B.C.’s Helijet to donate air ambulance to Ukraine

Shortly aft Russia attacked Ukraine astir 3 years agone Danny Sitnam allowed a Ukrainian mates and their babe to enactment successful his family’s cottage.

Sitnam, who’s the CEO of chopper work Helijet, said Monday that during that clip they person go friends with the household and those astatine Maple Hope Foundation, a radical that has provided assistance to Ukrainians since 2014.

It’s what started the thought rolling to donate a afloat operational aesculapian chopper for humanitarian usage successful Ukraine, helium said.

“It’s truly important successful the consciousness of giving backmost to specified a hopeless concern that’s going connected successful the Ukraine,” Sitnam said.

Helijet said successful a connection it has agreed with “a consortium of Canadian and Ukrainian non-governmental organizations” to present the Sikorsky aerial ambulance, which was antecedently contracted to the B.C. Ministry of Health.

“We conscionable felt it was the close happening to bash to spot if we could enactment it successful a bigger way, and yet this came to the culmination of giving an craft and supporting wounded soldiers and truthful forth,” said Sitnam.

He said the full task volition outgo betwixt $500,000 and a cardinal dollars.

Sitnam said his household felt compelled to further lend aft spending clip with the Ukrainian family.

“Supporting them was conscionable the commencement of a committedness we made astatine Helijet to assistance Maple Hope Foundation arsenic the unrelenting conflict with Russia continues for the radical of Ukraine,” helium said portion lasting successful beforehand of the chopper draped with some the Canadian and Ukrainian flags.

The Sikorsky S-76A is simply a afloat equipped aerial aesculapian chopper that Helijet had antecedently provided nether declaration to B.C.’s Ministry of Health for diligent transport, and portion it has precocious been taken retired of service, the connection says the chopper inactive has years of formation capableness remaining.

Sitnam said the chopper volition beryllium dismantled and driven to Calgary, wherever it volition beryllium loaded onto a 747 cargo craft and flown to Luxembourg.

The chopper volition beryllium transported connected the crushed to Kyiv, Ukraine, and is expected to beryllium enactment into usage by March 15.

Svitlana Kominko, co-founder and CEO, Maple Hope Foundation, said her instauration started a crowdfunding run to assistance facilitate the donation by raising much than $100,000 to determination the craft to Ukraine.

Helijet and Maple Hope Foundation person besides been moving with the radical Unite with Ukraine for much than 8 months to put the shipment of the helicopter.

Kominko said she received overwhelming feedback from the Ukrainian assemblage erstwhile she shared the quality with them.

“Wow, a helicopter, adjacent it volition beryllium a spaceship,” laughed Kominko.

Kominko said this donation volition prevention lives and it sends retired a beardown connection to the radical of Ukraine that portion these radical are acold away, “they care, and they privation to help.”

She said it’s besides a bully reminder to radical that the warfare isn’t over, Russia continues its attacks connected villages, residential buildings, schools and hospitals.

Kominko was precocious successful Ukraine to sojourn her parent and said radical are inactive dying.

“They are killed successful their beds … each time we were successful Ukraine successful December, the sirens are each time and you person to hide, and you request to find a place, and your heart, your caput isn’t astatine peace,” she said.

Maple Hope Foundation and Helijet hosted 2 pilots and 2 engineers from Ukraine successful November for formation and attraction grooming successful mentation for the helicopter’s determination to Ukraine.

Helijet said successful a connection that the chopper volition beryllium delivered connected the information that it is utilized solely for non-commercial, humanitarian, and aesculapian evacuation missions for airlifting radical needing urgent aesculapian attention.