Associated Press - November 23, 2009 6:25 AM ET

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) - A medical transportation company plans to begin serving west-central Nebraska with a medical helicopter by next spring.

Midwest Medical Transportation announced last week that the $7 million helicopter will be housed at their facility in North Platte.

Great Plains Regional Medical Center CEO Greg Nielsen said there is a huge need for the helicopter. He said the hospital now must wait for a chopper to fly in, sometimes from as far as Omaha or Denver, to transport patients.

Midwest Medical Transportation director of operations Richard Lowrance said the helicopter is an EC-135 twin-engine aircraft that can fly 155 mph. A pilot can be joined on board by a nurse and paramedic.

Information from: The North Platte Telegraph, http://www.nptelegraph.com

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