WORLD’S FIRST LIVE DEMO OF AN
AIR CRASH DRONE RESCUE

In many market spaces it is considered that drones are becoming saturated. However, market saturation could not be further from the truth when discussing drones as First Response assets. This is just the beginning, drones WILL revolutionise search and rescue; but at present, drones are still some distance from fulfilling their vast potential for the Emergency Services. Drones are increasingly used for search operations, but drones are capable of much, MUCH more! Although somewhat controversial, I personally feel that for many individuals technology myopia is clouding their judgement on what these machines have to offer life saving operations. Emergency Services need to move away from narrowly viewing drones as mere camera/sensor holders to realise that their capabilities are much broader than that; if – and only if – they have been designed to do so.

With this in mind, SkyBound Rescuer will be collaborating with Professional Rescue SAR Academy and Aerones to show the art of the possible for drone life saving. We are staging the World’s First live demonstration of an air crash drone rescue – held during The Emergency Services Show, UK on Pendigo Lake outside Hall 5 on both days of the show (20^th and 21^st September, 2017). This is a non-commercial demonstration courtesy of Safequip.

WATCH OUR VIDEO to find out how drones could save lives that couldn’t be saved before: 

RESCUE TEAMS

The demonstration will consist of three rescue teams, all courtesy of Safequip:

• Rescue drone 1 = SkyBound Rescuer’s drone search team that will first locate the air crash causalities
• Rescue drone 2 = Aerones’s heavy lifting drone team that will deliver a life raft to the air crash casualties to stabilise their condition
• Rescue boats = Members of volunteer Flood Response Service tactical teams will be using two ‘Rescue One Connector’ boats provided by Safequip Ltd along with the support of a TR400 and an Arancia inflatable rescue craft and assorted technical rescue equipment, to bring the air crash casualties to relative safety and into an inflatable ‘Aireshelta’ for pre-hospital treatment

WHY?

This demonstration aims to prove that drones are capable of much more than just search. In this instance, they can race ahead of rescue boat teams to locate AND stabilise a casualty’s condition; which in a triage scenario, such as this, is invaluable for the best chances of mass survival. This demonstration will also help to disprove the common misconception of drones replacing rescue teams; instead they will enhance our capabilities – integrating seamlessly within our current search and rescue operations.

HOW?

The below image depicts the aircraft that the teams will be responding to (simulator courtesy of John Lennon Airport and SIT Ltd) which will be situated in the middle of Pendigo lake, outside Hall 5 of the NEC, Birmingham.

Spectators based on the shore of the lake will be able to watch SkyBound Rescuer’s DJI drone launch from the shore to then conduct a search pattern to locate the casualties (casualties will consist of Flood Response Service volunteers and dummies). Once located, the DJI search drone will land to allow Aerones’ large multi-rotor drone to safely launch from the water, to subsequently deliver the life raft to the air crash causalities. The volunteer Flood Response Service tactical teams will then launch their boats.

Once on scene, the Flood Response tactical teams will demonstrate a variety of water rescue tactics using the crafts in different configurations, which give much greater stability than a single craft. Examples include the T configuration which is used for search patterns in night conditions and during dive working, and the Side by Side which is used for electronic searching with side scan sonars or for “drag-netting” to recover expired victims or equipment.

The demonstrations will conclude with the casualties being brought to relative safety aboard the rescue boats and into an inflatable ‘Aireshelta’ on the shore for pre-hospital treatment. After the demonstrations, visitors will be able to talk to participants and access further technical information.

THANK YOU TO OUR VIDEO AND DEMONSTRATION SUPPORTERS