Two state-of-the-art London Air Ambulances take to the skies after fundraising campaign hailed by Prince William

1 October 2024, 07:45 | Updated: 1 October 2024, 13:06

The Prince of Wales will celebrate London's Air Ambulance Charity renewing its fleet following a successful multimillion-pound fundraising appeal.

William is patron of the charity which launched its Up Against Time appeal to fund two new helicopters for its service.

David Beckham met the prince at RAF Northolt in west London, where the two new helicopters were on display next to the aircraft they replaced.

The future king is patron of London's Air Ambulance Charity which runs the service and when he met crew members he joked "don't break it".

Beckham said: “"We're here today to celebrate ... the success of the fundraiser for London's air ambulances which is something close to my heart and has been for a number of years.

"I'm an East End boy so every time we saw them in the air it made us very proud.

"As soon as I was asked to be involved by Prince William it was something I was very honoured (to do) in all honesty."

He added: "It's something that's been a part of London for a long long time, over 35 years of incredible work that the pilots do and the medics do, the millions of lives they've saved over the years is something I was very proud to be invited to be part of."

In August, William hailed the announcement the money had been raised, posting on X, formally Twitter: "Fantastic News! This is going to have a life-saving impact.

"A huge thank you to everyone who donated W."

Hollywood star Tom Cruise and Arsenal football club manager Mikel Arteta were among the guests at a gala fundraising dinner in February for the charity's appeal.

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The prince, a former air ambulance pilot with the East Anglian Air Ambulance, attended the event and in a speech highlighted the urgency of the cause: "Here in London, the current aircraft have served magnificently.

"But our capital city needs a new fleet.

"And we are Up Against Time. The clue really is in the appeal's name. By September, we need the two new red birds - decked with the latest kit such as night vision - in our skies."

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William will visit RAF Northolt in west London to view the new helicopters and meet pilots and medical crew.

But predicted bad weather has forced the cancellation of the delivery flight of one of the helicopters, the prince was due to join, from the military airfield to the Royal London Hospital.

London's Air Ambulance Charity was established in 1989 following a growing consensus of opinion that victims of serious accidents were dying because of the delay in expert medical help reaching them, and the time it took to transport patients to hospital.

The service pioneered the doctor-on-board model for air ambulances and aims to bring the hospital emergency department to the scene of an incident.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was extremely pleased by the news and thanked those involved.

He said: "I want to thank not just the Air Ambulance staff, the paramedics, but also the Prince of Wales, Prince William, and all those who have donated to purchase these two new ambulances.

"We know the difference they can make when you go to one of our four trauma hospitals that has a helipad. You see that on a daily basis the difference these helicopters make.

"I've spoken to trauma surgeons. I've met young Londoners whose lives have been saved as a consequence of the work of these helicopters. We celebrate two new helicopters joining our fleet. We hope they never need to be used.

"Unfortunately, they will need to be used and there will be lives saved going forward because of these two helicopters and because of the generosity of those who have donated towards them."