THE Children’s Air Ambulance has flown its 500th mission.

Formed in 2012 and operated by the Air Ambulance Service it is the first and only dedicated neonatal and paediatric helicopter emergency transfer service in the country.

Relying totally on public donations to remain operational, two helicopters fly out of bases in Oxford and Doncaster with the average cost of each mission £3,500.

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The landmark 500th flight was to transfer a five-day-old baby and mother back to their local hospital in Doncaster from Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital.

It was a journey that took 49 minutes by air compared with just under three hours by road. Hours after she was born by emergency C-section at Doncaster Royal Infirmary, Kathleen Garner was taken to Oxford by land ambulance for specialist cooling therapy.

Oxford Mail:

Doctors were worried she might be brain damaged because of complications during the birth and Oxford was the nearest hospital – 147 miles away - available to undertake the hypothermia treatment.

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The newborn's mother Claire Garner was well enough to join her daughter two days later and was with her on the helicopter for the Children’s Air Ambulance’s 500th flight to take them back to Doncaster.

Oxford Mail:

Ms Garner, of Bentley, Doncaster, said: “It was really important to me to be able to fly with Kathleen as I wasn’t able to be with her when she went to Oxford."

She added: “When we were up in the sky on the way back to Doncaster, I knew that the majority of the worst was behind us and I had hope for the future.”