AIR AMBULANCE PLANE BACK IN SERVICE

Released on January 14, 2002

An air ambulance plane is back in full service one week after an incident

which forced the plane to undergo a series of major repairs.



The King Air B200 - the newest addition to Saskatchewan Air Ambulance - is

now back in full operation after hitting a deer on a runway in La Ronge on

January 6th.



"Our team worked extremely hard over the past few days to get this aircraft

back in operation, knowing the vital role Air Ambulance plays," Director of

Air Transportation Services for Saskatchewan Property Management

Corporation (SPMC) Rob Madden said. "After our initial assessment of the

aircraft, we determined that a new propeller and a new engine were

required. Our maintenance engineers did a search across North America and

within hours had the replacement parts on their way to Saskatchewan."



Following the incident in La Ronge, arrangements were immediately made with

private charter aircraft to supplement the air ambulance program to ensure

service levels were maintained.



The damaged propeller and engine will undergo further examination to

determine the full extent of the damage for insurance purposes. The King

Air B200, as part of the government's air ambulance fleet, is fully

insured.



The Saskatchewan Air Ambulance Program is the longest serving non-military

air ambulance

program in the world. In 2000-01, the Saskatchewan Air Ambulance Service

provided 1,123 flights to transport critically ill or injured patients who

needed specialized care.



The government has purchased another King Air B200 to replace the fleet's

oldest aircraft, a 1978 Cheyenne II. The new aircraft is currently

undergoing its conversion to an air ambulance and will be in service in the

next two months. The province's air ambulance fleet consists of three

aircraft.



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For more information, contact:



Dave Burdeniuk

SPMC

Regina

Phone: (306) 787-1075