Rescue from the air: ADAC trains life -saving missions in Zweibrücken!

Rescue from the air: ADAC trains life -saving missions in Zweibrücken!

On Tuesday, April 29, 2025, a special training of the ADAC air rescue takes place on the Zweibrücken airfield. In cooperation with the Kaiserslautern professional fire brigade and the Rhineland-Palatinate mountain rescue service, the team is trained in complex rescue scenarios. The aim of this training is to prepare emergency doctors for the challenges that can occur when rescue people from people who are difficult to access, as they often occur in the West Palatinate.

As part of the exercise scenario, an emergency doctor is deposed by a rescue winch on the roof of a fire simulation system. There he has to go to an exercise doll in order to carry out a first aid and ensure the transportability of the "patient". Then both an emergency doctor and the exercise doll are attached to the rescue winch and brought back on board the helicopter. In addition, the training also includes mountain rescues with a lifeguard triangle in the sloping terrain. The entire exercises take place on the steep slope within the airport site.

training and technology

In order to ensure security during missions, a focus of the training is on the procedural safety of the emergency doctors. The pilots have to keep the helicopter calm to enable safe abseiling. A total of around 25 participants take part in the training, including pilots, flight instructors, ward doctors and emergency paramedics with wind qualification from the ADAC HEMS Academy.

In order to increase the effectiveness of these rescue inserts, the ADAC air rescue has invested in new vans this year, which are equipped with essential equipment for winch inserts. These include radio devices, helmets and ropes. These measures are part of an extended operational concept for disaster situations in order to increase operational readiness in special situations.

missions and expansion

The ADAC air rescue now operates six wind stations in Germany, including Munich, Murnau, Straubing, Sande, Hamburg and the West Palatinate. In 2024, 552 missions were carried out with the rescue winch, which underpins the need for such training measures. These units are crucial for the effective implementation of rescue missions under difficult conditions.

parallel to these activities, the ADAC air rescue also trains in other regions, for example in the alpine space. From April 7, flight and recovery maneuvers will take place with the rescue winch, carried out in cooperation with the Bavarian mountain rescue service. The training locations range from Ohlstadt-Eschenlohe to the upper Höllental. Here, complex rescue situations in the high mountains are simulated in order to optimally prepare the emergency services.

The training times are coordinated with nature conservation authorities and corridors to ensure a minimal impairment of flora and fauna as well as the residents and day trippers.

These continuous training measures and investments reflect the engagement of the ADAC air rescue, to offer quick and professional help from the air, and ensure operational readiness, especially in demanding rescue scenarios.