An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to medical sectors, such as hospitals. In some instances, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient. Ambulances are used to respond to medical emergencies. For this purpose, they are generally equipped with flashing alarming lights and sirens. They can rapidly transport medical support and first responders to the scene and transport patients to hospital.
Generally, vehicles count as an ambulance if they can transport patients. These vehicles are not usually (there are exceptions) equipped with life-support equipment, and are usually crewed by staff with less qualifications than the crew of emergency ambulances.
There are many places where a normal ambulance cannot reach; these are the places where an air ambulance is of very high importance. Generally in places like higher altitudes, war areas and place where there is no roadway; there the air ambulances are used. Many times they are used to rescue people from oceans or from unmanned islands.
An air ambulance is a special air carrier and can be a helicopter or a plane. They are also more often used to move patients over long distances and for treatment from foreign countries. They can also be termed as aeromedical. In some circumstances, the same aircraft may be used to search for missing or wanted people.
Like ground ambulances, air ambulances are equipped with medical equipment vital to monitoring and treating injured or ill patients. Common equipment for air ambulances includes medications, ventilators and stretchers etc. A medically equipped air ambulance provides medical care in flight—while a non-medically equipped aircraft simply transports patients without care in flight.
Air Traffic Control gives special treatment to air ambulance operations, much like a ground ambulance using lights and a siren, only when they are actively operating with a patient.
Air ambulances quickly establish their usefulness in remote locations, but their role in developed localities is hindered due to space restrictions. This happens because the aircrafts need a vast amount of space for landing and this can only be done in places with less buildings and large areas like remote places but in developed
localities there are huge amount of obstructions which in turn restricts the air ambulance to land and creates obstruction in its work. Here Helicopters and drones are more functional then an aircraft.
Though air ambulances are very useful, technically accessible, and culturally acceptable but they are not economically feasible. They require huge amount of resources for functioning. Understanding its usefulness, various countries are looking for ways to reduce the charges for functioning of the air ambulances so that many people who are in need for immediate medical support may avail it. Various organisations are doing trials with UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) like drones, to reach inaccessible areas for faster medical deliveries and keeping the cost within manageable limits.
As the time will pass the prices of these exclusively important services will decrease, and will be available at an affordable rates to more and more general public.