The Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance reached another important landmark, flying its 14,000th mission to attend to a fallen horse rider out on the Lambourn Gallops.

Sarah Williamson, Head of Fundraising for the Trust said: “Because of the rural location, Air Ambulance BOB received the ‘shout’ to Lambourn Gallops to assist a rider who had sustained serious injuries. Arriving on scene within minutes of receiving the call, our paramedics were able to give emergency medical intervention on the ground and convey the rider to hospital, highlighting the need for our vital emergency Air Ambulance service”.

This landmark figure represents the amazing support the charity receives from the local communities who support us across the three counties we serve, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire including Milton Keynes, enabling us to provide our service 365 days a year.

The charity has achieved other notable enhancements, to include the provision of on-board doctors on a regular basis and in December the helicopter became only the second in the country to carry blood.

11% of our missions are Equestrian incidents, and the Charity is keen to raise safety awareness for all riders especially at this time of year. We would like to stress the importance of wearing a ‘high-viz’ garment in these dark mornings and early evenings, if possible to carry a mobile phone in case of an emergency, let someone know where you will be riding and expected time back and also to carry contact details.

Sarah went on to say: “We don’t know who our patients are, because of patient confidentiality and would like to hear from anyone, including horse riders, who may have used our service in the past to enable us to share their story with our supporters.”