Keep asking the questions....

As a part of this campaign to persuade Ryanair (and all other airlines) to carry an AED on every flight and train at least one cabin crew member to perform CPR, I also wrote to the government to ask them to exert some influence on the airline industry. I received a brief and unsatisfactory response to my first letter from The Department for Transport. Their letter states that 'the evidence to date is inconclusive about the benefits of the use of this piece of equipment (AED) in the event of a passenger suffering a cardiac arrest on-board an aircraft.' They went went on to say that they hoped I was reassured by the fact that UK airlines are required to carry first aid and emergency medical kits in accordance with European legislation implemented via the Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA). Not feeling in the slightest bit reassured I wrote again yesterday asking the Department of Transport if they would care to send me the data that they regard as inconclusive and also to answer the following questions: 1) Why do you refer in your attached letter to data being inconclusive on an aircraft when the data is quite conclusive on dry land - i.e. that CPR and effective use of an AED is the best chance of saving someone's life if they suffer a cardiac arrest? 2) If the JAA and CAA are not convinced of the benefit of AEDs on board aircraft, why do we see so many AEDs at airports? 3) If someone has a cardiac arrest during a flight, is their chance of survival increased, or decreased by the availability of an on-board AED and a crew member who is trained in CPR? 4) Harsh question this one, but if you and your loved ones were on a flight and Cardiac Arrest struck one of you, which aircraft would you rather be on - one with an AED and CPR trained crew, or one without? I will let you know what I get back in due course. The response to date has been fantastic with over 28,400 signatures so far. Thank you to everyone. To really boost the numbers and help take the petition to another level, it would be brilliant if everyone who supports it could find one more person to sign the petition. Thanks everyone.