ADAC Luftrettung and Volocopter have entered an agreement which will see the HEMS provider purchase two Volocity eVTOLs to explore the use of eVTOLs in HEMS operations. The two organisations have been collaborating since 2018 on a feasibility study sponsored by the ADAC Foundation with the support of the Institut für Notfallmedizin und Medizinmanagement (INM, Institute for Emergency Medicine and Medical Management) at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. The first part of today’s agreement (20 June 2023) marks the next logical step to prove the modelling in flight operations.
Under the terms of the purchase, ADAC will take delivery of the aircraft when EASA certification for the Volocity has been granted. Currently, delivery is expected in late 2024. If the flight programme which will see the aircraft crewed with a pilot and doctor operating in support of legacy HEMS aircraft. Should the flight test programme successfully validate the modelling results, then the second element of the agreement, which would see ADAC purchase up to an additional 148 Volocitys
“From the very beginning, we have been convinced that these aircraft can also shape and improve the rescue service of the future,” explained Frédéric Bruder, Chief Executive Officer of ADAC Luftrettung, and emphasised: “With higher ranges and operational speeds as well as significantly more payload of the next generation of eVTOLs, we can also put the benefits for emergency care into practice – and fulfil our statutory mission to further develop the rescue service from the air with pioneering innovations.”