THE Lake District could become home to the world’s first jet suit paramedic.

A jet suit for paramedics has been tested out by the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) in the heart of the Lake District.

The project is a collaboration between Gravity Industries, which has developed and patented a 1050 brake horsepower jet suit, and the GNAAS.

The test at the Langdale Pikes saw Gravity Industries founder and Chief Test Pilot Richard Browning fly from the valley bottom to a simulated casualty site on The Band, near Bowfell.

The simulated casualty site would take around 25 minutes to reach by foot, however, the jet suit is able to cover that distance in 90 seconds, opening a range of possibilities in the emergency response arena.

The ground-breaking exercise was the culmination of a year of discussion between GNAAS and Gravity Industries.

Andy Mawson, director of operations and paramedic at GNAAS, identified the Lakes as a possible location for a jet suit paramedic after hearing of Mr Browning’s work and then studying the charity’s own call-out data.

He said: “It showed dozens of patients every month within the complex but relatively small geographical footprint of the Lakes.

“We could see the need.

"What we didn’t know for sure is how this would work in practice.

"Well we’ve seen it now and it is, quite honestly, awesome.”

Mr Mawson said the exercise had demonstrated the huge potential of utilising jet suits to deliver critical care services.

He added: “In a time in healthcare when we are exhausted with COVID and its effects, it’s important to still push the boundaries.

“We think this technology could enable our team to reach some patients much quicker than ever before.

"In many cases this would ease the patient’s suffering.

"In some cases, it would save their lives.”