Hyde County, North Carolina, said Tuesday that one of its paramedics has flown a single-seat Pivotal BlackFly eVTOL on two live 911 calls. According to the county, the paramedic reached one patient about 20 minutes before a ground ambulance and began advanced life support before other crews arrived. County EMS officials, Pivotal and Code Blue Resources described the missions as the first U.S. deployment of an eVTOL for routine emergency medical response.
Paramedic Quinn Reece flew directly to GPS coordinates near each emergency scene and carried a cardiac monitor, airway supplies and a primary response bag. According to an Axios report, one call involved a diabetic emergency and another involved a cardiac emergency. Reece served as both the pilot and sole advanced life-support provider aboard the aircraft.
More Than 300 Training Flights
Hyde County EMS, Code Blue Resources and Pivotal developed operating procedures for using eVTOLs in emergency response and completed more than 300 training sorties before beginning live missions.
“Every decision we make is about getting advanced care to our citizens faster,” Hyde County EMS Chief Brook Cox said. “These missions proved that we can overcome distance, reach patients sooner, and redefine emergency response in rural communities.”
The Aircraft
Pivotal’s BlackFly carries a single occupant and is being used in the program to deliver a paramedic and medical equipment rather than transport patients. Pivotal announced the Hyde County proof-of-concept project earlier this year as a test of whether its aircraft could supplement conventional emergency response. Hyde County also plans to evaluate the aircraft for law enforcement, fire and emergency-management missions.
“From the beginning, our goal wasn’t simply to prove an eVTOL could respond to a 911 call—it was to prove that Advanced Life Support could reach patients sooner,” Code Blue Resources President Carla Baker said. “This project demonstrated far more than the successful integration of aviation into EMS.”