Idaho Backcountry Airports Get Kodiak-Delivered Defibrillators
Kodiak 100 Kodiak 100 takes off from Johnson Creek Airport (3U2) located in Yellow Pine, Idaho, to finish one of Daher’s sponsored deployment flights of defibrillators in conjunction in conjunction with Backcountry Aviation’s Defibrillator Program. [Courtesy: Daher]
The plane stops in the middle of a narrow strip in a remote wilderness, and the dust begins to settle. You carefully glide towards the edge of the strip to get the plane out of the way to ensure that the next pilot who is approaching has ample space to get off. You exit onto the scrub and shut the door in front of you. The quiet descends.
There might not be a second aircraft coming. All is fine, so you’re healthy, and everything goes as planned. What happens if your flight is flawless and you or a member of your guests suffers from a heart attack while getting ready for camp? It seems like an out-of-the-realm possibility until it occurs to someone you love, and you’re a few rough miles from the nearest medical facility.
As part of their efforts to install medical devices for critical care within various wilderness regions, The Backcountry Aviation Defibrillator Program is putting automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) in high-traffic remote airstrips in Idaho. Zoll 3 Zoll 3 devices communicate using Wi-Fi and display their status as operational. Shortly, it is planned to announce their availability and status via flight planning software.
The initial mission to install these AEDs into operation was conducted with Daher’s help with the two Kodiak 100s. The first was from Cavanaugh Bay Airport (66S), located in Coolin, close to Daher’s Kodiak facility in Sandpoint, situated in northwestern Idaho, before moving to the other famous strip. Big Creek Airport (U60) is located in Valley County and Johnson Creek (3U2) in Yellow Pine in the state’s central region, and finally up to Smiley Creek (U87) in the town of south-central Ketchum.
Delivering the Daher-sponsored ZOLL 3 defibrillator to Cavanaugh Bay Airport (66S) in Coolin, Idaho, with the Kodiak 100 are (left to right) David Schuck, senior adviser at Kodiak Aircraft; Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice president of Daher’s Aircraft Division and CEO of Kodiak Aircraft; Sam Perez, organizer of the Backcountry Aviation Defibrillator Project; and Don McIntosh, District 1 director for the Idaho Aviation Association. [Courtesy: Daher]
Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice president of Daher’s Aircraft Division and CEO of Kodiak Aircraft, flew the mission to Cavanaugh Bay.
“At Daher, our philosophy is: ‘We support those who care for aviation,’ and the Backcountry Aviation Defibrillator Project flights are a continuation of this commitment,” said Chabbert, pointing out that the program is a perfect supplement to the company’s sponsorship by the Recreational Aviation Foundation as well as other backcountry-related missions.
Sam Perez, an organizer for the Backcountry Aviation Defibrillator Project and a grateful Daher for its help using the most efficient aircraft to fulfill the task.
“The Idaho Aviation Association is exceptionally grateful for Daher’s generosity and support of our mission to install these lifesaving defibrillators in Idaho’s remote backcountry airstrips,” Perez explained. “We would not be able to do this without the assistance of Daher and the many other donors who contributed to the purchase of the defibrillator equipment. Aviators or general aviation lovers who utilize these airstrips from remote locations will be able to fight in the event of a heart attack.”