Air Ambulance Week 2026 brought together charities, supporters, businesses and parliamentarians across the country as the sector highlighted both the lifesaving work of air ambulance crews and the challenges facing services in the years ahead.
The national awareness week, which ran from 7 to 13 September under the theme ‘Every Mission Starts With You’, recognised the donors, fundraisers, volunteers and communities whose support helps keep the UK’s 21 air ambulance charities operating.
Collectively, air ambulance charities respond to an average of 137 lifesaving missions every day, taking advanced pre-hospital critical care directly to people experiencing life-threatening illness or injury.
Campaign taken to Parliament
One of the most prominent issues raised during the week was the future of hospital helipad provision.
Air Ambulances UK hosted a Parliamentary drop-in session alongside the All Party Parliamentary Group for Air Ambulances and the APPG for Aviation, bringing together MPs, peers, parliamentary staff and representatives from the air ambulance and aviation sectors.
The event highlighted calls for safeguarded 24/7 on-site helipad access at Major Trauma Centres and specialist hospitals, alongside concerns about the UK’s future access to the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service.
Representatives and supporters also visited Downing Street to hand in a petition signed by more than 2,500 people calling for air ambulances to be able to land directly at hospitals around the clock during life-threatening emergencies.
The campaign followed the publication of the APPG for Air Ambulances report, Critical Moments, Life Saving Infrastructure, which found significant variation in hospital helipad provision across the UK.
An Early Day Motion recognising Air Ambulance Week and calling for a national policy on safeguarded 24/7 hospital helipad access attracted support from MPs representing several political parties during the week.
However, in a Parliamentary answer on 9 September, the Government said there were currently no plans to mandate safeguarded 24/7 on-site helipads nationally. It said the Department of Health and Social Care continued to work with NHS England, the Civil Aviation Authority and other partners and would keep the position under review.
Mike McGrath, Chief Executive of Air Ambulances UK, said:
“We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported our campaign and taken the time to sign the petition. The support of thousands of people shows such strong public support for making sure patients can reach specialist care as directly as possible in life-threatening emergencies.
“Air ambulance charities provide lifesaving care at the scene, working alongside the NHS to give patients the best possible chance of survival and recovery.
“We were pleased to bring this issue to Parliament during Air Ambulance Week and to have the opportunity to speak with parliamentarians about the practical steps needed to secure the future of hospital helipad access across the UK.”
Communities showed their support
Away from Westminster, charities across the UK organised fundraising, awareness and community activities.
In Dorset and Somerset, some of the region’s best-known landmarks were illuminated in yellow and green. Christchurch Priory, Corfe Castle, Glastonbury Tor, St James Church in Yeovil, Weymouth Pavilion and Wookey Hole all took part in the display.
Magpas Air Ambulance marked the week across Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire with a themed punt on the River Cam, CPR and defibrillator training, fundraising activities and landmarks illuminated in orange. Bedford Blues also supported the charity with a collection at its match against Bath, while the charity rounded off the week at the IWM Duxford Air Show. Donations to Magpas during the week were also matched up to £1,000 by a supporter.
In Northern Ireland, Air Ambulance NI used the week to highlight its first owned helicopter and its Lift Off Together campaign. Supporters were invited to have their name, or the name of someone special, placed on the underside of the new aircraft through a donation to the charity.
Wales Air Ambulance combined Air Ambulance Week with its 25th anniversary year, sharing patient stories and recognising the crews, volunteers and supporters who have helped the service attend more than 58,000 missions since it was established in 2001.
Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex also launched a new Mission Badge programme during the week, backed by ambassador Dr Hilary Jones MBE. The free initiative was designed to introduce children aged five to 14 to the work of the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service and help young people develop lifesaving knowledge and skills.
Meanwhile, Essex & Herts Air Ambulance encouraged communities to take part in its Go Red Go Yellow campaign, with supporters invited to organise colourful fundraising activities in aid of the service.
National awareness
The campaign also reached millions of people beyond individual charity activities. An estimated 65 million Royal Mail letters carried a message encouraging people to support their local air ambulance, while national media activity included Heart Radio, talkSPORT, ITV and Metro.
The week demonstrated the scale and diversity of public support behind air ambulance charities while also placing major infrastructure and policy questions firmly before Government and Parliament.
Although Air Ambulance Week 2026 has now concluded, charities across the UK continue to rely predominantly on donations, fundraising and volunteering to provide advanced critical care to patients when every second matters.
