ON BEHALF of the Wiltshire Air Ambulance Charitable Trust, thank you for your generous contribution towards the final total of £2,001 raised by the Swindon Advertiser raffle and Excalibur, at the Wiltshire Business Awards.

We are very grateful for the support you have shown and for this phenomenal total donated by the Swindon Advertiser. To give you an idea of what your contribution means we need to raise in excess of £6,850 per day to keep the helicopter flying and saving lives.

We are not funded by the government or through any National Lottery funding. All funds raised come from the wonderful public of Wiltshire.

Wiltshire’s Air Ambulance is currently called to an average 2-3 potentially lifesaving missions a day across the county. The speed of the helicopter can mean the difference between saving a life or helping to limit life changing injuries.

Wiltshire Air Ambulance is available 19 hours a day – 12 per cent of all call outs are at night. We have the ability to fly at night as we have specialist cameras and thermal imaging equipment on board.

We are able to transport the patient to the most appropriate specialist hospital, where lifesaving medical intervention is given as quickly as possible. The air ambulance can reach anywhere in the county within 11 minutes.

Everyone in Wiltshire has a stake in the Wiltshire Air Ambulance and we appreciate your ongoing support.

David Phillpot, CEO Wiltshire Air Ambulance Charitable Trust, Calne, Wiltshire