The Medic's responsibility with the patient was mostly airway, oxygen and wound care. The nurse's responsibility was IV maintenance, medication administration and charting. When training a new flight nurse I had to show them how to do the paperwork and the other parts of their job, while doing my own. Those were busy days. When training a new flight medic the patient was usually non-critical and so there wasn't so much to do, except for a lot of hand holding.
I worked four jobs that year--my full-time at the Arlington County Fire Department, flying and two teaching gigs. I got paid $150 a mission, which took all day. So, at the end of a 12 hour day my hourly wage wasn't much. This low pay coupled with things braking on the aircraft (see close calls below) made me decide to give up flying. It was fun while it lasted...
This aircraft had a pressurized cabin (to 5000 ft.), which meant we could fly above the weather. So most flights were fairly smooth. This was a twin engine (non-turbo). So, if one engine failed there was a second one you could rely on. The crew compliment for these flights was normally four--two pilots, one nurse and one paramedic. Sometimes it was necessary to have Respiratory Therapist added. Passengers would include one patient and possibly one family member.
At the time of the accident (see Close Calls #2 below), the aircraft had just had an interior refurbishment. The aircraft was nick named �Natasha� dedicated to a frequently flown pediatric patient who died after a battle with a childhood cancer.
Beechcraft 35 Bonanza
A Bonanza flight was quite an experience. This was a low budget, no frills affair. This single engine aircraft did not have a pressurized cabin. So, we had to fly in the weather--very bumpy! The crew compliment was one pilot and one paramedic. The patients were non-critical.
#1--OIL LEAK:
During the beginning of a mission we were flying South towards Charlottesville, Virginia, when I noticed oil leaking all over the starboard (right) wing. The pilots had been discussing a drop in oil pressure in the starboard engine and were debating whether or not to continue the mission. Once I noticed the oil slick the debate was over. We aborted and flew back to Manassas, Virginia. On the way, they had to shut down the engine completely. We landed safely with one engine in operation.
I was training a new flight medic. He was well experienced on the ground and had a sense of humor as did I. When we saw the Crash Rescue and Fire Department units on the ground getting ready to foam the runway, we laughed. We were still laughing when we disembarked. I knew the Battalion Chief from when I had worked for Prince William County. I explained to him why we were laughing. He understood how silly things might have looked from above.
#2--MISSING PROPELLER TIPS:
One winter day we flew to New Jersey to pick-up a patient to ferry them to New Hampshire. While taxiing to the runway, we took a wrong turn on the tarmac. The pilots got lost and ended-up on the wrong side of the airport. We got stuck over by where several airplanes were parked. So, they gunned the engine to get us out of the rut we were in. While they were doing this ice and snow was pelleting the starboard (right) side of the fuselage. With the patient already on-board as well as a trainee nurse, I calmly reassured both of them that this sort of thing happens all the time! (...not )
We finally started moving and the pilots found their way to the runway. We took off and flew to New Hampshire. There we met the ground ambulance and took the patient to their hospital. When we got back to the airport both pilots were shaking their heads. It seems that the ice and snow had damaged the propeller. They walked us out to the aircraft and showed us that that all three tips to the propeller were missing!
We shouldn't have taken off with that kind of damage. And because of the damage, we weren't flying home the way we came. We were taken by courtesy car into Massachusetts to catch a commuter flight to JFK in New York. From there we caught a heavy (jumbo jet) to Dulles Airport in northern Virginia. We had to bring whatever equipment we could. So we embarked with the most unusual carry-on luggage ever--a backpack full of resuscitation drugs and a defibrillator.
By the time we got back to Dulles that evening, it was already 10pm. The owner of the business met us there and shuttled us back to Manassas and our POVs (personal vehicles). That was my last flight. I think I quit after that one.