On 12 and 13 March 2015, a flight organised by the government of Luxembourg in cooperation with Luxembourg Air Rescue (LAR) will transport a British national from Sierra Leone to the United Kingdom as a precaution for assessment and monitoring. The individual has not been diagnosed with Ebola.
The plane used for the transfer will be LAR’s Learjet XR 45, equipped with a special MEDEVAC (medical evacuation) module for the care of Ebola patients.
This operation is part of the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism, in whose Voluntary Pool Luxembourg participates with two LAR airplanes in the context of the fight against the Ebola virus. Both planes have been operational since February 2015.
After the British authorities had introduced a request with the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the competent Luxembourg authorities (the High Commissioner of National Protection and the Rescue Services Agency) and LAR responded favourably, after proceeding to an analysis of the patient’s medical data together with the World Health Organisation.
"We pay tribute to the tremendous courage of the healthcare workers who are risking their lives every day in the fight against Ebola", said Christos Stylianides, EU Ebola Coordinator and Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management. "The EU has worked hard to help end this epidemic. With funding, but also by supporting Member States in deploying equipment and personnel, and by putting a system for medical evacuations at the service of all international health workers. We must not let down our guard until we get to zero cases."
As part of the EU’s comprehensive response to the fight against Ebola, the European Commission has put in place a medical evacuation system for international health workers. MEDEVAC is managed by the EU’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre and transport capacity is provided by Member states. The EU has also signed agreements with external contractors to ensure that additional capacity is available if needed. The EU has already facilitated a number of medical evacuations by either co-financing flights (up to 100%) or helping with the coordination.
Released by the Information and Press Service of the Government