REGINA — Rod Gantefoer has a request: If, in the future, you're awoken by a red helicopter landing at the Regina General Hospital, remember why it's there.

There will be a badly injured person in that helicopter — which, if all things go well — will be from the Shock-Trauma Air Rescue Service (STARS).

The MLA and former provincial finance minister is overseeing STARS' landing in Saskatchewan — something that's been in the news for months, though

Reginans are just awakening to what it means. For the first time, helicopters will be operating over some of the city's residential areas as they approach the Regina General Hospital, the designated trauma treatment centre for southern Saskatchewan.

Gantefoer, who noted the province is in the early planning stages for the STARS program, added "it is expected that there will be 950-1,000 missions per year province-wide. So, perhaps an average of one or two per day for Regina.

"Will there be noise? For sure!" he wrote in an e-mail, adding: "the flight crews will do everything they can to mitigate that, but only so much is possible.

"I hope that folks will understand that these are severe trauma cases and will say a little prayer before they pick up the phone to complain."

Gantefoer recently said this program will include construction of helicopter landing pads at hospitals in Saskatoon and Regina.

The program should be running sometime in 2012.

The Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region hasn't been officially informed of the project, and thus has no plans for a landing pad, spokeswoman Lisa Thompson said. The area's councillor, Fred Clipsham, was taken by surprise and Leila Francis, executive director of the Heritage Community Association, which represents people around the century-old hospital, declined comment Friday, though she wondered if RGH parking spaces — already in short supply — would be used for it.

STARS spokesman Cam Heke said the service's pilots are told to reduce noise by "taking flight paths around high-density residential areas whenever possible, and approaching hospitals and landing zones at the highest altitude possible, while maintaining a constant focus on safety and maintaining a flight path that meets Transport Canada regulatory standards."

"Our mandate is to provide a high level of patient care while transporting critically ill and injured patients in the fastest and safest way possible, while being highly sensitive and considerate of those living in communities surrounding landing zones."

Because the helicopters being considered — Agusta Westland AW139s — are new and have two engines, plus sophisticated electronics, "I don't see much of a safety issue," said Regina businessman Kelly Hague, who logged about 7,000 hours as a young commercial helicopter pilot.

"They'll prepare a proper path in and out of the hospital."

But for the area around the hospital, "there's no doubt" there will be noise. "Will they be any worse than an ambulance with a siren? I don't know."

Jim Hunter, CEO of the Regina Airport Authority, said the RAA has not been officially informed of the STARS service, but expects little impact.

He said NAV Canada, which handles air traffic control, has long-standing practices for nonscheduled services like STARS. "I don't foresee that being a problem."

But as for noise, Hunter — who logged between 3,500 and 4,000 hours in military helicopters — said "these are the kind of operations you can't control. You have to go when something happens."

Heke said STARS "works with individuals and community groups if there are ever any expressed concerns."

STARS flew 1,453 emergency responses last year from bases in Calgary, Edmonton and Grande Prairie, and over 20,300 missions since it began in Calgary in 1985.

Heke said the good feeling generated by STARs and its life-saving work was illustrated by a call to its Calgary base last year from "an individual who wanted to ensure the sound he was hearing was STARS flying over his home, and not another helicopter."

"Our base aviation manager spoke with the individual, and after the discussion we learned that he had no concerns with STARS making noise, but just wanted to ensure it was STARS flying overhead and not a non-emergency service helicopter."

wchabun@leaderpost.com