THE helipad at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary has been left "almost useless" for the last four years with two-thirds of emergency flights unable to land, it has emerged.
The Evening News has discovered that the location of the helipad at the Little France site, among trees and hillside, means it can only operate in daylight hours because of a change in Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rules.
That means the majority of patients being moved to the ERI by helicopter have to instead land at Edinburgh Airport, before being transferred to an ambulance, adding up to an hour onto their journey.
Unions said it was yet another example of how the "flawed" PFI deal to build the hospital at Little France had a negative impact on services...
That means the majority of patients being moved to the ERI by helicopter have to instead land at Edinburgh Airport, before being transferred to an ambulance, adding up to an hour onto their journey.
Unions said it was yet another example of how the "flawed" PFI deal to build the hospital at Little France had a negative impact on services...
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