'Copter is coming

By late summer, air transport to a Fort Wayne hospital will be just minutes away for Jay County residents.
Portland Board of Aviation approved and signed an agreement Wednesday to base Lutheran Air 1 at Portland Municipal Airport. The agreement calls for some modifications to the airport, with the helicopter to be moved to the city by Sept. 1.
“This is something that is primarily a quality of life issue first,” said aviation board president Mike McKee during the meeting. “It’s a great thing for all of the citizens of this area … knowing that the response time is going to be a lot quicker with a helicopter already based here.”
With a top speed of about 140 miles per hour, the EC 1335 helicopter stationed at the Portland airport could reach any part of Jay County in less than eight minutes. The trip from Fort Wayne to Portland takes between 15 and 30 minutes, depending on wind speeds and other factors.
The decision to make the move from the hospital’s main campus came after Lutheran Hospital got its second helicopter in 2013. Mark Pepple, regional business manager for Lutheran Air, said the goal was to place the service in an area where it has been most utilized.
“I don’t think we could have picked a better spot to be,” added Lutheran Hospital CEO Brian Bauer, who was on hand for an announcement ceremony that followed the regular aviation board meeting. “You guys are going to be lucky here. You’re going to have it right here, should anything bad ever happen. Hopefully it doesn’t. … But it can save lives.
“When you’re having a heart attack or when you have trauma, time means everything.”
Lutheran Air has been in existence since 2004 and also has a helicopter, Lutheran 2, based in Wabash.

Plans call for Lutheran 1, which is currently based in Fort Wayne, to be stationed at Portland Municipal Airport around the clock and 365 days a year. It is regularly staffed by a pilot, flight nurse and paramedic, all of whom work 12-hour shifts.
Those crew members will work on-site at the Portland airport in a new office space/living area that will be built in what is now a “breezeway” between two hangars. While modifications could still be made to the design, that section will include a bedroom, dining area, living room space, office, kitchenette, laundry room and full bathroom.
There will also be minor electrical and plumbing upgrades to the hangar.
The agreement calls for Lutheran to pay 60 percent of the costs for those projects, which are capped at $40,000, with the city paying 40 percent.
Portland Mayor Randy Geesaman thanked Lutheran Air for working with the city and emphasized the value of the service to those in Jay County and the adjacent counties. The helicopters cover a 150-mile radius from each base.
“We cannot stress enough that this is a service not only for Portland, but the entire surrounding area,” he said. “That was why it was a no-brainer on our part. When Lutheran wanted to talk to us, we were ready to jump at the opportunity.”
The agreement between Lutheran Air and the airport is a three-year lease, with two automatic one-year renewals. The lease rate for the hangar is $1,750 per month.
Geesaman noted that Lutheran Hospital approached the city in October about the possibility of making Portland Municipal Airport a base site for the helicopter. Talks and negotiations have been ongoing since then, with a deal reached earlier this month and formalized Wednesday.
Lutheran Air has been called repeatedly to serve Jay County residents in the last month, including to fly three patients from the scene of a Saturday accident in Wells County. Both Lutheran Air helicopters were called to the scene of an accident May 28 near the intersection of county roads 750 West and 450 North.