Daily Times

Pakistan’s largest charity, Edhi Foundation has purchased a new light aircraft which would be included in the Edhi air ambulance service which is currently suspended due to the outdated aircrafts and helicopters, Daily Times learnt on Friday.

Talking to Daily Times on telephone from Milan, northern Italy, Faisal Edhi, head of the Edhi Foundation confirmed the news and said that he had made a deal to purchase the aircraft on Friday. He shared that the new light aircraft that Edhi Foundation had been bought for 314, 000 Euros. He said that it would be used as air ambulance by the foundation. He said that the aircraft was a six-seater Cessna-206 with Lycoming 310 horsepower US engine. “It was manufactured in 2006 and is capable of landing on grass fields,” he said.

“It was owned by a lawyer who is resident of southern Germany and he bought this aircraft 12 years ago and now when he purchased his new aircraft, he has sold it to Edhi Foundation,” shared Edhi. “It will reach to Pakistan in next two weeks,” he told Daily Times.

Edhi Air Ambulance service has 2 aircrafts and 1 helicopter to provide relief and assistance during the natural disasters. The fleet can provide airlift services to stranded or injured people and immediately shift to the nearby hospital during a crisis, according to Edhi.

“It will replace our existing fleet that was a six-seater Piper Seneca-2 of 1978, which is an American twin-engine light aircraft, though this newly bought aircraft has same capacity, but it has better speed as it is new. There is lesser maintenance cost and it will enhance our services and we would be able to provide air ambulance service efficiently,” said Faisal Edhi. He also announced that he would be buying two more aircraft to make Edhi Ambulance Service fully functional.

“After making air ambulance service fully functional, we will be able to reach anywhere in the country and it will be more beneficial for people in remote areas,” explained Edhi. He added that this newly bought aircraft will enhance services of Edhi air ambulance.

Edhi Foundation started its air ambulance service in 1986 with two fixed wings aircrafts, which both are outdated and are not functional. There is also a Piper Seneca-2, which needs lot of service, so it is not used. Both aircrafts were last used in March 1997 to help victims of train accident in Khanewal, Punjab.

“In the past, Edhi Foundation was allowed to use airports of Pakistan Army, but due to the non-functional aircrafts, we are no more using those airports. Now we will renew this agreement and will use army bases so we can also help army personnel in case of emergencies,” said Faisal Edhi.

Faisal Edhi also announced that he would be flying the newly bought aircraft himself as he himself was a trained pilot.”I attended a flying school back in England in 2001 and completed around forty hours of flying with a trainer and two hours of solo flight during the training program, only two hours flying time was left when I left the school all of a sudden but now I am planning to complete the remaining course and will fly these aircrafts myself,” Edhi shared.

Published in Daily Times, November 24^th 2018.