Fact Sheet
Timeline
7:30 a.m. – Transplant team is called and asked to meet at Survival Flight
10:20 a.m. – Team assembles, creates plan for donor surgery and prepares equipment. Drives from U-M Health System to Willow Run Airport
11:10 a.m. – Team flies out on Cessna jet from Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti.
11:50 a.m. – Team arrives at Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee and travels via ground transport to hospital.
12:30 p.m. – U-M surgeon reviews donor medical chart and consults with recipient surgeon in Ann Arbor. The decision is made to proceed with the organ procurement and the donor operation begins. The donor surgeons, Dr. Spoor and Dr. Ashburn, inspect the donor organs and relay to the transplant team in Ann Arbor that they are acceptable for transplantation.
2:45 p.m. – The recipient is brought into the U-M operating room, and that operation begins.
4 p.m. – Donor operation is complete. U-M transplant team travels via ground transport to Milwaukee airport.
4:45 p.m. – Cessna jet with U-M transplant team aboard leaves Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee.
4:50 p.m. – Cessna jet crashes into Lake Michigan
5:30 p.m. – Survival Flight helicopter leaves U-M Hospital in Ann Arbor headed to Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti to retrieve the organ and procurement team.
5:37 p.m. – Survival Flight helicopter arrives at Willow Run.
5:40 p.m. – Director of operations at Mitchell International Airport contacts Survival Flight dispatch to inform about crash. Survival Flight dispatchers immediately implement emergency response procedures and notify recipient surgery team; transplant operation is suspended.
Note: All times are in Eastern Daylight Time and are approximate
Questions related to the crash of a Survival Flight air ambulance
What does Survival Flight do?
For nearly 25 years, the Survival Flight helicopters have safely transported critically ill and injured patients of all ages from hospitals and accident sites across the state to the U-M Health System for specialized care, aid in rescue operations and transport harvest teams for organ donations.
How many organ procurement missions does Survival Flight handle each year?
Each year, Survival Flight flies an average of 1,200 patient transports, and about 150 organ donations transports by helicopter and fixed-wing jet. About 10 percent of Survival Flight’s total annual transports support the U-M Transplant Program. Since 1983, Survival Flight has flown more than 30,000 patient transports.
How many organ transplants does U-M perform?
U-M performs nearly 400 organ transplants per year in both adults and children.
How many people work for the U-M Transplant Center?
Approximately 125 surgeons, nurses, perfusionists and transplant coordinators work for the U-M Transplant Center.
What generally happens during an organ procurement mission?
When an organ is available, a team of organ procurement specialists will fly to the hospital where the organ donor is. The team will perform the surgery to remove the organs, pack them in a cooler and transport them back to the hospital where the recipient is waiting. A separate surgical team will perform the operation to transplant the organ into the recipient.
Who is sent on an organ procurement mission?
One faculty member surgeon is always part of a mission, as well as transplant donation specialists and a pilot. In this case, a resident was also part of the team. Residents often accompany the team to assist with the organ procurement.
What is a transplant donation specialist?
A transplant donation specialist’s primary responsibility is to take care of the organ from the time it is removed from the donor until it is transplanted into the recipient. This person assists with developing and implementing transplant- and donation-related awareness and education events, both at the hospital and throughout the state. This person coordinates U-M organ donations and is active in transplant and donation awareness events and symposiums.
How are organs packed after they are procured?
Organs are packaged in three sterile barriers, one of which may be a hard-sided container. They are then placed in a fourth non-sterile layer and packed with non-sterile crushed ice. The packaged organ is placed into a Styrofoam or hard-sided cooler to be transported.
Survival Flight Facts
- In 1983, Survival Flight became the first hospital-based helicopter service in Michigan. Its fixed-wing (Cessna jet) service began in 1985. The Cessna jet is leased by U-M Survival Flight air ambulance program
- Since 1983, Survival Flight has flown more than 30,000 patient transports.
- Each year, Survival Flight flies an average of 1,200 patient transports and about 150 organ donation transports by helicopter and fixed-wing jet. About 10 percent of Survival Flight’s total annual transports support the U-M Transplant Program.
- For nearly 25 years, the Survival Flight helicopters have safely transported critically ill and injured patients of all ages from hospitals and accident sites across the state to the U-M Health System for specialized care, to aid in rescue operations and to transport harvest teams for organ donations.
- Its three twin-engine Bell 430 helicopters are mobile trauma centers and intensive care units complete with state-of-the-art lifesaving technology and the latest navigational equipment that allows it to fly safely in all types of weather.
- With a 200-mile radius, Survival Flight helicopters also serve locations in Michigan, Ohio and Ontario, while the program's fixed-wing jet – also fully equipped as a mobile intensive care unit – can fly throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico and a ground ambulance serves the local region.
- Survival Flight expert flight nurses are specially trained to handle critically ill and injured patients and the equipment needed to keep them alive. Survival Flight’s 50-member crew also includes physicians, communications specialists, pilots and mechanics who work to get patients to and from their destination safely.
- Survival Flight operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Survival Flight has two bases – its home base in Ann Arbor on the University of Michigan Medical Center campus, and at Livingston County Airport. The Livingston County based opened in 2004.
U-M Transplant Center Facts
- The University of Michigan Transplant Center performs approximately 425 transplants each year, making it the largest and most experienced transplant center in Michigan - and among the largest in the nation.
- In 1964, U-M performed its first organ transplant, transplanting a kidney. It was the first organ transplant in the state of Michigan and one of the first kidney transplants in the nation.
- Since 1964 more than 7,109 children and adults have benefited from the live-saving efforts of the U-M Transplant Center.
- Today, the U-M Transplant Center performs kidney, liver, heart, lung and pancreas transplants.
- In 2006, The University of Michigan Health System Transplant Center, in collaboration with Gift of Life Michigan, received the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ distinguished Medal of Honor. The U-M Transplant Center was one of 16 hospitals in Michigan, and one of 300 hospitals nationwide, in 2006 to receive the HHS Medal of Honor for achieving a life-saving organ donation rate of 75 percent or greater for a sustained 12-month period. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also recognized U-M in 2004 and 2005 for its significant efforts to increase the organ donation rate.
- A leader in organ transplantation, the U-M Transplant Center is committed to cutting edge research that will benefit today's patient and the patients of the future. It is dedicated to leadership in the development of innovative techniques, to improvement in the quality of life for organ transplant recipients, to education programs related to transplantation, and to enhanced organ donation awareness aimed at improving the availability of organs.
To learn more about the U-M Transplant Center, visit www.michigantransplant.org.
