EMDEN – Since November 1, 2020, NHC Northern Helicopter GmbH has once again been responsible for the offshore rescue for the RWE Amrumbank West wind farm in the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the North Sea. After a four years intermission, the Amrumbank wind farm with its 80 offshore wind turbines is again one of the references of the Emden aviation company. The two-year contract with the energy company RWE includes the provision of emergency medical care with a rescue helicopter and the offshore emergency control center. This control center, operated by the Gesellschaft für maritimes Notfallmanagement (GMN), coordinates the rescue operations. The air rescue of NHC Northern Helicopter is part of the holistic supply concept WINDEAcare for the offshore wind industry.

“We see RWE’s decision to completely put the air rescue in our hands as a great confirmation of our work,” Armin Ortmann, managing director of NHC Northern Helicopter, said. NHC Northern Helicopter has been providing the Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) and emergency control center for the neighboring RWE offshore wind farm Nordsee Ost since November 1, 2018. With the recently concluded contract, RWE bundles the offshore air rescue for both wind farms off Helgoland with one service provider. “As the second largest operator of offshore wind farms worldwide, the safety of our employees is always our top priority. With Northern Helicopter, we have a competent partner at our side who shares our high quality standards for medical care and, together with us, guarantees a fast and reliable rescue chain – now for both wind farms that we operate off the island of Helgoland, ” Marc Vahjen says, at RWE Renewables responsible for the operation of the Amrumbank West offshore wind farm.

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 NHC Northern Helicopter offshore rescue helicopter is equipped with the latest emergency medical equipment to treat and monitor patients. The flying crew consists of two pilots and a winch operator, the medical crew consists of an emergency doctor and an emergency paramedic.

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.

WINDEAcare

WINDEAcare is a holistic medical care concept for offshore wind farms: In addition to Northern Helicopter GmbH (Luftrettung / 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), Falck Fire Service DE GmbH (offshore fire fighting / fire protection concepts) and Ems Maritime Offshore GmbH (nautical expertise). 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.