ÖAMTC air rescue with many winter sports missions

As expected, the ÖAMTC air rescue crews were heavily challenged during the three weeks of the semester break.

The perfect weather in many places attracted numerous winter sports enthusiasts to the slopes. The 17 helicopters had to take off a total of 3 times between February 25rd and 1.453th to bring quick help to people in need. If you also count the ÖAMTC air rescue's four winter locations - Alpin 1 (Patergassen), Alpin 2 (Sölden), Alpin 5 (Hintertux) and Alpin Heli 6 (Zell am See) - there were even 1.752 missions.

“The high number of deployments during the semester break shows how important our work is to be able to help quickly and efficiently in emergencies. We are proud that our crews provide professional help even in challenging situations,” emphasizes Marco Trefanitz, Managing Director of the ÖAMTC air rescue. “But like any other time of the year, internal, neurological or other emergencies are the most common reasons for alarm.” Of course, there were still 592 missions on Austria's ski slopes in the last three weeks. In total, 540 skiers, 15 snowboarders, 25 ski tourers and 12 other winter sports enthusiasts had to be flown to the hospitals by the ÖAMTC emergency medical helicopters after initial care at the often difficult-to-access accident sites.

The region with the highest deployment was once again Tyrol, where the yellow helicopters brought quick help in 430 cases. Christophorus 4 started most frequently in Reith near Kitzbühel (97 missions). Alpin 2 from Sölden ranks second in the deployment statistics with 90 missions, followed by Christophorus 5 in Zams (85 missions). The busiest day was Saturday, February 3rd and Friday, February 16th, with 98 missions flown each, followed by Monday, February 5th, with 94 missions across Austria.

Marco Trefanitz also reminds all winter sports enthusiasts to be particularly careful on the slopes: “Especially in times with little snow and less than optimal conditions, it is important to minimize the risk of accidents and to ensure your own safety and the safety of others.”