Empowering Norwegian Air Ambulance with Seamless Communication

Empowering Norwegian Air Ambulance with Seamless Communication

Our expansive network serves as a vital backbone for Norwegian Air Ambulance’s services across the region.

When an air ambulance takes off, it embarks on a mission that demands precision and efficiency. Seamless data transfer is crucial for relaying patient information, medical updates, and navigational data between the air ambulance and healthcare institutions.

With operations in Norway, there are often challenging weather conditions with strong winds, heavy rain, fog, and snowstorms. Therefore, Norwegian Air Ambulance has heavily invested in weather cameras across Norway to provide operational support to the 13 air ambulance bases.

Weather cameras are financed through the Norwegian Air Ambulance Foundation, which has 300,000 support members and companies. They are taking part in a charity work to develop the air ambulance service to become even better.

One of the sites is at Tryvannshøgda, where the new weather camera station will ensure that the helicopters can deliver patients to the hospitals in Oslo, even in bad weather.

High up in Telenor Towers 209.5-metre-high mast, technicians from Norwegian Air Ambulance Technology are working on the installation of two large camera stations. These stations, with six cameras providing a 360-degree view of the airspace of Oslo, will tell pilots where it is safe to fly.

“Sometimes the fog lies thick down in Oslo and makes it impossible to land the helicopter at Ullevål Hospital. At the same time, the sun may be shining on Tryvannshøgda, making it possible to land and hand over the patient to a car ambulance. The weather camera provides answers to where it is possible to land and can help us confirm other weather data created by computers. A picture tells you more than a thousand words.”, says base chief pilot at Lørenskog, Bent Næss from Norsk Luftambulanse.

The weather camera station at Tryvannshøgda is not only important for the helicopters that fly from the Lørenskog base. “The medical helicopters from Ål, Dombås, Arendal, and occasionally from Western and Central Norway, deliver acutely ill and severely injured patients to the large hospitals in Oslo. They fly a long way, so it’s extra important to know that they can land when they arrive,” says Næss.

Infrastructure that matters

The guyed steel mast from Telenor Towers was built in 1990 on Tryvannshøgda, 515 metres above sea level. Among other things, it ensures that the capital area has mobile coverage, radio, TV and internet.

“We are pleased to be able to deliver a robust infrastructure that provides the air ambulance service with better weather information and citizens with an even better health service,” says Torbjørn Teigen, CEO at Telenor Towers.

The 175 weather camera stations in Norway are crowdfunded through Norwegian Air Ambulance, private donors and other supporting businesses. Both the Police and the Air Force obtain important information from the weather camera system.

“Several helicopter missions are rejected due to bad weather. We have placed cameras that show the weather in strategic places from north to south in the country. This makes it easier for the crews to plan whether they can reach the patient by helicopter, or whether they should land somewhere closer to the patient to be able to provide help faster,” says Hege Bommen, Head of Emergency Preparedness Solutions at Norwegian Air Ambulance Technology.

“By ensuring that our towers and masts are maintained to the highest standards, we provide a reliable foundation for their critical services” says Torbjørn Teigen and continues with “our collaboration with Norwegian Air Ambulance also highlights the importance of robust infrastructure in saving lives and enhancing emergency medical care. By empowering Norsk Luftambulanse with seamless navigation and communication capabilities, we contribute to a safer and more responsive healthcare system”.

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Ingøy Mast: A monument of broadcasting history

Ingøy Mast: A monument of broadcasting history

Standing at an impressive height of 362 meters, the Ingøy mast is not only the tallest structure in Norway but also the tallest in Scandinavia. Although decommissioned, it continues to symbolize the evolution of communication technologies and their critical roles during historical conflicts.

The original transmitter, established in 1911 on Ingøy, was essential for communications with mining operations on Svalbard. It underwent significant challenges during World War II, initially seized by the Luftwaffe in 1940 to disrupt strategic communications in the Barents Sea, and then

by British forces in the hunt for the German battleship Tirpitz.

Reconstructed in the late autumn of 2000, the modern Ingøy mast operated until December 2019. It served as a vital infrastructure, equipped with longwave transmitters, covering extensive maritime and coastal regions from Svalbard in the north to “Smutthullet” in the east. Remote operations were conducted from the Kvitsøy station in Rogaland, underscoring the mast’s significance in facilitating robust communication across remote and expansive areas, crucial for both civilian and military purposes.

Despite its historic and strategic importance, Telenor Towers has now decided to dismantle the Ingøy mast. This decision necessitates a meticulous dismantling process, initiated in fall 2023, prioritising environmental protection to be gentle to local wildlife and fauna –  and safety for the people involved. Plans are underway to repurpose as much of the mast as possible at multiple locations for sustainability purposes. This strategy not only preserves parts of the monumental structure but also serves dual purposes of enhancing regional infrastructure and promoting sustainability.

The ongoing dismantling project is not just a logistical challenge but a commitment to environmental stewardship and historical preservation. We’re excited that this project ensures that the Ingøy mast’s legacy continues, blending historical preservation with modern sustainability and safety standards.

How will we dismantle Scandinavia’s tallest structure? Follow us in the progress of this significant project and its contributions to sustainable practices in infrastructure redevelopment.

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