Our History

Essex Air Ambulance was established and began fundraising.

Our first aircraft, a Bölkow 105 DB, began operating from Boreham Airfield with one pilot and two paramedics on board.

We began flying seven days a week during daylight hours and launched our Motorcycle Run fundraising event, which is still thriving today.

Thanks to fundraising and public support, we upgraded our aircraft to the Eurocopter EC135 T2. We also opened our first charity shop in West Mersea, an idea proposed to us by a volunteer.

Herts Air Ambulance charity was established, and we began to raise funds for a second aircraft. We merged the two services to become Essex & Herts Air Ambulance Trust (EHAAT).

The Herts Air Ambulance service, based at North Weald, became operational with a MD902 Explorer, and rapid response vehicles were added to the fleet. Pre-hospital care doctors were introduced to work alongside the critical care paramedics and pilots.

Essex Air Ambulance began flying a MD902 Explorer, the same model as Herts Air Ambulance.

Essex Air Ambulance’s operational base moved from Boreham to Earls Colne. Our first visitor centre is opened at the Earls Colne Airbase with volunteers hosting tours.

Our Flight for Life Lottery reached 100,000 weekly playing members. It is a major source of income, raising millions of pounds for the charity.

The charity’s HQ moved into brand new premises on the Earls Colne Business Park. The Ware charity shop was opened, the first of our shops in Hertfordshire.

Co-pilots were introduced to the crew. This change allowed the paramedic to be in the back of the helicopter with the doctor and patient, enhancing patient care. Following the success of the visitor centre at Earls Colne, a similar centre opened at North Weald Airbase.

We celebrated 20 years of serving the community and combined both services into one unified identity, Essex & Herts Air Ambulance. The charity’s new state of the art AW169 aircraft was unveiled. It is the first helicopter to be purchased rather than leased by the charity.

Our dedicated team of volunteers grew to over 300. They are vital to EHAAT and support us in so many ways, from helping with fundraising activities and in our charity shops to representing us in the community and so much more.

We began carrying blood on board. Giving a blood transfusion at the scene can be a life-saving intervention. The service became operational 24/7 for the first time, using helicopters by day and rapid response vehicles in the hours of darkness.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic altered the way our charity and clinical staff work in order to keep patients, volunteers, supporters and staff safe. Our airbase at Earls Colne was expanded and refurbished, with improved working conditions for the crews.

We open our purpose-built airbase here at North Weald. These facilities secure our future in being able to provide care to the critically injured across Essex, Hertfordshire and the surrounding areas.

The Earl and Countess of Wessex have visited our new base at North Weald in a first Royal visit for the charity. The royals toured our new airbase and met EHAAT’s critical care team members, charity staff, and volunteers.

Our crews here at EHAAT are now flying in the hours of darkness, having completed the Night Vision Imaging System (NVIS) training necessary to extend our operational period and capability. We attended our first helicopter night mission on Saturday evening 14th January following an RTC in the Southend area.