The aeromedical evacuation service, also known as the Programme d’évacuations aéromédicales du Québec (EVAQ), transports patients in need of specialized care, whether urgent or scheduled, by airplane or helicopter.
It is essential for remote or isolated areas, where distance and isolation are a real barrier to accessing health care and services.
It is offered in addition to ground ambulance services in order to offer a high‑performance pre‑hospital intervention chain to improve the chances of survival and to limit the risk and extent of possible permanent sequelae.
Medical transport by air ambulance, shuttle or helicopter makes it possible to maintain the user’s level of care during their transfer from an institution in the health and social services network to a specialized centre that has the necessary resources to take care of them. During the transfer, specialized clinical personnel (doctor, nurse) are on board.
The type of transport used will depend on the distance between the departure facility and the specialized centre:
0 to 75 km: ground ambulance
75 to 250 km: helicopter when it is faster than a ground ambulance or air ambulance
over 250 km: air ambulance or shuttle by plane
Requests for transport are evaluated by a specialized clinical team from the Centre de coordination provincial des transports aéromédicaux (CCPTA) in collaboration with the health care team of the person that is being transferred. The patient does not need to do anything.
The service is entirely public.
Medical transport by plane
Air ambulance (emergency)
An air ambulance provides emergency transport for patients from a health care institution to a specialized centre in the City of Québec or Montréal located more than 250 km away. When the health institution that has the specialized services the user needs is more than 250 km away, an air ambulance is the recommended means of transport owing to its efficiency over longer distances.
Shuttle
Medical transport by shuttle allows people whose condition has been stabilized and who are in a remote region to be transported to a health institution in the City of Québec or Montréal to receive non‑urgent care that is not available in their region. They are transported on scheduled medical flights to designated centres, for care or examinations, as well as when they return to their region.
Medical transport by helicopter
Medical transport by helicopter may be preferred when the user in need of urgent transport is in a health care institution located between 75 km and 250 km from a specialized centre in the City of Québec or Montréal where they can receive appropriate care for their condition.
For distances under 75 km, transport by ground ambulance is more efficient.
The medical helicopter service significantly reduces time to treatment and improves care pathways, including in:
cardiology (e.g., acute myocardial infarction)
neurology or neurosurgery (e.g., stroke, aneurysm rupture)
major trauma
intensive care when urgent transfer is necessary
pediatrics for an emergency situation
When and where medical transport by helicopter is available
The implementation of the medical helicopter service will be carried out gradually and in phases. By the end of 2026, the service will cover regions within a 75 to 250 km radius of the City of Québec and Montréal. It will initially be available 12 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Summer 2026 – City of Québec base (City of Québec airport)
The first phase of deployment of the medical helicopter service begins in mid June for regions within a 75 to 250 km radius of the City of Québec base, located at the Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport (YQB). To begin with, it will serve the Capitale‑Nationale, Chaudière‑Appalaches and Bas‑Saint‑Laurent regions. The Saguenay‑Lac‑Saint‑Jean region will be served as of late summer 2026.
Fall 2026 – Montréal base (Mirabel airport)
The second implementation phase of the medical helicopter service will begin in the fall of 2026 for the Lanaudière and Laurentians regions. It will cover sectors within a 75 to 250 km radius of the Montréal base, located at the Aérocité internationale de Mirabel (YMX).
The other regions within the range of the two bases will be served gradually in the coming years.
Terms of access to the medical helicopter service
In order for the medical helicopter service to be able to take care of the sick person, the following conditions must be met. Otherwise, another transport service will be used:
access to one or more approved developed landing areas located between 75 and 250 km from the departure facility
urgent need for transfer to a specialized centre for a patient who has already been assessed and is receiving treatment (e.g., stroke, infarction, severe trauma, pediatric emergency)
a medical situation where every minute counts for the chances of survival or to reduce the risk of sequelae
In the following situations, a medical helicopter is not used:
transport from home or from the scene of an accident to a hospital. This service is provided by ambulances
non‑urgent medical transport
situations that may be aggravated by this type of transport or that do not meet the clinical criteria established by the medical team
for distances of less than 75 km. Ground ambulances provide this service efficiently
for distances over 250 km, as they are covered by air ambulance
Last update:
June 9, 2026
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