Emergency Services

Memorial Hermann Life Flight®

Memorial Hermann Life Flight® is the only air ambulance serving Houston and surrounding communities. Founded in 1976 by James "Red" Duke, M.D., who still is medical director, the service operates around the clock – weather permitting – 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.

The Memorial Hermann Foundation in March 2007 announced a $40 million fundraising campaign to purchase six new state-of-the-art helicopters. Currently, Life Flight’s four helicopters are the busiest in the country and cannot meet increased demand from Houston’s growing population. The new aircrafts will be faster, larger, safer, quieter and better equipped, and will cut response time by as much as 15 minutes - or 33 percent - allowing for an increase in missions flown.

This critical air ambulance, which is committed to excellence in aviation safety and clinical care, retrieves critically ill and injured patients in the greater Houston area. Most locations are accessible in less than 15 minutes, within a 150-mile radius of Houston, including Harris County, southeast Texas and part of western Louisiana.

Since its first mission in 1976, Memorial Hermann Life Flight® has flown more than 110,000 missions. Each flight is equipped with highly skilled personnel, advanced emergency equipment and necessary medications and can transport up to two patients. Learn about the program’s accomplishments.

Provided as a community service by Memorial Hermann, Life Flight operates as a hospital-based, non-profit organization and relies on community support and fund-raising efforts to pay for the service. It costs about $3 million annually to support the program, none of which comes from tax dollars. The Memorial Hermann Life Flight staff consists of 13 pilots, 14 flight nurses, 15 paramedics/dispatchers and five mechanics. Each helicopter is inspected and serviced daily.

For more information, contact Life Flight at 713-704-3590 (non-emergency calls) or by e-mail.