A critically ill newborn baby has been rescued by a Royal jet after the RAF found itself in the middle of an unprecedented emergency.
The drama began when doctors at St George's Hospital in south London decided that the infant needed an emergency treatment called ECMO (Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation). All the ECMO beds in London were full, however, as were similar facilities in Leicester and Newcastle.
The infant's only hope was an emergency 400-mile flight to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow. Initially a medical team was drafted in from Yorkhill by helicopter, but bad weather forced them to re-route across the Irish sea, and by the time they reached their destination the baby was fighting to breathe. Consultants feared the child might not survive a lengthy helicopter flight to Scotland amidst weather described as "horrific".
An RAF Hercules was scrambled, therefore, but it burst a tire on the runway and time was running out. Finally, desperate RAF commanders called on the Royal Squadron, which normally takes care of the royal family's travel needs. The baby and its doctors rushed to the Northolt Air Force base and were soon on-board the Bae 146, which got them to Glasgow just in time to save the child.
"Time was of the essence so we had to use the Royal Squadron plane," said an RAF spokesman, adding: "I can see no better use for it than to save a baby's life." The infant, whose identity remains undisclosed, is now stable and remains under observation.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
