A message from our new CEO, Matthew Jones

Earlier this month I officially took over from Patrick Peal as CEO of this remarkable charity. No one will miss Patrick more than me and it is incredibly humbling to have been offered this opportunity to carry on his amazing vision. I have been Director of Operations at EAAA since 2015 and promise to look after this charity as well as Patrick has over the last seven years.

I am very proud to say that we are now operating for 24 hours a day by helicopter. This is a major milestone which will enable us to reach hundreds more people a year and finally closes the five-and-a-half-hour gap in the region during which our teams have previously only been available by rapid response vehicle. To achieve this long-held ambition during an incredibly challenging time for everyone is a huge testament to the amazing community that keeps us airborne and saving lives and is a result of their truly unwavering support.

Looking ahead to the future, our focus is not necessarily about doing more but about doing the very best for our patients. To achieve this, we are increasing our clinical research capacity to really evaluate our impact on patient outcomes. This will help us to understand what we can do better and advance the treatments we can offer, such as our ambition to permanently carry blood.

I have the immense privilege of seeing our crews going out every day, in all weathers, and being faced with a wide variety of trauma and medical emergencies. This is a continuous reminder of the reason why our service is so vital and the very important role that I now play in guiding this charity forward. I would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to all of our incredible supporters for your support which keeps our crews flying and saving lives, every day of the year and now 24 hours a day.