Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance (WNAA) Pilot Richard Craske flew his 3000th mission in Warwickshire on Friday 14 October 2011.

A woman in her 40s was injured while exercising a horse on a long rein, or lunging, in the Shipston-on-Stour area.

The crew were called because of initial concerns about possible head and back injuries. The patient was flown to University Hospital Coventry & Warwickshire for further assessment.

Richard has been a WNAA pilot since April 2004 and notched up more than 1000 hours of flight time since then. His first job was as an Aircraft Engineering Apprentice with British Airways and he learned to fly at the age of 21 in the USA. Richard has been flying helicopters since 1996 and he is also a qualified Flight Instructor, Charter Pilot and Civil Aviation Authority Flight Examiner.

He said: “Being a Pilot for the Air Ambulance is something that I had aspired to for some time because for me it is the top job in helicopter flying. It is an exciting and challenging role and certainly the most fulfilling of my career. Being part of a highly professional team which makes a difference to many people each and every day is tremendously rewarding.

“It is hard to pick just one highlight so far because there have been so many. As a crew we have saved so many people but some of the patients that have been having cardiac arrest that we have managed to save through intervention and getting them to hospital quickly really stick in the mind. It’s a great job and whenever I say what I do, people just say ‘Wow!’”.

For more information please log onto www.wnaa.co.uk