The Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) has issued a heartfelt plea to the public to support its annual Take Flight Raffle after falling short of its £100,000 fundraising target.
The raffle, which launched earlier this year, raises vital funds for the charity, which receives no government funding and relies entirely on public donations to keep flying.
Each £1 ticket supports the charity’s mission to deliver life-saving care to critically ill and injured patients across the North. However, with just weeks to go before the raffle closes, GNAAS has raised around £45,000, less than half of its target.
Joe Garcia MBE, chief executive at GNAAS, said the situation was “quite worrying”.
“We’re very grateful to everyone who has bought or sold raffle tickets in support of our service, but it is concerning that we’re just under halfway to our fundraising target with a month to go.
“Every day our highly skilled critical care team is on standby to respond to the region’s most ill and injured patients. By taking part in our raffle, you’ll be helping us continue to provide advanced care to thousands of people every year — while also having the chance to win some incredible prizes.”
Last year, GNAAS responded to more than 2,000 incidents across the North East, North Yorkshire, Cumbria and the Isle of Man, and also supported major incidents further afield.
Each mission includes a doctor, critical care paramedic and experienced pilot, enabling the team to bring hospital-level treatment directly to patients — including administering anaesthesia, delivering blood products and even performing surgery at the scene.
It costs around £9.3 million a year for the service to remain operational.
This year’s Take Flight Raffle offers a top prize of a luxury Caribbean holiday — a two-week stay for up to four guests at Glitter Bay in Barbados, plus £2,000 towards flights. There are also two cash prizes of £2,000 and £500.
The raffle closes on 28 November, with the draw taking place on 12 December.
Tickets cost £1 and can be purchased at gna.as/raffle_2025 or by calling 01325 487263.
Let us not forget the Yorkshire Air Ambulance!
Rather than buying a raffle ticket it would be more useful to make a donation and gift-aid it. Who needs a Caribbean holiday, thus contributing to global heating? Certainly not people who have children and grandchildren, who will be the ones who will really suffer,