Northern Ireland and Isle of Man based operator Woodgate Aviation has hired Jonathan Edwards as its latest pilot. Edwards has recorded investiture ceremonies at Buckingham Palace for 26 years but gained his commercial pilot's licence in 2010. He will transport patients from the Isle of Man to specialist hospital units in England using one of Woodgate's Piper PA31 Chieftains.

Woodgate also operates two King Air 200s in medical configuration as part of separate Northern Ireland and Isle of Man air ambulance contracts that it was awarded in 2017.

“I couldn't have done any of this without the enthusiastic backing of my wife and two daughters," Edwards says. "They've been brilliant. I've gone through all my commercial exams and studied long and hard to get to this point and now, I cannot wait to get going.”

As part of the final stages of his training, Edwards visited Woodgate's Belfast International airport base and was impressed with the 33,000 sq ft hangar facility. “The base is something else," he continues. "This was my first time in Belfast and both the city and the company operation at the international airport were exceptional. The staff have been wonderful too with each and every one of them doing all they could to make me feel at home.

“It wasn't easy to get a job when I first graduated because of the downturn in aviation, and I was at the point of giving up all hope when a friend who now works for Woodgate Aviation, Simon Atkins, mentioned that the company was in the market for a pilot.

“Simon mentioned the air ambulance and I thought that that would be a good way of giving something back and, of course, I was thinking of my late father and the illness he battled. I thought it would be a fitting role. It's hands-on flying and its doing something that helps others as well."