A New Challenge Successfully Solved: ASWAN-GRANADA

The transfer was requested by one of our clients. It involved a man who had suffered an accident during his holiday, resulting in a vertebral fracture and a fractured finger.

He was hospitalized in a private hospital in Aswan.

The challenge was that the patient had limited mobility due to the vertebral fracture, requiring him to remain lying down as much as possible, although he was able to move and walk for hygienic purposes.
Another difficulty was his home city, Granada, which has no direct flights to Egypt. A combined air and ground transfer route was proposed: Aswan-Cairo-Madrid by commercial flight, followed by Madrid-Granada by ground ambulance.

I contacted the patient in the early morning hours; he was accompanied by his wife. After consulting with the hospital’s medical team and conducting my own assessment, the FIT-to-Fly was approved. The patient was able to travel in Business Class with his seat adjusted to its most horizontal position.

The repatriation began with a transfer to Aswan Airport by ambulance, and we completed the boarding process using the airport’s liftcarbox. I ensured the patient was comfortably seated, maximizing the seat’s recline and using the footrest to allow him to lie as flat as possible. We then embarked on the first flight, Aswan to Cairo.

At Cairo Airport, with the assistance of the passenger support service, we transferred to the next plane and began the flight to Madrid.

Throughout the flights, the patient was closely monitored. I ensured his vital signs were stable, watched for any signs of neurospinal issues, and maintained his prescribed medication regimen.

Once in Madrid, and with the help of the passenger support team, the patient was transferred to the stretcher in the ambulance for the final leg of the journey to his home in Granada by road. During this segment, he remained lying down on a vacuum mattress secured to the ambulance stretcher.

 

Finally, we arrived at the patient’s home without any incidents. He expressed his gratitude for being brought back home so quickly.

From the time the mission was planned to the moment the patient arrived home, less than 72 hours had passed.