Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance operates two rapid response vehicles (RRV).
These vehicles provide an additional life-saving resource to assist at local emergencies when it is quicker to go by road or when our helicopters are offline due to weather conditions or maintenance.
Our RRVs are an emergency response vehicle, driving under blue lights with an advanced on board navigation system, to reach patients as quickly as possible.
SCAA uses the BMW X5 – which is typically manned by one paramedic. If appropriate, two paramedics will travel in an RRV and one can then potentially travel with the land ambulance crew to continue treating the patient.
Since their introduction, our RRVs have responded to over 1000 emergency call outs, 31% of which have been to cardiac arrests.
"Our rapid response vehicles (RRV) is an important part of SCAA. Manned by the same crew as our helicopter, the RRVs are deployed if the helicopter is grounded of if the emergency is quicker to reach by car - enabling us to continue to offer the early medical intervention that saves and improves lives."
