AHN unveils new medical helicopters that will help serve region
PITTSBURGH — Allegheny Health Network’s new LifeFlight helicopters can reach speeds of over 120 knots, roughly 140 to 150 mph, which is slightly faster than its current fleet.
The medical transport helicopters, which will serve Pittsburgh and surrounding areas like Butler County, can travel from Butler to Allegheny General Hospital in about 12 minutes.
“This aircraft represents an investment in the communities we serve. It’s more than just a new helicopter program,” said Matthew Poremba, medical director for AHN’s LifeFlight system. “It’s an extension of the emergency care system — whether we’re responding to rural communities, supporting EMS agencies, facilitating critical care transfers, helping connect patients to specialized services — this helps ensure patients get the right care at the right time.”
Allegheny Health Network’s division of prehospital care services unveiled the first of four new helicopters Friday, May 8, with three more coming over the next three years.
The new chopper, an Airbus H145 D3 medical transport helicopter, is part of a $55 million investment to replace and modernize the network’s LifeFlight fleet.
AHN leadership has said the upgrades to the LifeFlight fleet will help with efforts to enhance critical care air transport across AHN’s footprint and “meeting the greater Western Pennsylvania region’s emergency medical services needs.”
“For decades, LifeFlight has really provided critical care transport across Pennsylvania. We bring advanced emergency and critical care treatment to patients when minutes matter,” Poremba said. “Every mission, we need to remember that we represent someone’s family, friend, neighbor, co-worker, experiencing one of the worst moments of their life. Whether it’s trauma, a stroke, any high-risk medical transport, what this aircraft does for us is continue that mission safely and efficiently and reliably.”
In addition to the older helicopters needing more maintenance, the new ones are designed to be better equipped for medical care. Doctors said Friday afternoon the new helicopter will provide additional cabin space, allowing crew members to work more effectively on a patient.
The new helicopter is quieter, reducing noise for neighborhood landings. It also includes technological upgrades that help with care and getting a patient to the hospital.
“For our missions we needed a bigger aircraft, and the aircraft we have are about 15 years old and its time for a replacement,” said Pete Hough, manager of operations for LifeFlight and critical care transport. “It’s slightly larger on the inside and the advanced technology is the new advantage we have. It’s smoother, and it’s quieter.”
The health network has its helicopters stationed around the city and region, not only at Allegheny General Hospital, to be closer to locations such as Butler and other surrounding counties.
The LifeFlight team includes over 60 specialized nurses and paramedics, communications staff, logistics specialists, 22 pilots and 11 mechanics from Metro Aviation, Inc., which manages the helicopter fleet.
“It’s like fire fighting. You can have one fire a day. You can have no fires. You can have 12,” Hough said. “Sometimes you’ll go to work, you don’t have anything; and there’s other days you walk in at 7 a.m., you’re off to the races and come back at the end of your shift.”
Allegheny Health Network includes areas like Cranberry Township, Mars and Valencia as part of its primary service area, according to its 2024 community health needs assessment. However, it frequently flies to other areas in Butler County and picks up thousands of patients each year throughout Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio and New York.
“There’s so many people that make this amazing process work, getting sick and critical patients into our network and specifically to Allegheny General Hospital,” said Bob Twaddle, vice president, AHN Division of Prehospital Care Services.
