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Time Flies Podcast

Listen to our first ever podcast series.

To celebrate East Anglian Air Ambulance's 20th year of saving lives we have created a series of podcast interviews with different members of the EAAA family from 2000 to 2020, to explore their fondest memories. We will find out how the service started, the challenges they faced and the lessons learnt along the way. We hope you enjoy the series. Episodes will be released monthly. 

Thank you for your continued support and helping us get to 20 years of EAAA!

Together we save lives

Episode one with guest Pam Chrispin

“I can remember being completely gobsmacked by the ability of paramedics to just make people better… that ability to provide the treatment and the care before the patient ever hit hospital, I think really drew me in.”

First in the podcast hotseat is our Deputy Medical Director Doctor Pam Chrispin, who has been flying with the charity since 2008, when our doctors worked for EAAA as volunteers.

Find out what the helicopter was like then and what it was like for Pam adjusting from working in intensive care to learning how to deliver medicine pre-hospital.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode two with guest Jeremy Mauger

“One of the hairiest things I ever did in aviation…”

Listen now to the second instalment of our Time Flies podcast. Dr Jeremy Mauger recounts some of his experiences at London Air Ambulance before moving up to Suffolk and joining EAAA in 2002. A captivating listen, hear how our crews “always had to use a harness” and find out what Jeremy recalls as “one of the hairiest things I ever did in aviation”, as he talks to Dr Pam Chrispin about the very early days on-board Anglia One.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode three with guest Jill Footer

“I don't think it would ever have developed like this if it hadn't had all the support of everybody that was there at the beginning and taking it forward.”

So far in this series we’ve heard what it was like in the very early days of flying for EAAA, but not what it was like getting the charity set up. Jill Footer was one of EAAA’s very first volunteers, joining in October 2000. In the ‘wild west days’, Jill was instrumental in supporting the trustees and overseeing getting EAAA’s very first operational base set up in Norwich. Jill then went on to be the Charity Secretary for several years and helped to set up the EAAA lottery, which remains one of our key income streams today.  Join our CEO Patrick Peal as he walks down memory lane with a fantastic lady who helped to make EAAA what it is today.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode four with guest Gerry Hermer

“The great thing about HEMS, or Police, or Search and Rescue is you don't know what's coming, and that to me was the interesting and exciting bit.”

Gerry was a big part of EAAA from the very beginning until he retired in 2017. Gerry was one of the founding members of the charity, as an experienced pilot he provided all the aviation expertise to get the charity off the ground, quite literally.

Alongside flying for EAAA for several years he was also the charity’s aviation consultant. Patrick Peal reminisces with Gerry about how he got into flying, various achievements from his distinguished flying career, including what happened when he was awarded the Air Force Cross, and highlights from Gerry’s EAAA days, including an on-going debate about which type of aircraft is best for HEMS – skids or wheels.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode five with guest Rod Wells

“It’s the teamwork for me, that’s the best part… Because it’s not paramedics, doctor and pilots, it’s the team... I don’t think there’s any other service that’s got that sort of closeness, that rapport with each other.”

In this episode of Time Flies, we hear from Critical Care Paramedic Rod Wells, one of our longest-serving paramedics. In this humorous episode, Rod shares with Dr Pam Chrispin some stand-out memories including when things go wrong on the job, such as knocking the throttle the first time he jumped into the helicopter and getting left behind at the scene! Tune in for an open and entertaining sneak peek into life at EAAA with this all-round superstar.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode six with guest Tom Moore

"We went to a very difficult job... and Nick who was flying those days realised we'd had a tough time, and he says 'We're gonna go cloud hopping on the way home boys'. He went up into the broken cloud, went from cloud to cloud to cloud... just playing for us. That was nice. A pilot who really understood some of the trauma, the pressure we were under."

In this episode of Time Flies, we hear from Dr Tom Moore. An experienced BASICS doctor, Tom relocated from Hampshire to Norfolk in 2002 to pursue his dream job of working on the air ambulance. In this episode, he shares several fascinating stories with Dr Pam Chrispin about his experiences onboard Anglia One and some of his favourite memories, including ‘cloud hopping’ on the way back from a tough job. Tom provides a superb insight into the world of EAAA and what the service can do for its patients.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode seven with guest Victor Inyang

"What's impressed me the most is how professional the whole set-up has become. How evidence-based driven it is, and how critical we are of the things we do. Making sure what we do actually benefits patients. There is this drive for excellence."

We’re nearing the end of our Time Flies Podcast series but couldn’t finish without talking to our Medical Director Dr Victor Inyang, who has been working with EAAA since 2004. In this podcast Victor recalls his very first experiences in HEMS at London Air Ambulance, stand-out memories from his time with EAAA and paints a fantastic picture of where the charity is now; tackling the current issues surrounding prevention and clinical research, to further improve patient outcomes.

Music credits: Inspire by Wavecont 

Episode eight with special guest Patrick Peal

Welcome to the last instalment of the Time Flies podcast series. It’s been a great way to look back over the last 20 years and hear so many incredible stories about how EAAA started, but we couldn’t possibly create a podcast like this without talking to our much-loved CEO and Co-founder, Patrick Peal, who has been such a big part of EAAA over several years.  

We’re releasing this podcast on Patrick’s last day at the charity before he retires, as part of a big thank you and farewell for all of his hard in building EAAA into what it is today. We hope you enjoy listening to some of his fondest EAAA moments.