An HH-139A helicopter of the 85th Center The 15th Squadron SAR carried out the emergency transport after boarding a medical team in Latina

This evening, Thursday 17 August, an HH-139A helicopter of the 85th SAR Centre (Search and Rescue) of the 15th Air Force Squadron of the Italian Air Force carried out the emergency transport of a twenty-nine-year-old pregnant woman in imminent danger of life from the island of Ponza (LT) to Rome.

As provided for by the operational procedures, the request for The intervention was received by the Rescue Coordination Center of the Air Operations Command of Poggio Renatico (FE) from the Prefectural Office of Latina. In a short time, the helicopter took off from the military airport of Pratica di Mare towards the base of Latina, headquarters of the 70th Squadron, where it boarded a medical team to assist the patient during the flight.

After taking off, the military helicopter landed on the “Santa Lucia” helipad in Ponza (LT), where the woman was quickly boarded; the crew then took off towards Rome, landing at the heliport of the “Agostino Gemelli” Policlinico, where the patient was cared for by hospital staff.

The helicopter then returned to the base of Pratica di Mare to resume its state of readiness for the national S.A.R. alert.

The 85th S.A.R. Center is one of the units of the 15th Air Force Wing that has the institutional mission of ensuring, 24/7, 365 days a year, the continuous search and rescue of flight crews in distress. Furthermore, the unit contributes to many public utility activities such as the search for missing persons at sea or in the mountains, the emergency medical transport of patients in danger of life (as in the case described) and the rescue of severely traumatized individuals, also operating in marginal meteorological conditions.