Forget the 12 days of Christmas…

Getting HEMS PinS Implemented in the UK Feels Like the 12 Labours of Hercules

Once again, PinS (or lack thereof) dominates our seasonal offering, with not only musical references but also a little Greek mythology!  Well, we thought we would mix it up a little this year.

Last year, our hopeful refrain was “2023… 2024… 2025 now appears to possibly be shaping up to potentially be the year of PinS for UK HEMS - we hope”, and it did look to be shaping up that way.  As we approach 2026, to quote a previous blog, we and the other GNSS IFP ACP sponsors are still very much “waiting for the man”. Scratch HEMS PinS in 2025; our Herculean saga continues. 

Source: Disney

So, where we are on this seemingly never-ending journey - one that is taking longer to conclude than the fabled 12 Labours of Hercules? Well, pull up a chair and read on! Christmas quiz for all you Christmas quiz fans out there: what were the 12 Labours of Hercules?

Source: ukposters.co.uk

Every day is a school day, right? Okay, where was I? Oh, yes... 

My cycle ride to the office along Dorset’s beautiful country lanes has returned to normal following the disruption associated with a plethora of diversions highlighted in our previous blog. As always, these velocipedic interludes give me time to cogitate on one of my passions - music - and how it can so often relate not only to everyday life, but also to the unremitting frustrations of trying to get PinS implemented in the UK!

One song that seems so apt is “Nothing Ever Happens” by another of my favourite groups, Del Amitri (fun fact, for all you Del Amitri fun fact fans out there: I saw them live a couple of times in the early 90s - so so good). 

Source: www.discogs.com

This particular song contains the lines “…nothing ever happens, nothing happens at all, the needle returns to the start of the song, and we all sing along like before”.  Apposite, yes? Sadly, this wonderful song resonates all too well with our HEMS PinS journey: we are going around in circles (very slowly...) and every time we think we are nearly there, another obstacle is thrown in our path - the needle returns to the start of the song etc etc... 

The link with Hercules and his Labours? Well, Hercules was originally tasked with 10 Labours to complete, which he duly did. King Eurystheus (Hercules’ taskmaster) refused - for reasons various - to recognise 2 of them, and commanded Hercules to carry out 2 additional tasks before his servitude was complete. Hmm, there is a definite connection with PinS and the UK CAA there!

To compound our situation, having submitted our completed application at the end of March 2024, the CAA declared themselves severely under-resourced and cited the need to prioritise their workload. Critically, this pearl of wisdom was not pushed to ACP sponsors; sponsors had to request this update from CAA. As inexplicable as it might seem, implementing PinS for UK HEMS (and the concomitant benefits for HEMS patients…) was not deemed a priority.  While we waited for CAA’s resource challenge to be overcome, time ticked by and HEMS ACP sponsors were left in an information vacuum, not knowing where they stood or when CAA resources might enable the HEMS PinS pipeline to flow. To quote another Del Amitri song title, the HEMS PinS ACP sponsors appear to be “Always the last to know”.

Source: www.discogs.com

Despite the foregoing, however, we remain ever the optimists - what else can we do? As the saying goes, it doesn’t hurt to be optimistic, one can always cry later…

As this blog goes to press (so to speak) - and despite our being the last to know - we are led to understand that CAA has finally begun its CAP1616 Stage review of our ACP, although where we are on that 17-week cycle, we have no idea; hopefully, a (positive) decision is in the offing. That being the case and following successful flight validation, we will be all hands to the pump to get PinS implemented in early 2026… only 2 years later than we had anticipated when we embarked on this journey.  Another song from my youth comes to mind … "Tired of Waiting for You" by The Kinks (yes, I am that old).

Source: www.discogs.com

Finally...

From all at Avigation, we wish you and those around you the felicitations of the season, a wonderful Christmas and a well-deserved break, and here’s to a successful 2026 (and some HEMS PinS, please, Santa!). See you next year!

P.S. Eat your sprouts.

#AvigationLtd #PildoLabs #Aviation #ATM #Airspace #GNSS #PinS #HEMS #CAP1616 #ACP #CAA #peaceandgoodwill #eatyoursprouts