A young Southland boy is the latest face of the campaign to keep the Starship Air Ambulance flying.

Luke Drummond, now five, needed critical care at Starship Children's Hospital in Auckland as a 10-week-old baby, when his heart began to fail.

But the hospital was 1,637kms away from his family's farm in Five Rivers, a 23-hour drive.

Instead, he was driven to Invercargill Hospital an hour away and then transferred to Auckland by the hospital's 'flying intensive care unit', the Starship National Air Ambulance, which is ready to go at a moment's notice.

Advertisement: Nind Dairy

Parents Hannah and Craig are one of many families truly grateful for the service and the specialist air retrieval staff that fly with it.

"If it wasn’t for the incredible expertise and speed of the Starship Ambulance team then Luke would no longer be with us," Hannah says.

Luke, who was born with a congenital heart defect, was given just 12 hours to when he arrived in Auckland.

But he managed to pull through and after three more open-heart surgeries and other procedures in the intervening years, celebrated his fifth birthday in August.

Little Luke's story is being told through a short video advert, encouraging people to make monthly donations to Starship Foundation.

The Starship Foundation contributes $1.5 million per year to help keep the air ambulance service flying.

Last year, it flew more than 110,000km and 141 retrieval missions. During Covid lockdown it is one of the only planes in the sky.

It is ready to fly 24/7, 365 days a year, and generally flies a mission every 48 hours to help critically sick or injured children across New Zealand.

Dr John Beca, Starship Clinical Director, Medical and Surgical, says it is a vital service.

Advertisement: Route 6 Cafe & Bar

"Accidents and illness can happen to our children anywhere in New Zealand," he says.

"Starship has New Zealand’s only dedicated paediatric intensive care unit, and any child requiring anything more than short term intensive care comes to Starship.

"The Starship National Air Ambulance service ensures that any child, regardless of where they are, gets the care and treatment they need."

The Lindsay Foundation is a key supporter and has generously donated $500,000 this year, but more is needed from the public around New Zealand to save the lives of children like animal-loving Luke.

Visit www.keepstarshipflying.org.nz to sign up for a regular donation, or to make a one-off donation.

Starship National Air Ambulance