Lisburn based charity Air Ambulance NI has been tasked on 3656 missions in six years

During that time HEMS has been tasked on 3656 occasions, on average responding to two incidents every single day.

One such patient was Danny Byrne who was just 12 when he was involved in a serious road traffic collision while cycling home from his local shop in Warrenpoint almost a year ago.

Danny had broken his femur in his right leg, damaged nerves in his left arm and had severe facial injuries. The HEMS team treated Danny and brought him to hospital where he had six hours of surgery, followed by extensive physio.

Danny’s mum Denise reflected on the aftermath of her son’s accident: “Danny had five days in hospital and a good six months of recovery before he got the all-clear.

"We cannot thank air ambulance enough for their help that day. If it wasn’t for their quick response and turnaround, Danny’s recovery could have been a lot worse.”

Glenn O’Rorke HEMS Operational Lead said: “We are always prepared to treat anyone of any age, and carry specialised kit which is size appropriate, and clearly labelled by age for ease of access when every second counts at scene.

"Patients are at the centre of everything we do and whilst not every patient can be saved, our team strives to ensure the best possible outcome for each person.”

The service operates 365 days of the year for 12 hours per day and the aircraft can get to the furthest locations in NI from its airbase in Lisburn in approximately 25 minutes.

HEMS Clinical Lead, Doctor Darren Monaghan added: “The strong partnership of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service and Air Ambulance Northern NI allows the HEMS team provide Pre Hospital Critical across Northern Ireland. This aim of this service is to ensure patients, who are critically injured or ill, receive optimal care before they reach hospital.

"From a Trauma perspective, we find that approximately one third of the incidents the HEMS team are called to involve road traffic collisions. HEMS also attends patients who have been injured as a result of serious falls, workplace accidents, and farm or sports related incidents.”

Air Ambulance NI aspires to raise £2.5million each year to maintain and sustain this service so public donations are crucial.

Breige Mulholland Head of Operations and Finance at Air Ambualnce NI said: “HEMS is provided by a partnership between the charity and NIAS and we would like to take this opportunity to extend our continued thanks to NIAS and the Department of Health for their continued support.

"Each time the helicopter lifts off we are aware that someone is in great need and that, thanks to the generosity of people locally, the HEMS team can respond and give hope. We are truly grateful to everyone who has been able to support us over the past six years.”

The charity is organising a range of events including a skydive on September 9, Dragon Boat Racing on September 15, an abseil at the Europa Hotel, Belfast, on October 8, and an abseil at Belfast Castle on Sunday December 10. Visit airambulanceni.org/upcoming-events/ for more information.