Air Ambulance NI- Lift Off Together Campaign

Client: Air Ambulance NI

Category: Charity/ Third Sector & Healthcare/ Crisis Response

Market: NI

Services: Media and Campaign Management and Consultation

Background to Air Ambulance NI:

For nine years, Air Ambulance NI charity has been a vital lifeline for communities, responding to over 5,000 emergency call outs and saving countless lives.

The charity, in partnership with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, provides the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service for Northern Ireland. The service brings advanced medical care directly to those in critical need, whether due to road accidents, workplace incidents, or sudden medical emergencies, operating seven days a week for 12 hours per day.

On average it is needed by two people, every day. On board is a consultant doctor and paramedic who can provide interventions that can help save lives, brains and limbs.

Following years of financial planning and supporters’ generosity, including contributions from Gifts in Wills, the charity took the decision to purchase their first helicopter (previous aircrafts have been leased) ready to take to the skies in Summer 2026.

The Brief

This campaign was not just to launch a helicopter, but to capture the imagination of an entire nation and inspire it to give.

RNN Communications was appointed by Air Ambulance NI to lead the full communications and PR campaign surrounding one of the most significant milestones in the organisation's history: the announcement of the purchase of its first helicopter and the launch of the public fundraising campaign to make it a reality.

The brief was both creatively and strategically demanding. RNN Communications was tasked with creating the campaign name and overarching messaging framework, developing the event concept and logistics, crafting press releases, social media content and website messaging, and managing the full VIP and media invitation and attendance programme.

Every element was designed to deliver maximum emotional impact and public engagement driving awareness, inspiring donations, and building a lasting supporter base for Air Ambulance NI.

The Solution

RNN Communications ran a tightly managed campaign designed to deliver the highest possible outcomes for the charity whilst ensuring costs of the campaign were kept to a minimum.

The Outcome

The campaign's success was measured against an ambitious set of outcomes and each one was met.

  • Television coverage was secured on UTV 6pm news, placing Air Ambulance NI's story in front of a mass audience at every critical stage of the campaign.
  • Blanket coverage across local and national media was achieved (including front page of the Belfast Telegraph, coverage in the Irish News, Daily Mirror and Newsletter, amongst other more regional titles), ensuring the organisation's message reached every corner of Northern Ireland and beyond.
  • In attendance at the launch event was the new Mayor of Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council, Cllr Brian Higginson, as one of his first appointments as Mayor, fitting given Air Ambulance NI is his Mayor’s Charity for the time he is in office.

At every stage, the communications strategy was built around a simple but powerful truth: this was not just a fundraising campaign, it was a chance to bring an entire community on board a mission that would, quite literally, save lives. RNN Communications delivered on every dimension of that responsibility.

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