New measures to protect air ambulance crews from Zika
German company Quick Air Jet Charter is using pump sprays and mosquito nets to protect its crew members.
German air medical provider Quick Air Jet Charter has reported that for the past three months, it has been using pump sprays and mosquito nets to protect its patients and crew members from insect transmitted diseases.
The Zika virus epidemic prompted the company to begin supplying crew members with special tropical insect repellent pump sprays and mosquito nets for overnight stays in hotel beds. These measures are now being used in all of the company’s tropical air ambulance missions.
An additional measure includes a customised mosquito net for the aircraft doors of the company’s Learjet 35, 36 and 55 planes. According to Quick Air Jet Charter, these nets can be easily fixed and removed from the aircraft and stored in small bags.
“The nets are used during technical landings for refuelling as well as during the patient loading process using a loading ramp,” said the company. The crew members are said to be ‘delighted’ and also use the nets for non-tropical missions.
The company stated that the nets were developed by its EASA Part 145 aircraft maintenance facility ASK – Air Service Klausheide, which is located in Münster Osnabrück International Airport, along with Cologne Bonn International Airport in Germany. The firm says it is willing to support other air ambulance companies with the products at a cost of $1,000 per net plus bag.