ARCH Medical Helicopter (US-MO/IL)

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ARCH Air Medical Helicopter ^{WEB (Bases/Pics)}

Nationwide Air Methods Map

• Established 1979, as ARCH (Area Rescue Consortium of Hospitals), provides emergency medical services (EMS) in Missouri and Illinois. Acquired by Air Methods in 2000.
• Home Office - 2207 Scott Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63103, 314-655-4100, Dispatch 1-800-325-9191
• ARCH Base downtown STL helipad [Airnav https://www.airnav.com/airport/8MU05]

Coverage Area - Covers the area of IL, MO and parts of OK, IA, KS, AR, KY, TN and IN. Response ? Inter-hospital transports (65%) and primary responses (on scene - vehicle accidents, etc) (have heard ARCH base on 461.525 talking to ARCH unit which was on Litchfield input 467.0750 107.2 PL) Has a VOIP Link to Chicago Radio System.

• From nearly 300 bases, Air Methods teams fly more than 150,000 hours and are on track to reach over 100,000 transports this year.

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AirCom Brochure (PDF)

• Consolidated nationwide dispatch, located in Omaha NE
• National Medical Transport Communication Center is one of the largest communication centers in the U.S. The hub allows the AirCom team to provide logistical support for operations throughout the country.

Communications

• 461.525 192.8 "High Ridge" Repeater, used throughout the St Louis metro area. (Jefferson County) FCC License shows Randolph County IL
• 462.075 107.2 PL "Litchfield" Southwest/Central IL Repeater (Located at Lakewood, in Shelby County)
• Carbondale Repeater (Union County area)
• Sparta Repeater ?

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•  ???? N250KF Flight Aware
• N2458AM unidentified ARCH unit (2024)
• N245AM unidentified ARCH? AirMethods) unit (2024)
• FAA tail number lookup
• Lifeline 5 - N536L1 "Mercy" on chopper, said "we usually work through MEDCOM, not AIRCOM (came into StL from Kentucky 11/24)

ARCH/Air Methods Bases

• Kids Flights are a partnership with BJC Childrens Hospital St Louis
• ARCH 1 has it's own stretcher that loads in the back (11/24)

Number	Location	Tail Number	FB
ARCH 1	Granite City, IL	N880SL (12/2019)	FB
ARCH 2	Litchfield, IL	N292AM (12/2019)	FB
ARCH 3	Effingham, IL	N246AM (12/2019)	FB
ARCH 4	Sparta, IL	N404AM (12/2019)	FB
ARCH 6	Sullivan, MO	N218AM (12/2019)	FB
ARCH 24	Carbondale, IL	N138LN (6/2021)	FB
ARCH 61	????	N218AM (10/24)	FB
Rescue Flight	Highland, IL	N370AM (6/2021)	FB
Saints Flight	Springfield, IL	N245AM (12/2019)	FB
Glennon 1	St. Louis, MO	N244AM (12/2019)	FB
Kids Flight 1	St. Louis MO	N345KF (12/2019)	FB
Kids Flight 2	St. Louis MO	N545KF (11/24) MV29?	FB

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Old Data:
ARCH 6 || Labette Health Center, Parsons KS
[MedFlight 2] Labette County Hospital, Parsons KS || N660SL
ARCH 8 || Granite City IL (was St. Louis) || N880SL (12/2019)
ARCH 4 || Backup aircraft (formerly Warrenton, MO) || N440SL
ARCH 20 || King Air 100 Fixed Wing based at Spirit of STL Airport || N4490M (Registration Does Not Show Arch 12/2019)
ARCH 22 || King Air 200 Fixed Wing based at Spirit of STL Airport || N220TB (Registration Does Not Show ARCH 12/2019)
ARCH 5 || Joplin, MO [MedFlight 1]
@ St. Johns Regional Medical Center-Joplin || N550SL
ARCH 12 || Sullivan, MO || N217LN
ARCH 15 || Warrenton MO || 115LN
ARCH 7 || Cape Girardeau, MO (Formerly Lifebeat) || 127LN (formerly N770SL)
ARCH 9 || Effingham, IL
Effingham (County) Memorial Airport || N990SL
ARCH 10 || no longer in use (is now the new Airlife 1 based at Carle Hospital) || 365CH
ARCH 11 || St. Louis (St. Louis Children's Hospital/Cardinal Glennon "Kid Copter") || 911KD

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Staff - Air Methods (Not ARCH units, but dispatched by ARCH)

• STAFF 1 N10UM University of Missouri Hospital, Columbia MO
• STAFF 2 126LN Lake Regional Hospital, Osage Beach, MO (was N22UM)
• STAFF 3 N151AD LaMonte, MO

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Other licensed frequencies

• 461.2500 WPLR946 F (NOT USED?) Downtown Base (also Special School District) (466.25 Deleted)
• 461.7250 WPLR946 F NOT USED (is used by Special School District - St. Louis)

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Known Landing Zones

ARCH Legacy Landing Zone (LZ) Info

Illinois by County

• PERRY, Pinckneyville - High School Football Practice Field and Du Quoin State Fairgrounds (ARCH-28 and ARCH-8)

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Terminology and Brevity Codes

• Abbott - EMS Agency in St Louis MO and metro Illinois
• AirCom – Air Methods dispatch center in Omaha, NE
• AirEvac - Referring to other AirEvac Lifeteam
• BJC - Barnes-Jewish (Corporation) Hospitals
• Cardinal Glennon - Children's Hospital by SSM Health
• Children's - Childrens' Hospital by BJC
• Christian - Christian Hospital Northwest (in St. Louis)
• Coordinates - Longitude/Latitude (in decimal) of Landing Zone area / current air position
• Downtown Base - Base at downtown St. Louis, MO
• Drip - IV
• ETA - Estimated Time of Arrival? (for a scene, hospital or other destination)
• ETE - Estimated Time En-Route
• FMA - Fire Mutual Aid (see below)
• Final - On final approach to land
• Fire Mutual Aid - Refers to Missouri, 154.28
• Full Bladder - Full gas tank
• HEAR – Refers to Missouri Hospital frequency 155.3400 (normally CSQ)
• IREACH - Refers to Illinois mutual aid channel, for Landing Zones 155.055
• Glennon - Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital in St. Louis
• Granite City Base – Base on Route 3 Granite City, near the Mississippi River south of I-270
• High Ridge - 461.525 Repeater for St Louis area
• LC - Loud and Clear
• LifeBeat - Name of ARCH service in Cape Girardeau
• Litchfield Repeater - Rptr in Lakewood/Shelby Co Illinois (462.075 107.2)
• LZ - Landing Zone (for helicopter)
• MedStar - EMS agency that serves St. Clair/Randolph Co in IL
• MED 9 - Refers to dispatch frequency of 462.95 162.2 PL (no longer in use??)
• MERCI - Refers to Illinois Hospital communication frequency 155.34 (CSQ, 210.7 or other)
• Outer Link – Remote satellite tracking of Helo Locations (like GPS) [Not sure if this is still in use]
• POB - Persons on Board (Souls)
• Position - Current status/location
• RTB - Return to Base
• St. Louis Downtown base - Base by Union Station area (off I-64)
• Ship - Aircraft/Helicopter
• Sparta - Base in Sparta (Randolph County IL)
• SLUH - St. Louis University Hospital
• Souls - People (on board)
• Spirit - Spirit of St. Louis Airport - Chesterfield MO
• Trauma Rotation - Hospitals in the St. Louis area get to "take turns" so none are left out (Old?)
• Status B - unknown (heard enroute to Hospital in Marion)
• Vent - Ventilator (Oxygen)
• Wolfsburg – The expensive communications radio system on board that can operate on multiple frequencies / bands / modes / tones, etc

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Notes

• 9/07 - Heard ARCH Base doing morning radio check with ARCH 3 on 159.7125 D032 from Cape Girardeau, MO
• 11/08 - ARCH Helicopter has added a base at St Johns Hospital Springfield, named "Saints Flight" SJR Article Helicopter Pic
• 7/11 - ARCH Dispatcher St Louis is now rereferred to as AIRCOM
• 461.525 - St. Louis Repeater - Located at High Ridge? (Jefferson Co MO) - licensed in Randolph County MO) (FX1 - Repeater input was located in downtown StL at the old base, but may now be located in Granite City) [Also, Anderson Hospital in Maryville, Madison County, IL uses this frequency for local repeater operations]
• 461.525 Heard a unit call on the "High Ridge" channel (5/5/24)

9/21/12 - St. Louis (KSDK) - Arch Air Medical in St. Louis announced Thursday dispatcher jobs will be leaving the area in November. Bob Abrams, business manager for Arch Air Medical, said he cannot confirm the exact number of jobs that will be leaving, but did say they will be moving to Omaha, Nebraska on November 6th. Abrams says the parent company of Arch, Air Methods Corporation, is streamlining all dispatcher jobs across the country to one facility in Omaha. 

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