Before the day has even begun, teams are on standby at Portugal's emergency medical helicopter bases. A call can come in at any moment and, when it does, every second counts.
On the ground, there is often no time to spare. In the air, the response gains speed. On average, the reaction time between the alert and take-off is three minutes.
"Response time in medical emergencies is the critical factor for success. We are currently operating at an excellent level, within three minutes. In certain cases we can reduce it even further. Our average is three minutes from activation to response," explains Hugo Chambel, director of Gulf Med Aviation Services for the Iberian Peninsula, speaking to Euronews.
The operation is run by Gulf Med, a company of Malta-based Medilink, in partnership with medical teams from the National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM). The network is spread across four permanent bases: Loulé, Évora, Viseu and Macedo de Cavaleiros, ensuring coverage of almost the entire country.
Gulf Med began operating in Portugal in July 2025, under a direct award contract signed with INEM worth around four million euros, which remained in force until October last year.
