Indian Air Force has designed, developed and manufactured an Airborne Rescue Pod for Isolated Transportation (ARPIT). This pod will be used for evacuating seriously infected patients, including COVID19, from high altitude regions.
An Airborne Rescue Pod for Isolated Transportation (ARPIT) has been designed, produced and manufactured by Indian Air force. This pod will be used to evacuate patients who have been severely contaminated, including COVID19, from isolated and remote high altitude areas.
With the Covid outbreak, IAF realized the need of an air evacuation system with facility to prevent spread of infectious aerosol from a COVID-19 patient during air travel.
The first prototype was developed at 3 BRD AF and has undergone various modifications. Supporting the “Atmanirbhar Bharat” call by Hon’ble Prime Minister, only indigenous materials have been used to fabricate this pod.This endogenously designed system has been developed at a cost of Rs Sixty Thousand only, which is very less as compared to the imported systems costing up to Rs Sixty Lakh.
The system has been developed as a lightweight isolation system made from aviation certified material. It has a transparent and durable cast Perspex for enhanced patient visibility which is larger, higher and wider than the existing models. The isolation system caters for suitable number of air exchanges, integration of medical monitoring instruments, and ventilation to an incubated patient. In addition, it generates high constant negative pressure in the isolation chamber for prevention of infection risk to aircrew, ground crew and health care workers involved in air transportation.
The ARPIT uses High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) H-13 class filters and supports invasive ventilation using Transport Ventilator. The design integrates life support and monitoring instruments (defibrillator with multi-para monitor, pulse oximeter, Infusion pumps etc), long arm gloves for use by health care professionals and power pack with high endurance. Design requirements have been evolved and are based on the guidelines issued by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH) and Centre for Disease Control (CDC), USA. The IAF is inducting a total of 7 ARPITS as of now.
