Full Breakdown
New Jerusalem Medevac Helipad Unveiled by Hatzolah Air
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Facility Details and Investment
A dedicated helipad for medical-evacuation helicopters has been built at the Herzog Medical Center complex in Jerusalem. The site occupies roughly 5 dunams and was constructed by the nonprofit Hatzolah Air. The total cost of the complex—including the helipad, operational buildings, equipment and readiness preparations—was about NIS 5 million, funded in part by donors David and Judy Hager.
Operational Partnerships and Prior Activities
The helipad will support a Sikorsky S-76 medevac helicopter and is intended to serve not only Jerusalem but also the Beit Shemesh and Lachish regions, the Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea, Judea and Samaria, pending required approvals. Daily operations will involve flight crews, medical personnel and ground teams working with Magen David Adom (MDA), Brook Aviation, Herzog Medical Center, Hadassah-University Medical Center and other partners.
Hatzolah Air, founded in the United States in 2018 by philanthropist Eli Rowe, maintains an international fleet that includes a Gulfstream G550, two Citation X aircraft and a Citation CJ3. Since its inception, the organization reports having completed more than 1,800 missions in over 24 countries, including participation in the rescue and medical evacuation of casualties from Ukraine after the 2022 war began.
Prior Regional Involvement
According to the source, on October 7, 2023 (the scheduled date), helicopters from the joint Hatzolah Air-MDA fleet were slated to evacuate wounded individuals from the Gaza border region. Eli Rowe, president of Hatzolah Air, described the Jerusalem base as a step toward expanding the organization’s capacity to deliver rapid, professional medical evacuation locally.
Anticipated Regional Impact
The new base aims to combine aerial assets, ground infrastructure and professional teams to improve emergency response times across a broad swath of central Israel and the contested territories. By integrating with existing Israeli medical and rescue services, the facility is expected to enhance the ability to reach patients in remote or conflict-affected areas where distance previously limited timely treatment.
Future Expansion Plans
Hatzolah Air and its partners intend to gradually broaden the scope of operations from the Jerusalem hub, leveraging the new infrastructure to increase the number of patients served during emergencies and to support additional regional evacuation missions.