The Crew
The Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter crew are on standby 24/7, 365 days of the year. They are trained in helicopter underwater escape, water rescue, boat winching, bush survival, snowline survival, avalanche survival, high altitude and nigh winching, flying the wire environment, CAA competency check, night vision goggles and winch competency. In order to keep our crew compliant with CAA and regulatory requirements to provide a world class service, the Trust requires ongoing funding to keep crew currency. This training keeps them highly trained in our rugged and isolated environment and saves vital lives in our community.
Each crew member is clothed in fire retardant clothing and flights suits and wear appropriate safety boots chosen for the changing terrain. All crew have their own helmets, personal locator beacons, life vests, noise cancelling helmets and raincoats. Pilots and crew are required to wear night vision goggle to aid them to fly at night without relying on moonlight increasing helicopter safety and callouts. The cost of this equipment per pilot and crew person is approximately $30,000.
Medical equipment used by our Critical Care Paramedics include a defibrillator, ventilator, suction unit, video laryngoscope, ultrasound and while winching utilise stretchers, winch nappy and a cinch collar.
Hayden Piercy
Hayden moved from Australia across to ditch to Nelson to follow a long-standing dream to work with a HEMS service.
He has previously worked for state-based ambulance services as an Advanced Care Paramedic for nearly 10 years along with experience as a Flight Nurse / Flight Paramedic for an international retrieval service moving patients safely from all over the globe.
Hayden loves the strong sense of community that the service has. Being able to support his community as part of a high performing team, combined with being outdoors in some of the most beautiful parts of the country is such an incredible privilege.
Cam Carter
Formerly a Paramedic for Hato Hone St John, Cam joined the Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter team in August 2023. Cam thrives when contributing to a high-performing team and loves the challenges that arise from working in nature and the outdoors. It’s a pleasure to provide care to our patients and their loved ones, when conventional means are not viable or time is of the essence.
Matt Wilkinson
Like many of his colleagues, Matt has lost count of the lifesaving missions he has completed.
Aside from the view on the job, Matt loves the closeness of his team and credits this for the incredible care and effectiveness of the team when undertaking life saving missions.
Brendan Hiatt
The satisfaction of reeling in a “big one” on his boat is nothing compared to the feeling of satisfaction Brendan gets after completing an intense and successful mission.
Knowing that what he does as part of the team, to help people in our community get to the care they need faster is incredibly satisfying.
Jeff Hughes
From a role as a military contract Helicopter MEDEVAC and rescue, through to protective details for former President Obama, Jeff is now settled in his dream role, helping his community the best way he knows how.
Jeff has been operating as an Advanced Life Support or Intensive Care Paramedic for over 15 years, and is a safe pair of hands, there for you when you need him.
Colby Tyrrell
The shift from touring commercial pilot to emergency service work Colby has relished. The reactive nature of the work with the Rescue Service responding 24 hours a day in sometimes less than favourable conditions keeps things fresh.
Dion Edgar
Dion Edgar moved from the commercial sector to rescue services mid 2022. Dion has a large amount of flying hours behind him and extensive experience flying in varied conditions. He’s worked in the past as a pilot within the forestry and mining industry, as well as flying to fishing vessels out at sea.
Originally from the deep south, he began his career as a shepherd and saved as much as he could from shearing to become a helicopter pilot. Dion may call Nelson home now but he still rolls his R’s and wears his gumboots around the hangar.
Carl Babe
A successful and intense winch job that helps get someone the care they need, when they need it, is one of the most rewarding parts of Carl’s job.
He finds it incredibly reassuring knowing that help is there if he needs it while he is out doing what he loves whether it be sailing our coastline, tramping or skiing in our mountains or on the mountain bike trails.
Prue Young
Prue loves the role of medic. She says that the team work as a close-knit unit, utilising their skills to maximise the patient’s outcomes.
Ever changing situations with patient treatment, weather, other environmental concerns and small confined areas, present unique challenges to overcome, but Prue says it is a special feeling to go home and know you have truly helped someone in their time of need.
The Trust
A deliberate blend of expertise and practical experience has been sought in establishing the make up of the Trust under the Chairmanship of John Rollston. The Trustees set policies and procedures and monitor the Trust’s operational and financial performance and its obligations and agreements with sponsors.
The Trust is committed to keeping administrative overheads to a minimum, reserving funds for operational costs wherever possible. There are only two employees, together providing just over 1.5 FTE hours, with hundreds of hours being given free of charge by the Trustees, volunteers and the business community to support the service.
Our Fundraisers
Our Board
The Operator
We are privileged to have had GCH Aviation as the operator of the Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter service since 1996.
GCH Aviation is an umbrella brand representing their parent company Garden City Helicopters, based in Christchurch, New Zealand and many associated aviation operations extending throughout New Zealand and into the South Pacific.
These operations include Garden City Helicopters Christchurch, GCH Aviation Nelson, Coastwide Helicopters Greymouth, Kaikoura Helicopters, Wellington Helicopters and Pacific Island Air Fiji.
The GCH Aviation Group operates emergency air rescue and air ambulance operations: Canterbury Westpac Helicopter Christchurch, the ROA Rescue Helicopter based in Greymouth, Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter, and the New Zealand Flying Doctor Service as well as GCH Aviation Jet Centre, Jet Operations and Aeromed Pacific.
Together the GCH Aviation Group represents over four decades of exceptional aviation experience in helicopter and fixed-wing tourism, certified flight training, commercial, air rescue and air ambulance operations.
Safety is the paramount consideration for all their operations. Since their establishment as commercial, EMS and tourist operators, GCH Aviation has had an enviable safety record. GCH Aviation is an approved CAA check and training organisation. It is approved to carry out CAA 135.607 checks for many of the helicopter operators in the South Island.
The vast experience of the pilots, regular training, familiarity of equipment and extensive and continual exposure to the extreme terrain covered by their network, ensure that their safety record is maintained. This is complemented with in-house aircraft maintenance and quality assurance programmes.
