North Slope Borough Boosts Medevac Reach with PC-24 Air Ambulance

The North Slope Borough Search and Rescue program maintains medevac aircraft that now include a Pilatus PC-24 configured as an air ambulance, enhancing emergency medical transport across the Borough’s vast, remote area. The aircraft’s design and operating profile are tailored to Arctic needs, offering short-field performance, a large cargo door for stretcher and equipment loading, and the ability to operate from rough airstrips that many rural communities rely on.

Those performance features directly affect how quickly and safely patients can be moved from village clinics and remote sites to higher-level care in Utqiagvik or beyond. Short-field capability reduces the need for long prepared runways, broadening the set of landing sites that can be used during storms or when weather or terrain make travel over land impossible. The large cargo door streamlines loading of patients and medical equipment, which matters in time-critical cases such as trauma, severe illness, or complications during remote procedures.

For residents of Utqiagvik and surrounding North Slope communities, the PC-24 strengthens medevac readiness by cutting response times and increasing flexibility in where the aircraft can land. In a region where distances are great and weather can change rapidly, the combination of jet performance and rough-field capability means crews can reach more locations and move patients to definitive care with fewer logistical barriers.

The addition of the PC-24 builds on the Borough’s history of investing in air assets for search and rescue and medical evacuation. Maintaining such capability requires ongoing investment in crew training, maintenance support, and infrastructure that can handle jet operations in extreme cold. Those operational needs are part of what keeps medevac services reliable during the long winter months and the busy summer season when activity across the North Slope can increase.

Beyond immediate emergency response, improved medevac transport has broader community implications. Faster access to advanced medical facilities can reduce complications and improve outcomes for critical patients. Reliable air ambulance service also supports public safety operations, search and rescue missions, and medical logistics during periods when other forms of travel are impractical.

As the North Slope Borough continues to operate and rely on specialized medevac aircraft, sustaining readiness in Arctic conditions will remain a priority. The PC-24’s capabilities represent a practical enhancement to local emergency services, directly affecting the safety and health of residents across the Borough’s remote communities.