A simulation model of a helicopter ambulance service

We study two different operational scenarios for a regional air ambulance service-company which has bases in northern California. Two of these bases serve the land areas encompassed roughly in a circular area of radius 100 miles centered in Gilroy and Salinas, respectively; with a large part of their coverage areas reachable from either base. The base in Salinas currently operates one helicopter only from Thursday to Monday, whereas the base in Gilroy operates one helicopter 24/7. The company is considering extending the operation of one helicopter to 24/7 for its Salinas base. In this paper we analyze the operational impacts of that extension, and develop a framework that can be applied towards the study of the ambulance assignment problem faced by small operators.