Winter sports thrive on movement in breathtaking scenery, on views thousands of metres above sea level and on speed on perfectly groomed pistes. Fantastic conditions, but always with a risk of injury. And that is precisely why skiers, snowboarders and climbers should always be aware that help in emergencies on the mountain usually only comes from one direction: from the air. From the air rescuers. On board the helicopters, their job is one of the most challenging in the entire ski area. SnowTrex explains what makes the work of the air rescuers so special.
The history of air rescue
Air rescuers first took to the skies above the Alps shortly before the middle of the 20th century. The first air rescue from a mountain took place in Austria during the Second World War. At that time, the rescuers landed at the scene of the accident in a light propeller aircraft of the Fieseler Storch type. The same principle was followed when the Ministry of the Interior of the Alpine Republic launched organised air rescue in 1954. In Switzerland, on the other hand, pilot Sepp Bauer had already used the first helicopter in an air rescue operation two years earlier. Back then, he had taken off from Davos at the controls of a Hiller 360 on a mountain rescue mission. in 1960, the Swiss finally founded “Rega”. Swiss Air-Rescue is still known by this name today, having been officially designated an aid organisation of the Swiss Red Cross by the Federal Council in 1965.
The reason why air rescuers were also allowed to take off in Germany at the end of the 1960s was not the increasing number of accidents in the mountains, but rather the fact that more and more people were dying in car accidents. The reason for this was the fact that the emergency services could not get to the seriously injured people on the road in time for them to be treated by an emergency doctor. For this reason, model tests were eventually carried out with helicopters that took off to treat patients after serious road accidents. This method dramatically increased the survival rate of accident victims. A doctor from Munich therefore decided to offer a so-called “airborne emergency doctor service” together with the German Armed Forces in the summer of 1970. However, due to time constraints, this was initially limited to weekends and holidays. A short time later, however, the military withdrew from the co-operation. At this point, however, the automobile club ADAC stepped into the breach. With financial support from the Bavarian state government, among others.
Rescue helicopters have been flying in the DACH region for over 50 years
And after Germany’s first rescue helicopter, the “Christoph 1”, went into continuous operation at the Munich Harlaching Clinic on 1 November 1970, the “yellow angels” are still in use today as the carrier of air rescue services throughout Germany. A task that the ADAC’s counterpart, the ÖAMTC in Austria, has been performing since 1 July 1983. At that time, Austria’s first rescue helicopter, the “Christophorus 1”, went into operation at Innsbruck University Hospital. Over the years, the emergency medical care network in the DACH region, i.e. in Germany (D), Austria (A) and Switzerland (CH), has become ever more closely knit. Accordingly, many new bases for air rescuers have been established.
Today, there are 89 rescue helicopter stations in Germany alone. In addition to ADAC Luftrettung, they are operated by DRF Luftrettung and Johanniter. The air rescue fleet in Austria consists of 24 rescue helicopters from the Christophorus Flugrettungsverein (CFV), which is operated by the Austrian Automobile Club (ÖAMTC) and the Red Cross. In Switzerland, the tasks are still carried out by Swiss Air-Rescue (Rega). In addition to a fleet of rescue helicopters, it also operates 12 air rescue stations. If necessary, mountain rescuers in all three countries can therefore always quickly call in their colleagues from the air rescue service for assistance in emergencies on ski slopes and via ferratas.
Air rescuers are always ready for first aid
Emergencies can happen 24 hours a day, which is why the air rescuers are literally always ready to provide first aid. But not all of them. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, for example, there are specialised rescue helicopter stations whose crews are also trained for night flights. Basically, the working days of the air rescuers consist of 12-hour shifts. They usually start before sunrise. Here, the crews, which consist of a pilot, a paramedic and an emergency doctor, first check their equipment together. In the event that the rescue helicopter is ready for operation, the employees report it to the control centre at 7 a.m. at the earliest. This is followed by a daily briefing for the pilot and the medics. They discuss the weather situation, what the medical equipment on board looks like and what other daily tasks need to be completed in addition to the missions.
The standby period then begins. Here, the crews wait for missions, which are divided into three different types. The so-called primary mission is the transport of the emergency doctor (and the emergency paramedic) to a patient who needs life-saving measures following an accident or due to an illness. At the scene, the air rescuers must then make the injured person “fit for transport” and transport them gently in the air to a hospital for treatment. In secondary missions, the rescue helicopter crews usually have to transfer intensive care patients from one hospital to another. Somewhat rarer, but no less important, are the tertiary missions, in which blood, medication, transplant organs or amputations are transported rather than people. The standby duty ends at sundown, but the flight rescuers still have to prepare their helicopter for the next day before the end of their shift.
Apart from TV broadcasts of such major events or other accidents that make the headlines, air rescuers are rarely in the public eye. That’s why a special day is dedicated to them every year. The achievements of the emergency crews are always celebrated and honoured on 19 March, the “Day of the Air Rescuers”.
A hero from the air has a lot to learn
As air rescuers, the crews in the rescue helicopters literally have human lives in their hands. It is an extremely responsible and technically demanding job that is not easy to learn for this reason alone. Applicants who nevertheless feel up to these physical and mental challenges have to bring a lot to the table for training in air rescue. All three positions on board the helicopter, as a pilot, paramedic or emergency doctor, require extensive prior knowledge of the respective professions. Pilots and doctors usually switch directly from the military, where they have already accumulated at least 500 flying hours on a particular helicopter or have spent years treating soldiers, to the rescue sector. Applicants for the third position, that of emergency paramedic, must also have qualifications in this field as well as several years of experience in “ground-based” rescue services.
In the event that they wish to work at rescue helicopter stations in the mountains, applicants must also have completed mountain rescue training. At the time of application, they must be no younger than 22 and no older than 40. Admission is granted if the flight rescuer candidates pass the pre-selection process as part of a three-day assessment centre.
Flight rescuer jobs are very well paid
During the training itself, the prospective emergency paramedics have to learn a lot. For example, how to fly the helicopter themselves, as they also act as a mountain specialist and co-pilot in addition to their actual job. To make sure they are ready at the end, they are trained in three basic courses. The first course covers all the subject areas of the desired profession, which are taught in theory and practice in accordance with European regulations. The second course includes practical individual training as well as an introduction to the future deployment base. The trainees take part in supervised flights with their experienced colleagues under real operating conditions. The third stage is followed by a written and a practical final examination.
Overall, the jobs in air rescue are very well paid. In Germany, emergency paramedics at ADAC can earn an average of just under 43,000 euros gross per year. This corresponds to a monthly salary of over 3,500 euros after deduction of taxes and other contributions. Rescue helicopter pilots even have the prospect of an average annual salary of just under 95,000 euros. Or just under 7,900 euros gross monthly salary.
Air rescuers come when nothing else works
As a general rule, injured people or their companions cannot alert the air rescue service of their own accord. Their emergency call is first put through to the relevant rescue coordination centre. Here, either the control centre dispatcher or the incident commander then decide which rescue resources they want to use. If the severity of the injury or the location of the scene make it necessary, the experts will then also send a rescue helicopter. Of course, this happens particularly often in the case of accidents on the mountain or in ski resorts.
When the air rescuers are deployed is also clearly defined. Namely, when there are no alternatives for patient transport or when “nothing else works”. In other words, if the patient is in a life-threatening situation, such as after a heart attack, a stroke or after a fall that leads to internal bleeding. Or if they have suffered fractures that could cause permanent damage such as paralysis. The same applies to serious ski injuries, such as broken bones and ligament injuries in the knee. Or minor injuries, for example when a mountaineer or hiker twists their ankle and can no longer descend the mountain on their own. In these cases, experts speak of “blockages”, where the person can neither go forwards nor backwards in the mountains.
Insurance companies do not pay after every emergency call
Whether winter sports enthusiasts make an emergency call after a fall or for other reasons, for which a rescue helicopter has to be alerted, they should think carefully. After all, if things go badly, you could be left with several thousand euros in rescue costs. Your own insurance company will decide whether the money for the rescue will be reimbursed. And it is precisely this insurance company that can simply refuse to cover the costs of the rescue, for example due to an unjustified reason for the operation.
So it’s literally a case of playing it safe. To avoid having to pay the costs of an air rescue yourself, SnowTrex therefore always advises its customers to take the appropriate precautions at the time of booking or shortly afterwards at the latest. This means choosing the all-round carefree cover from SnowTrex as insurance or checking whether you have already taken out international health insurance with a credit card or membership of a car club.
How a helicopter rescue in the ski area works
After requesting a rescue helicopter to treat an injured winter sports enthusiast in the ski resort, a suitable landing site is first determined near the accident site. A professional rescuer, such as a mountain rescuer, then takes up position there and instructs the helicopter with hand signals. In order to give the pilot a fixed point in the cloud of snow whirled up by the rotors, the signaller must remain in position until the helicopter has landed. Before this, relatives, other skiers and other rescue personnel must leave the landing site as quickly as possible for their own safety.
During landing and take-off, it is important for outsiders to keep as much distance as possible from the rescue helicopter, as it whirls up stones, snow and ice. The injured person, who is probably no longer able to move themselves, should be protected from flying objects with blankets. After landing, it takes just under two minutes for the main rotor of the rescue helicopter to come to a standstill. During this time, it is important to keep your distance. Unless the pilot gives clear signals that people on the ground may approach the helicopter. It is therefore important to maintain eye contact with the crew at all times and to follow the instructions of the rescue team at all times.
Rescue at lofty heights
In the event that the patient is in a difficult-to-access location on the mountain or there is simply no suitable landing site, an air rescue is also possible. In a rope rescue, also known as a rope rescue, the rescue helicopter hovers many metres above the rescue site. Either the emergency doctor or the paramedic then abseils down to the patient from the air using a cable winch. Once the patient has been treated and secured on a stretcher or rope, there are two options. Either both are pulled on board or flown to the nearest landing site hanging from the rope, where they are returned to the helicopter for the flight to the hospital.
Incidentally, rescue helicopters are hard to miss. After all, they are deliberately painted red and, in Germany and Austria, often yellow. Both are so-called warning or signal colours.
FAQs about air rescuers
How long have air rescuers been around?
The first air rescue in the mountains in Austria took place during the Second World War using a light propeller aircraft. in 1954, the Ministry of the Interior of the Alpine republic then launched organised air rescue. In Switzerland, the air rescue organisation “Rega”, which still exists today, was founded in 1960. A few years later, the first air rescuers were also deployed in Germany as part of a pilot project, before the ADAC stationed its first permanent rescue helicopter in Munich in 1970. The ÖAMTC in Innsbruck did the same a few months later.
What tasks do air rescuers have?
First and foremost, air rescuers have the task of bringing an emergency doctor to a seriously injured patient as quickly as possible and then flying them gently to a hospital after providing emergency care on site. The crews also use their rescue helicopters to help transfer intensive care patients from one hospital to another. They ensure that donor organs are transported from A to B as quickly as possible and help mountain rescuers with the search and rescue of lost hikers or climbers.
Who organises air rescue in Germany, Austria and Switzerland?
In Germany, the 89 rescue helicopter stations are mainly operated by three organisations. One is the ADAC Luftrettung and the other is the DRF Luftrettung and the Johanniter. The 24 rescue helicopters in Austria are operated by the Christophorus Flugrettungsverein (CFV), which is run jointly by the Austrian Automobile Club (ÖAMTC) and the Red Cross. In neighbouring Alpine country Switzerland, on the other hand, a private foundation, Swiss Air-Rescue (Rega), is responsible for operating the rescue helicopter fleet and 12 air rescue stations.
What qualifications are required for the job of an air rescuer?
The crew of a rescue helicopter consists of three flight rescuers. Firstly, the pilot, the emergency doctor and the paramedic. Applicants who want to switch to air rescue providers such as ADAC or ÖAMTC must always have many years of experience in their respective field for these demanding jobs. Most pilots and doctors switch from the military, where they have already accumulated hundreds of flying hours or spent years looking after injured soldiers, to the rescue sector. Emergency paramedics must also have worked in the rescue service “on the ground” before training in air rescue.
Who pays for an air rescue?
If you consider a rescue by helicopter to be justified, your health insurance will cover the costs of an air rescue. However, if your own insurance does not pay, winter sports enthusiasts may be left with several thousand euros in rescue costs. To minimise the overall risk, SnowTrex advises its customers to play it safe and take the appropriate precautions at the time of booking or shortly afterwards. This means choosing the all-round carefree cover from SnowTrex as insurance or checking whether you have taken out international health insurance via your own credit card or membership of a car club.
