ARA Flugrettung marked its 25th anniversary on Saturday with a celebration at Watschiger Alm on the Nassfeld in southern Austria, bringing together rescue crews, regional officials and guests from the helicopter emergency medical services sector. The event highlighted the operator’s three rescue helicopter bases in Austria, at Fresach and Nassfeld in Carinthia and Reutte in Tyrol, alongside a live demonstration flight with winch rescue and a helicopter blessing.
The Klagenfurt-based organisation, which works with the Carinthian Red Cross and belongs to the DRF group, handles about 1,150 missions a year from its Carinthian bases and has carried out roughly 44,400 missions since starting operations in 2001. Health councillors Beate Prettner and Peter Reichmann were among the officials attending the jubilee programme, which also included a church festival.
ARA Flugrettung has steadily expanded its operational capabilities, introducing night flights in 2019 and becoming the first operator in Austria to conduct night winch rescues. It has also flown under IFR in poor weather since 2024 and is continuing a fleet upgrade to five-blade rotor helicopters. The next step is a digital emergency physician protocol designed to speed the transfer of medical data to receiving hospitals.