London's Air Ambulance secures 7 year helicopter finance deal with new bankers, Santander and expands with key hires as 25,000th mission approaches

London's Air Ambulance, the Charity that runs London's only Helicopter Emergency Medical Service, is pleased to announce it has secured financing on its helicopter for the next seven years. The deal, financed through Santander Corporate Banking, with the support of Virgin Group, will enable the Charity to concentrate its efforts on continuing to develop this vital service as one of the world's leading Air Ambulance services whose clinical innovations have been adopted globally. The Charity is also pleased to announce that it has appointed Santander Corporate Banking as its primary bankers.

In order to boost the Charity's profile and to ensure the majority of the 10 million people who live, work and commute in London are aware of how imperative the service is, Miss Siobhra Murphy has been appointed as the Charity's Public Relations Manager. Siobhra is experienced in Financial and Corporate PR and also has a keen knowledge of Digital Marketing.

In addition, London's Air Ambulance has also appointed Mrs. Diane Richens as the Charity's Business Development Manager. Diane brings with her over 10 years experience working in Business Development in multi-national organisations in both the Private and Third Sector.

This is an exciting time for the Charity as it approaches its 25,000th mission. Since London's Air Ambulance's inception in 1988 it has attended 24733 (correct as of Saturday 4th February 2011) missions and 1979 in 2010. Since the service went 24/7 in April 2010, there has been a remarkable difference in the amount of missions attended and lives saved.

Commenting on these key events, Dr Gareth Davies, Medical Director and Chairman of the Trustees, said:

"Securing the financing for the helicopter for the next seven years allows us to build on the existing solid foundation and to concentrate our efforts on finding novel ways to enhance this cutting edge service. We would like to thank Santander and Virgin for their contribution in achieving this refinancing. We would also like to recognise the contribution made by our lawyers, Berwin Leighton Paisner, in this process.

"We are approaching our 25,000th mission and we would like as many people as possible to know what an amazing job the team does. London's Air Ambulance is a vital service that saves the lives of many who may not have otherwise survived the distance to hospital.

"As always, we would like to thank all our supporters who continue to show dedication and without their help we wouldn't be where we are today."

Mike Oxby, Director, Asset Finance at Santander Corporate Banking, said:

"It is a real pleasure to be working with London's Air Ambulance and we are delighted that we have been able to find the right financing solution to give the Charity the new lease of life it needs to continue its vital role in the City's emergency healthcare service. We wish the team every success and look forward to working together in the future."