Land found for new Wiltshire Air Ambulance base

It will cost £2.5m per year to fund Wiltshire's new dedicated air ambulance

Land for a new helicopter base in Wiltshire has been found following a year-long "full-scale search".

Wiltshire Air Ambulance (WAA) has been sharing a hangar with Wiltshire Police but the lease is due to run out at the end of 2017.

It now wants to relocate to Outmarsh Farm in Semington, near Melksham, to enable its helicopter to "reach all parts of Wiltshire within 11 minutes".

A public consultation will be held on 12 August in Trowbridge.

"Currently our helicopter and crew are based at the hangar in Devizes, while our charity team is based at offices in Calne," a spokesman for the charity said.

"Having the crew and charity team under one roof means we will be working more efficiently.

"The benefit of owning our own land would mean we have full control of our future."