Will the Great North Air Ambulance Continue to Serve the Isle of Man?

The Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) has been swooping in to save lives on the Isle of Man since March 2022.

But with funding up in the air (no pun intended), its future here is looking uncertain.

Since it started operating on the island, the critical care team has responded to 60 emergency incidents, including 21 road traffic collisions, 20 cardiac arrests, and nine falls.

Basically, they’ve been busy!

But despite their lifesaving efforts, Manx Care has admitted it’s only operating with GNAAS on a ‘goodwill basis’ because it can’t afford the monthly retainer fee of £20,833 anymore.

The agreement between Manx Care and GNAAS started as a six-month trial in 2022, with the option to extend up to five years.

But now, with the final review point having expired last March, Manx Care hasn’t been able to commit to a long-term deal. Translation: GNAAS might be on the way out.

Health Minister Claire Christian confirmed that from April 2025, the retainer payments will stop altogether.

A crunch meeting is now set for April 1 (let’s hope it’s not a bad April Fools’ joke) to discuss whether a new deal can be struck where Manx Care only pays per mission instead of a fixed monthly fee.

If that doesn’t work out, the whole contract could be scrapped.

To add to the uncertainty, Lee Salmon, GNAAS’s head of operations for Cumbria and the Isle of Man, has stepped down.

He didn’t hold back, saying he’s ‘deeply concerned about the future’ and that he no longer supports the direction being taken at a leadership level.

GNAAS is mainly funded by public donations in the UK, but here in the Isle of Man, it’s been taxpayer-funded.

The original plan was to get more local donations to keep it going, but that hasn’t exactly worked out.

So, what now? Will GNAAS stick around? Will the island lose a vital emergency service? It’s a wait and see until what many are describing as ‘decision day’ at the start of next month.

But what do you think? Get in touch with us at hello@gef.im with your views on GNAAS and its future in the Isle of Man?