MEDEVAC callsigns and logistics?

[sudsyjkh]

Hi all.

I’ve always kept the standard ORNGE freqs in my radios, but with the increase in COVID-related flights these days, have started monitoring them on regular ATC/en route channels too...

Just have a couple questions.

Is the verbal “MEDEVAC” designation (Pulse107-MEDEVAC, LifeFlight105-MEDEVAC, Thunder880-MEDEVAC etc.) only used when transporting a patient? Or is that also added when an aircraft is headed to pick up a patient/team?

Secondly, when it comes to ORNGE-owned aircraft, not Thunder or other contractors, I thought the choppers used “Life FlightX” (for example Life Flight5 is 7798 here in Sudbury) and “PulseXXX” was used for the fixed-wing planes.

Lately I’ve been hearing “Life Flight105” and other “Life FlightXXX” 3-digit callsigns, along with “PulseXXX”...

Wondering if those are now used interchangeably, no matter the aircraft type?

Thanks in advance.

Stay safe folks.

 

[ATCTech]

I might be able to give you a partial answer. MEDEVAC from an ATC perspective is a designation used for flights that may/will be operating outside of standard flight procedures, routings or altitudes. As far as I remember, the MEDEVAC (going from memory on the characters) flight plan designator appears on the flight plan/flight progress strip only if the operator of the flight specifies that flight segment is requiring any of those special procedures.
I'd suggest that a point to point patient transfer flight between two aerodromes may not require that type of ATC handlling when standard ATC routings will suffice. For example, the patient in in stable condition, patient not packaged at the hospital landing site or at aerodrome prior to aircraft arrival, flight diversion due to change in condition of patient not anticipated etc.

In other words, the flight is a patient transfer by air, not a life-critical rescue mission.

 

[gary123]

I agree with ATCTech. Generally anything designated MEDEVAC is usually an emergency flight of sometype. These flights generally follow a line of sight to and from the hospital to the emergency scene and back. Regular flights follow designated routes.

The call signs usually stay with the aircraft. This prevents confusion of the aircraft type and capabilities (fixed wing/helicopter). ATC operations are like any other major dispatch operation. Information needs to be clear and concise. The controller needs to have that mental picture of what he is talking too and what it is doing, going to do or may need to do. Its a very intense job adding in a variable like duplicated call signs could be disastrous.

 

[ATCTech]

Well, not quite. The aircraft ICAO type designator (PC12, A139 etc.) is on the flight progress strip/EXCDS display and the radar data tag for all flights (except VFRs operating on 1200 codes) The controller has no need to manually cross-reference a radio callsign to an aircraft type.

Some very specific special-purpose/operator aircraft have Mode C transponder codes pre-assigned in our flight data processing system so they always tag up with the same ACID (Aircraft ID) on ATC displays. I won't say who or wha,t nor can I specifically confirm that ORNGE is one of those operators.

For PULSE flights the aircraft registration can be directly correlated to the radio callsign. C-GRXB flies as PULSE102, the "B" at the end of the civil registration being the "2"nd letter of the alphabet. ATC couldn't care less about that though, they only need the type designator (PC12) on the radar display and flight progress strip but it will appear in the flight plan database when the flight is filed by the operator.

 

[ATCTech]

I should also have mentioned last night, again unconfirmed at this moment, is that the "Life Flight" call signs may in fact be a specific pool of Mode C transponder codes from the ZYZ assigned range of codes and as each flight plan gets filed the next non-pending / non-active ACID gets assigned. That would explain why you don't hear the same physical aircraft operating as the same radio callsign on different hours or days.

Again, ATC doesn't need the airframe associated with a dedicated callsign or Mode C code until the flight plan is activated. Once it's deactivated, the Mode C code (and quite possibly the ACID/callsign) goes back into the pool.

 

[gary123]

Thanks for the nice explanation. it cleared up some misconceptions I had.

 

[ChuckWillis55]

I will apologize in the beginning for what could be a long running post.

The Ontario Air Ambulance system (Ornge) comprises 8 Pilatus PC-12 fixed-wing aircraft, 12 Leonardo AW-139 helicopters and 13 Crestline land ambulances.

The ATC callsigns are aircraft type specific ie: Pulse is for the fixed-wing aircraft, and Life Flight is for the helicopters. The Life Flight call signs are operating base specific ie: Life Flight 3 is based in London, ON. I also believe that the Pulse call-signs are also base specific.

The current bases are: Toronto 7799 - Life Flight 1(2 AW-139); Sudbury 7798 - Life Flight 5 (AW-139); Thunder Bay 7797 (AW 139 helo) & 7790 ( 2 PC-12); Timmins 7796 (2 PC-12); Sioux Lookout 7795 - PC-12; Kenora 7794 - (AW-139); Moosonee 7793 (AW-139); London 7792 (AW-139) and Ottawa 7791 (AW-139).

The other aircraft are spares for replacement when other aircraft are undergoing heavy maintenance. So you will not always see the same aircraft at one base, they are rotated through the system. Ornge also uses private contractors for some medical flights.

On ATC, they usually use their normal call-sign followed by "MEDEVAC", and can be found on 129.275MHz talking to "Med-Com" in Toronto.

Hope this helps.

The photo is of Life Flight 1 (7799) at London's Victoria Hospital Helipad.

 

[Gymbag]

I noticed on the new paint scheme it doesn’t say where the helicopter is from, on the old scheme just below the propellors it identified which base the helicopter was from.

 

[ChuckWillis55]

I noticed on the new paint scheme it doesn’t say where the helicopter is from, on the old scheme just below the propellors it identified which base the helicopter was from.

You are correct. The base names were on the helicopters, however, as noted in my post, the helicopters going in for heavy maintenance would be replaced by a "fresh" one. We had Kenora here in London for over a year. So I believe Ornge has done away with naming them.

 

[Muxlow]

I've heard 799 on the air a lot this week. Seems to be hanging out in London.
Been watching it on Flightradar24

Looks like 792 is out in Sudbury now and 799 is in London

 

[ATCTech]

Again, do not confuse the radio callsign on the MEDCOM radios and the ATC callsign used on VHF air, the latter being directly associated with the live flight plan. ATC will not, I repeat, NOT, allow two aircraft to operate under the same flight plan designation or verbal callsign in the same FIR.

Having two "Life Flight 1"s active at the same time, particularly if they are on the same CJS (Controller Juristiction Symbol, which is the way the flight planning system and radar display system internally coordinate which ATC radar or VFR tower position is currently controlling the flight) is a major incident waiting to happen.
So, the information above is not wrong, but if there are two A139s based at YTZ (which there are, no argument there) there will never be two LF1 callsign flights operating simultaneously.
I have heard and mentioned here previously that on the MEDCOM radios it is not unusual to hear them called "799P" or 799K" etc, the letter at the suffix being the last letter in the civilian registration of the aircraft.

In the photo above (C-GYNP) you would likely hear that A139 being called "799 PAPA" (typically abbreviated verbally as "99 PAPA") on the MEDCOM radios, but never by ATC.

 

[Muxlow]

I'll have to toss that freq in the radio. I just heard them last night on P-Comm (for EMS) just saying 799 to Windsor. Windsor CACC gave the go ahead. They came back saying 799 we are on our final for Windsor Airport.

Must use the bare bones for talking to the dispatchers rather then ATC

 

[ATCTech]

Ya, I hear the suffix added to flights in the Toronto area mostly, I presume to avoid any confusion on exactly which flight they're talking to. It's not unusual to hear two on the air on different missions simultaneously in and out of Toronto area hospitals, this on 413.6875 FWIW.

 

[ChuckWillis55]

I've heard 799 on the air a lot this week. Seems to be hanging out in London.
Been watching it on Flightradar24

Looks like 792 is out in sudbury now and 799 is in london

Hospital ICU's in Toronto are plugged. The MOH is moving COVID patients around the province to take advantage of empty ICU beds outside of the GTA, but it seems as if the beds are filling up again. My son works at Woodstock GH, and he told me that all of their COVID cases are from the GTA.

Ya, I hear the suffix added to flights in the Toronto area mostly, I presume to avoid any confusion on exactly which flight they're talking to. It's not unusual to hear two on the air on different missions simultaneously in and out of Toronto area hospitals, this on 413.6875 FWIW.

The pilots talk to ATC on regular aviation channels. It's the paramedics in the back who communicate on P-Com or the Helicopter UHF.

 

[ChuckWillis55]

Again, do not confuse the radio callsign on the MEDCOM radios and the ATC callsign used on VHF air, the latter being directly associated with the live flight plan. ATC will not, I repeat, NOT, allow two aircraft to operate under the same flight plan designation or verbal callsign in the same FIR.

Having two "Life Flight 1"s active at the same time, particularly if they are on the same CJS (Controller Juristiction Symbol, which is the way the flight planning system and radar display system internally coordinate which ATC radar or VFR tower position is currently controlling the flight) is a major incident waiting to happen.
So, the information above is not wrong, but if there are two A139s based at YTZ (which there are, no argument there) there will never be two LF1 callsign flights operating simultaneously.
I have heard and mentioned here previously that on the MEDCOM radios it is not unusual to hear them called "799P" or 799K" etc, the letter at the suffix being the last letter in the civilian registration of the aircraft.

In the photo above (C-GYNP) you would likely hear that A139 being called "799 PAPA" (typically abbreviated verbally as "99 PAPA") on the MEDCOM radios, but never by ATC.

That aircraft came into London as Life Flight One. No suffix. The call signs are base specific. Now, Toronto has two AW139s. I have heard a suffix used when both are in the air.

 

[ATCTech]

Yup, 799G and 799L both operating to different calls east of Toronto as I write this and identifying as such on the UHF repeater. I'm not listening to ATC at the moment to hear what they're using but I will put it on now. One heading to Trenton while the other was just cancelled en route to their call.

I presume from what you say about the callsigns being base-specific you're referring to the Life Flight names, so that would infer that YTZ would be LF1 and LF2?

EDIT: Just answered my own question, "Life Flight 2" just cleared to land CTYZ after being cancelled to the call.

 

[ChuckWillis55]

Just heard a new call-sign. C-GYNG (AW139) was doing a tour of South Western Ontario airports (seen on ADSB) and just called in to London Tower as "Life Flight Trainer".

 

[Andy_SDS100]

Just heard a new call-sign. C-GYNG (AW139) was doing a tour of South Western Ontario airports (seen on ADSB) and just called in to London Tower as "Life Flight Trainer".

Wonder what frequencies I could monitor, I'm in Woodstock,

 

[ChuckWillis55]

London A/P mandatory frequency (Tower) is 119.4 MHz. Probably from Woodstock, at best you would only hear aircraft calling the tower. The air ambulance frequencies are listed in the RR database. Enjoy.

 

[ATCTech]

If they're outside the YXU Tower control zone try 135.300, that's the Toronto Center low-level frequency for that area. It's based at London so you should hear both sides from at least a few km away. Be aware though that Toronto ACC airspace ends not far from London to the southwest/south and becomes ZOB (Cleveland) responsibility. In the Kitchener area try 128.275 for Toronto ACC, based at Waterloo Regional Airport.