Multicopter: vertical take-off for the rescue service
ADAC Luftrettung is researching the use of multicopters to bring emergency doctors to the scene of an accident quickly, cheaply, quietly and with low emissions.
- Cooperation with aircraft manufacturer Volocopter
- First public flight of a VoloCity
- Relief for the ADAC rescue helicopters
The non-profit organization ADAC Luftrettung has been working with the German aircraft manufacturer Volocopter on manned multicopters for the rescue service for five years now. A multicopter is an electrically powered vertical take-off and landing device. The first public flight of a VoloCity has now taken place at the Volocopter headquarters in Bruchsal, Baden-Württemberg.
ADAC Luftrettung plans to start flying a multicopter of this type at the end of 2024 in order to bring emergency doctors to the scene of an accident quickly, quietly and at low cost. The use of such an aircraft would also relieve the pressure on the ADAC rescue helicopters, which are already used purely to transport emergency doctors in 60 percent of cases – even though, unlike a multicopter, they have space for patient transport.
If the research operation in the model regions of Idar-Oberstein and Dinkelsbühl, which is scheduled to run for at least two years , proves successful, the plan is for the multicopter project to go into regular rescue service operation. ADAC Luftrettung has already made provisions for this: at the Paris Air Show, the world’s largest aviation trade fair, it not only announced the purchase of the two aircraft for research operations, but also the option to purchase up to 150 more next-generation multicopters.
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ADAC Luftrettung is doing pioneering work
The Paris Hospital Association, for example, has shown interest – and can imagine testing ADAC Luftrettung’s multicopter concept in France after a successful start in Germany.
