Flying paramedic unit could save lives in San Bernardino County

Mountains, vast swaths of open land and unpaved roads can delay the arrival of San Bernardino County Fire Department paramedics in the nation’s largest county by size.

But on Monday, June 23, fire officials got their first in-person look at future-is-now technology that could shorten those times and save lives — if some complications can be worked out.

Representatives of the aircraft company Pivotal demonstrated a Jetsons-like ultralight that runs on battery power and takes off vertically in a flash. The propeller-driven aircraft — only about 15 feet in length and width and weighing just 348 pounds — soared and twisted above a county fire camp on a cloudless morning in Devore.

The aircraft has room for one person — preferably short and light to allow more equipment to be carried — and can land on water in an emergency, as well. It is equipped with a parachute and can fly dawn until dusk. At $190,000-$260,000, it costs less than a helicopter and needs less time to get airborne.

“This, you can pull out of your carport and take off from your driveway,” said pilot Tim Lum, 62, who demonstrated the aircraft for the Fire Department. “You can land it at your house and you plug it in and recharge. You can take another flight in 40 minutes.”

Fire engineer Jeff Alexy, who heads the department’s robotics program, immediately saw the potential benefits of training paramedics to fly what Pivotal has dubbed the Helix.

“There’s times where, especially in our 15 (Freeway) 40 (Freeway) corridor, we have extended response times,” Alexy said. “(With the Helix) we fly like a bird, so we don’t have to worry about getting stuck in the sand and dirt roads. Traffic, the mountainous areas, the terrain, the roads, wildfires shut things down.”

Alexy said the department envisions sending the Helix to traffic collisions with serious injuries or medical calls involving life-threatening illnesses such as heart attacks. Other firefighters in a medic engine would follow the paramedic to the scene.

Some remote, lightly populated areas of the county have few fire stations, Alexy noted.

Firefighters took the Helix for a spin on Monday without leaving the ground by using a simulator. Inside a conference room, they sat in a chair that was hooked up to a monitor and donned virtual reality goggles. Using a joystick, they took off, hovered, glided forward, spun left and right, climbed and descended and landed. A reporter who tried out the simulator found it simple to operate.

But there are issues the department is working through with Pivotal before committing to buying a Helix. For one, the range is 20 minutes and 20 miles. And the department wants to load the Helix with life-saving medicine, a heart monitor and blood. The model demonstrated Monday had little space for anything more than one person.

Also, it would have to be used in rural areas, as ultralights are prohibited from flying over highly populated areas.

Palo Alto-based Pivotal makes three types of Helix: one for personal use, one for public safety and one for the military. Pivotal is taking orders for the personal aircraft and expects to deliver some in December, said CEO Ken Karklin. The company hopes to begin pilot programs with two public safety agencies this year, he said. And the Air Force is testing eight aircraft, he said.

The Helix, originally known as the Black Fly, went into development around 2010.

Canadian engineer Marcus Leng made a fortune in memory foam for office chairs at age 36 and afterward needed a new challenge, Karklin said.

“He’s an interesting inventor-type,” Karklin said. “He got sick of being retired and decided, ‘Hey, battery technology’s gotten to where I could probably design a flying machine.’ “So he did. The motivation was nothing short of wanting to change the world in the way people move. …

“That Jetsons future is absolutely real, I’m convinced. This is probably the first of many, many designs by many, many providers, and we think it’s got some mission utility,” Karkllin said