(CMR) The Cayman Airline Pilots’ Association (CAPA) has donated Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s) to Cayman Airways Limited (CAL), which will be installed aboard the airline’s Boeing 737-8 fleet.
CAPA President, Captain Gary Hydes, explained that CAPA has been advocating for AED’s onboard Cayman Airways aircraft for many years, and that this donation represents the association’s concern about passenger welfare, in addition to flight safety.
“Right now it is not a regulatory requirement, but CAPA is not only concerned about flight safety, but we’re also concerned about passenger-welfare, and I think it will be a great addition having these AED’s aboard our aircraft,” said Capt. Hydes.
“CAPA took the liberty to purchase these life-saving AED’s, one for each Boeing 737-8 aircraft, as well as a training unit for Cabin Crew training, and we are looking forward to having them on board.”
Cayman Airways President and CEO Fabian Whorms noted that the technological advancement of AED’s makes now a good time to have them on board CAL aircraft.
“Today’s Automated External Defibrillators, or AED’s, have become so technologically advanced that they can automatically diagnose life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias and even provide verbal instructions to Cabin Crew to help them use the equipment to restore irregular heartbeats or to revive a heart that has stopped beating due to a heart attack or other form of cardiac arrest,” Whorms noted.
“These advancements make the timing right for us to have this type of equipment on board, and we sincerely thank CAPA for raising the funds needed to purchase them. It’s a great demonstration of goodwill on the part of our pilots and is also a testament to the excellent working relationship between Cayman Airways Limited and the Cayman Airline Pilots’ association,” he added.
Maryory Maza Scott, Manager of Inflight Training and Standards for Cayman Airways, explained that having an AED device onboard for crew members is like having a doctor on board at 35,000 feet.
“Cayman Airways Cabin Crew receive extensive First Aid and CPR training before they embark on their first flight, and they also receive recurrent training as well,” Maza Scott noted. “However, if a passenger experiences a more complicated cardiac emergency at over 35,000 feet in the air, having these technologically advanced AED units onboard is like Cabin Crew having a doctor by their side to guide them through the cardiac emergency with practically real-time guidance and support.”
Austin Ferguson, Manager of Engineering at Cayman Airways, indicated that when the Boeing 737-8 fleet was being procured, the technical specification team requested Boeing to incorporate structural installation provisions for the AEDs to be mounted in the aircraft cabins, which will now allow an easy installation of the newly acquired defibrillators.
The AED’s are expected to be fully installed in the cabins of CAL’s Boeing 737-8 fleet in the coming weeks.
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