‘I have heard so many stories of people who wouldn’t be here without it’
Fundraisers, volunteers and local children were among the guests invited to join crew members of Cornwall Air Ambulance as the charity welcomed its Royal Patron, Her Majesty The Queen, to officially name the charity’s second helicopter at its airbase.
Her Majesty visited the charity’s Newquay headquarters earlier this week (Tuesday). Among those who she met was charity Ambassador and former patient Steven Webb, who was left tetraplegic following a swimming pool accident in 1991.
Cornwall Air Ambulance airlifted him from Truro City Hospital to a specialist spinal unit in Salisbury for emergency surgery, saving hours of vital journey time and helping to save his life.
Queen Camilla unveiled the name of the new aircraft, The Duke of Cornwall, by removing a Cornish flag from the nosecone of the second AW169.
The charity explains that the name compliments the existing aircraft, The Duchess of Cornwall. It was named after her title when she first became the charity’s Patron.
The helicopter was officially blessed by the Bishop of St Germans, The Right Reverend Hugh Nelson.
‘As Cornwall Air Ambulance’s very proud Patron I would like to thank everyone, the pilots, doctors and paramedics, volunteers and all the people who are kind enough to give money to it,’ said Her Majesty The Queen as she addressed the room.
Left to right: Dave Ashton-Cleary (Lead Airbase Doctor), Steve Garvey (Air Operations Officer), Her Majesty The Queen, David Richards (Chairman) and Tim Bunting (Chief Executive). Image: Andy Holter Photography.
‘This has been a momentous year for the charity’
‘It is vital to this part of the country, which is huge, so obviously having two helicopters is going to help a lot, they have saved so many people’s lives, and I have heard so many stories of people who wouldn’t be here without it.’
‘Thank you very much indeed and I look forward to coming back again at some point, who knows, maybe there will be a third one.’
The naming ceremony follows the success of the Heli2 Appeal, which raised £2.85million towards the second AW169 helicopter. The new aircraft arrived in July and officially went into operation on 5th August 2025.
‘It was an honour to welcome Her Majesty to the airbase to see and name our second AW169 helicopter,’ says Tim Bunting, Chief Executive of Cornwall Air Ambulance.
‘This has been a momentous year for the charity, as for the first time we now own and have two state-of-the-art helicopters at our disposal.’
‘This has only been possible thanks to the overwhelming generosity of the people of Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly, and beyond, who donated to the Heli2 Appeal.’
‘It was wonderful that Her Majesty has been able to see all the hard work that has gone into bringing this second aircraft to Cornwall and to hear about the difference it is already making to the resilience of our service. This second aircraft will help us save many more lives for years to come.’
‘A real honour’
The Royal visit also saw the official naming of the charity’s dedicated operations wing, a facility specifically designed to accommodate the aircrew’s training and operations.
This building has been named The Newman Wing, after Cornwall Air Ambulance’s founding pilot – Geoff Newman. Queen Camilla unveiled a special plaque with the title, in front of guests in the hangar.
‘To have a building named after you and to meet royalty in the process is a real honour, and very humbling,’ says Geoff, who was in attendance to meet Her Majesty.
‘What a wonderful moment. Cornwall Air Ambulance has evolved massively in its 38 years, and I am incredibly proud to be the pioneer of the service it has become today.’
Her Majesty The Queen began her role as the first official Patron of Cornwall Air Ambulance in 2011, as HRH The Duchess of Cornwall.
The charity is tasked to more than 1,000 missions every year, to help critically ill or injured patients across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. It recently announced that it had flown 500 missions in the first half of the year.
