Sentara Nightingale GPS campaign nears $1 million goal

A fundraising campaign by the Sentara Foundation for a state-of-the-art GPS system in the Nightingale Regional Air Ambulance is nearing its goal of $1 million. Grateful patients and other generous donors have pushed the campaign to more than 70 percent of its goal. The new Garmin GTN 650 and 750 systems are installed and operational. Sentara Health fronted the money for the replacement GPS in anticipation of a successful campaign.  

“We’re grateful to our former patients and friends in the aviation community who helped us put this state-of-the-art system into operation,” said Denise Baylous, RN, Nightingale program manager and flight nurse. “Having this system in our pilots’ hands increases our margin of safety on every flight.”

Nightingale flew a record 862 patient flights in 2022, based in part on its ability to fly in poor visibility, using a combination of GPS navigation and FAA-approved instrument flight routes to nine strategic locations in eastern Virginia and northeast North Carolina. The new Garmin touchscreen system takes those capabilities to the next level. 

“It enhances our situational awareness of obstacles and other aircraft,” said Nightingale Chief Pilot, Scott Nance. “If it shows us another aircraft in our vicinity, I can touch the screen to see its tail number, and the direction and speed it’s traveling in relation to us,” Nance said. “If it identifies an obstacle, one touch tells me the elevation and what I need to do to avoid it. I learn a new capability every time I use it.” 

The systems provide pilots with access to navigation, radio tuning, terrain mapping, graphical flight planning, traffic surveillance, weather conditions, taxiway diagrams and other advanced navigation features, all at their fingertips.

“The functionality and ease of use are amazing,” Nance concluded. “We’re glad to have it.”