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Video and reports by Mary
Graham and Ruth Banks

It's happy birthday to a charity which
is literally one of Kent's lifesavers.

The Kent Air Ambulance was founded in
November 1989 and exactly 20 years ago - on Wednesday, December 23,
1989 - it made its first life-saving mission.

It was called to free 16-year-old
Michelle Leather and her brother, who lived in Tenterden from a car
crash.

Until 2000, the helicopter flew out of
Rochester Airport and in the late 80’s Kent become the second
county in Britain to have an air ambulance.

The 20-year story of the air ambulance
has been dotted with challenges.

Tragedy struck in July 1998 when the
air ambulance crashed in a field near Burham, killing pilot Graham
Budden, 40 and paramedics Mark Darby, 37, and Tony Richardson,
47.

Amid an enormous wave of public
sympathy, donations began pouring in, and the service was able to
resume just five weeks later when a new helicopter bearing the
initials GMT - for Graham, Mark and Tony - took to the skies.

And in 2000 the air ambulance had to
find a new base in Marden due to changes in the lease at Rochester
Airport.

But there have also been huge
advances, in no small part due to the army of fundraisers across
Kent who remember the charity with donations, or organise wacky
events to keep the lifesaving helicopter in the skies.

They include being able to add
hospital doctors on all flights since 2006, as well as
paramedics.

And advances in medical equipment and
skills mean crews can even perform minor procedures and surgery in
the air.

Blob: In November 2010, KAA staff and
patients are cycling across Cuba to raise money during the
charity’s 20th anniversary year. If you want to join them, contact
Emma Getliffe on 01303 862996.