the state-of-the art emergency medical equipment to treat and monitor patients. The flying crew consists of two pilots as well as a winch operator, and the medical crew consists of an emergency doctor as well as an emergency paramedic.

WINDEAcare

WINDEAcare is a holistic medical care concept for offshore wind farms: In addition to Northern Helicopter GmbH (Air Rescue / HEMS), the partners include Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe eV, Regionalverband Weser-Ems (emergency paramedic / emergency control center, rescue training offshore / material concepts), Klinikum Oldenburg AöR (Medical management / telemedicine services) and Falck Fire Service DE GmbH (offshore fire fighting / fire protection concepts). WINDEAcare is not an independent company, but rather a product that exists through close cooperation between the partner companies that act independently in each case and that is sold by WINDEA Offshore GmbH & Co. KG.

Northern Helicopter GmbH

Northern Helicopter GmbH is a company of the DRF Stiftung Luftrettung non-profit AG (DRF Luftrettung). NHC Northern Helicopter has been able to steadily expand its market position in recent years. In 2014 the company opened a base in Sankt Peter-Ording for wind farms in the North Sea, and in 2018 another one followed in Güttin on the island of Rügen for wind farms in the Baltic Sea. Back in 2011, NHC Northern Helicopter was the first private company to offer rescue flights in the German Bay, 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. With the introduction of the holistic WINDEAcare offshore rescue concept, NHC Northern Helicopter, together with its cooperation partners in emergency medicine and fire fighting, has established itself as the market leader in the industry. A total of 21 pilots, 20 emergency doctors and 17 paramedics fly on the seven helicopters operated by NHC Northern Helicopter.