Wales Air Ambulance says A55 base will help reach more patients
Wales Air Ambulance has confirmed plans to close its bases in Caernarfon and Welshpool and establish a new site in central North Wales by 2026.
The charity says the move, centred near the A55, will allow it to reach more patients in North and Mid Wales and introduce overnight cover in the region for the first time.
Across 2023 and 2024, the service was unable to attend 551 emergencies in North and Mid Wales between 8pm and 2am. In Flintshire, there were 98 life or limb-threatening emergencies that would have benefited from the service, but on 89 occasions crews were unavailable.
Wales Air Ambulance Chief Executive, Dr Sue Barnes, described the figures as “heartbreaking and unacceptable.” She said: “Each emergency involves at least one person in a life or limb-threatening situation, so these figures are both heartbreaking and unacceptable. That is why we are undertaking an improvement to our service that will provide us with more opportunities to save additional lives.”
The charity says its crews in Caernarfon and Welshpool were significantly underused. Between 2023 and 2024, there were 199 days when the Caernarfon base did not attend a patient and 163 days for Welshpool, compared with 28 in Dafen and four in Cardiff.
Research found that the location of Caernarfon and Welshpool made it harder to use rapid response vehicles when helicopters were unavailable, due to poor surrounding road networks.
An independent review recommended combining current resources into a single new base near the A55, with two teams operating by road or air. One will run from 8am to 8pm, and the other from 2pm to 2am.
Welshpool-based medic Dr Stuart Gill said: “One of the most frustrating elements for us clinicians is knowing that there’s an emergency we can’t get to. Frequently, this happens with critically ill or injured patients in North and Mid Wales. Through the planned service changes, we expect to significantly improve attendance for those people we are currently missing.”
Caernarfon medic Dr Mark Knights said: “We have very expensive, highly capable resources, and we want them to be used as much as possible for the people who need them. The service improvement will allow us to reach more people and save more lives.”
Captain James Grenfell of Gama Aviation said the new set-up would be a “game changer,” adding: “We want to take the service to the next level in North and Mid Wales in a bid to save more lives, which is why we do what we do.”
Dr Barnes acknowledged concerns from communities near the closing bases, but said: “I can wholeheartedly reassure you that this is not about losing or reducing a service; this is about improving what we already have – particularly for those in North and Mid Wales. Our Charity would never do anything to cause people, and their loved ones, future harm.”
The exact location of the new North Wales base has not yet been confirmed.
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