Air Ambulance Captain bids a fond farewell to flying HEMS taskings

A Touring Pilot who flies with East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) completed his final Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) flying shift with the charity on 21st June.

Upon reaching the age of 65, the regulatory upper age limit for Commercial Air Transport pilots in the UK, Captain Dave Surtees, EAAA Pilot and Type Rating Examiner with EAAA’s aviation partner Babcock International Group (Babcock), will now continue his distinguished 40-year career by training the next generation of HEMS pilots.

EAAA is a charity which provides 24/7 critical care by air and road across Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Captain Surtees joined the charity in 2003 after spending 24 years in the military and police aviation. His knowledge and skills saw him become a Type Rating Instructor and a Type Rating Examiner, and Captain Surtees has continued with this alongside his HEMS Touring Pilot role.

Captain Dave Surtees | Photo: EAAA.

Following his retirement from flying air ambulances, he will now solely focus on guiding pilots new to HEMS and EAAA through their line training, teaching them how to employ the aircraft in the HEMS role ready to fly EAAA clinicians to some of the region’s most seriously ill and injured people.

Captain Surtees was also one of the pilots who supported His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales through his training with Babcock and EAAA when Captain Wales flew HEMS taskings with the charity from 2015-2017 and, in February 2024, Captain Surtees marked the impressive milestone of 10,000 flying hours. Many of these hours were flying HEMS tasks.

He says, “Some people wouldn’t be here today without EAAA pilots taking the skills, medicine and equipment out to the incident site. During my time flying HEMS taskings with EAAA, I have seen some people in real dire straits and, as a team, we’ve been able to have an impact on their outcome. I am going to miss this aspect of the job in an enormous way.”

EAAA treats in the region of 2,000 people every year. From road traffic collisions to cardiac arrests to medical emergencies, the charity’s specialist doctors, critical care paramedics and pilots bring the advanced skills, equipment and medicine - normally only found in a specialist emergency department - directly to the patient’s side in the fastest time possible.

Matthew Jones, EAAA Chief Executive, says, “Thank you to Captain Surtees for his contribution to, not only EAAA over the years, but to our many patients, their families and communities across Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and beyond. Thanks to his skills and expertise, alongside those of EAAA’s clinical crew, many hundreds of people have been given the best chance of survival and recovery, and many families are still together today.”

Captain Surtees adds, “I’ve been fortunate that, since a young age, flying has been my life’s ambition. I’ve no idea how many take offs and landings I’ve done over 40 plus years, but it has been an utter joy. I wish I could steal some time and start all over again. I don’t have the words to describe my HEMS career, other than it’s been a big team effort - and it’s been superb.”

BlueSky Business Aviation News | 3rd July 2025 | Issue #802