In the seven days from Monday, October 28 the team completed six missions, of which four required the use of Night Vision Goggles.

For the first, at 12.10am on October 29, they were dispatched to transfer a patient in serious condition after suffering a medical event from Gisborne to Waikato Hospital.

At 1.30am the following morning they carried out an identical mission, a run they repeated at 4pm on Saturday, November 2.

While returning from Waikato on that day they received an in-air dispatch in response to a trauma at Murupara where, upon landing, they were stood down.

As a result of that long Saturday run they were covered by the Central North Island-based Greenlea Rescue Helicopter team who were dispatched from Taupo to a scene near Motu, flying their patient to Gisborne Hospital.

The week’s mission log for the Eastland team was completed on Sunday when they responded to two motor vehicle accidents.

The first (1.20pm) was at Nuhaka, with the patient flown in a serious condition to Gisborne Hospital.

Then at 10.20pm they flew to another, this time at Hicks Bay from where the patient was again flown in a serious condition to Gisborne Hospital.

CAPTION: A LONG RUN: Members of the Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter team return to the Eastland Helicopter Rescue Trust hangar after a long run that took them first to Waikato, with a diversion to Murupara during their flight home.