Remembering 25 years of rescue

TODAY marks 25 years of service for chief executive officer of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service, Richard Jones.

In the early 80’s Richard played first grade rugby for the Dragons before returning to Newcastle to play for Souths.

An injury in the 90’s saw his playing days stop and commentary days start as he began working alongside NBN’s Mike Rabbit and former Knights coach Allan McMahon, who at the time was also running the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service.

One day Mr McMahon shared he was leaving his job at the Service and Richard thought: “I might have a go at that” . . . the rest was history.

“I love what I do and I’m passionate about the vital role our Service provides for the communities of Northern NSW,” Richard said.

“It’s an absolute honour, every day is so dynamic, there are continuous challenges, however I always see positive growth and the growth I see across our teams inspires me every day.”

It was in November 1995 Richard started his role as general manager of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter and for more than half of the Service’s existence, Jones has been at the helm with community continuing as the cornerstone of the Service’s operation.

Throughout his career, Richard has seen major helicopter technology upgrades and lead a successful tender into NSW government to win a 10-year contract for the rescue helicopter.

Chairman of the service, John Davis commended Richard on his dedication to leading with his heart and prioritising the community’s needs.

“Our operations have evolved continually during Richard’s 25 years of leadership and he deserves every congratulations on his achievements throughout that time,” John Davis said.

“His passion and dedication have been tremendous and he has always kept our Community’s needs at the forefront of every decision.

“The Service is extremely fortunate to have had such an incredibly genuine leader for the past 25 years.”

Richard said he is driven by the community support, past patients, small towns out west and volunteers, “it really keeps me keen to keep going.”

“I love seeing the community support and the positive outcomes, together we are saving people’s lives and the end product is that every time the rescue helicopter leaves the ground… so many people had a part to play,” Richard said.

“This includes our entire helicopter family both past and present, our engineers, aircrew, marketing, housie, finance, admin, board of directors, regional advisory committees, volunteers and donors.

“Also the NSW Ambulance paramedics, NSW Heath doctors, nurses and the entire emergency service network across the regions who do such wonderful work.

“All of which come together to ensure we can provide the best in aero medical support 24-7.”