THE Great Western Air Ambulance Charity is asking for help from members of the public to ensure that they can get to more patients in need efficiently and quickly.

Members of the public are being asked to follow a few simple steps so that an air ambulance can land and the team of critical care and doctors on board can treat their patient as quickly as possible where time is of the essence.

Pilot Rich MacLaughlin said: “It can be quite challenging to find a safe place to land as close as possible to the patient, and I have to take into account the risk of landing to the general public as well as the crew and the patient.

"That is why we are asking for the help of the public to ensure we can land safely, and get help to the patient.”

GWAAC is asking people to move to the edges of the field if they spot an air ambulance overhead, so that it has clear space to land and advise them to hold on to any children, dogs and loose items and to cover their eyes to protect them from debris.

Last year GWAAC attended 1,655 jobs in total, 632 by helicopter and 1,023 by critical care car.

The charity doesn't get day-to-day funding from the Government or National Lottery and needs £2.3m to stay operational.

For more information visit www.gwaac.com