Search & Rescue Services

What Search & Rescue Services does

Search & Rescue Services New Zealand is a non-profit emergency response organization headquartered in Taupo, Waikato, that delivers search and rescue helicopter operations and critical care paramedic services across Aotearoa New Zealand. The organization provides 111-dispatched emergency response across land, air, and sea through pilots, critical care paramedics, and rescue crew operating state-of-the-art helicopters, with services offered free of charge to patients. Its operational scope spans medical evacuations, search operations, inter-hospital critical care transfers, and disaster response, coordinated through a nationwide alliance of regional Trust partners and integrated with New Zealand's emergency service agencies.

The operating model is a nationally recognised co-funding structure that combines significant Government investment with contributions from dedicated regional Trust partners, including the Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter Trust, Philips Search and Rescue Trust, Eastland Helicopter Rescue Trust, Life Flight, and the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter. Mission execution is coordinated with New Zealand Police, Fire Emergency New Zealand, Hato Hone St John (ambulance), Te Whatu Ora Health NZ, Maritime New Zealand, Land Search and Rescue New Zealand, Coast Guard, Wellington Free Ambulance, and the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC). Aircraft and aviation technology are sourced from Airbus under an OEM relationship.

Commercially, there is no transactional customer base; end users are members of the public reached only during emergencies. The sustaining economic model is recurring government appropriations plus donations and Trust contributions routed through regional partners, and the organization's primary commercial risk is concentrated in the political continuity and stability of that co-funding regime. The national HQ reports 25 employees, and the operating entity is independently run with no parent company or subsidiary structure disclosed.

Name

Search & Rescue Services

Legal name

Search & Rescue Services New Zealand

Website

https://caarl.org.nz

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Search & Rescue Services New Zealand is a non-profit that delivers free, nationwide 111-dispatched helicopter search and rescue and critical care paramedic services, funded through Government co-funding and regional Trust partner contributions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Emergency Rescue Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Ambulance Services (621910)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Emergency Response & Search-and-Rescue (SAR) (BPAGAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Air Medical Transport (Helicopter/Fixed-Wing) (HLAFANAD), Search & Rescue (Urban/Water/Wilderness) Coordination (HLAJAGAJ)

Keywords

• Emergency helicopter rescue
• Search and rescue operations
• Critical care transport
• Air ambulance services
• Emergency medical services

Headquarters

HQ city

Taupō

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Funding and Regional Trust Contributions: A nationally recognised co-funding model that combines significant Government investment with contributions from dedicated regional Trust partners. The organization does not charge patients directly for services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Search & Rescue Services provides emergency helicopter rescue operations and critical care paramedic services across New Zealand. The organization responds to 111 emergency calls, conducting search and rescue operations across land, air, and sea, and delivering inter-hospital patient transfers with pre-hospital critical care.

Product overview

Search & Rescue Services New Zealand is a single, unified emergency response service that operates search and rescue helicopter operations and critical care paramedic services. The organization does not offer a modular software product portfolio; rather, it delivers life-saving rescue operations and emergency medical transport through a coordinated network of pilots, critical care paramedics, and crew. The service combines state-of-the-art technology with highly trained personnel to respond to emergencies across land, air, and sea throughout Aotearoa New Zealand.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Emergency Helicopter Rescue Operations Helicopter-based search and rescue operations responding to 111 emergency calls across land, air, and sea environments in New Zealand. Service is provided free to patients.
• Critical Care Paramedic Services Pre-hospital critical care paramedic response delivered alongside helicopter rescue operations, including inter-hospital patient transfers for individuals needing advanced medical care.

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional Trust partner providing rescue helicopter services in the Hawke's Bay region, part of the national network of search and rescue operations.
• Philips Search and Rescue TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational Trust partner supporting search and rescue helicopter services across New Zealand.
• Eastland Helicopter Rescue TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional Trust partner providing rescue helicopter services in the Eastland/Gisborne region.
• Life FlightcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational search and rescue trust partner providing emergency air services across New Zealand.
• Taranaki Rescue HelicoptercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional Trust partner providing rescue helicopter services in the Taranaki region.
• New Zealand PolicemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOperational partner in search and rescue operations, providing law enforcement coordination and support.
• Fire Emergency New ZealandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmergency services partner for coordinated response to incidents requiring both fire and rescue capabilities.
• Hato Hone St JohnmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmbulance service partner providing emergency medical services coordination.
• Te Whatu Ora Health NZmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment health authority partner for medical transport and healthcare coordination.
• Maritime New ZealandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMaritime safety authority partner for sea rescue operations and coastal emergencies.
• Land Search and Rescue New ZealandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational land search and rescue coordination partner for ground-based rescue operations.
• Wellington Free AmbulanceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional ambulance service partner for Wellington region emergency medical response.
• Coast GuardmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMaritime rescue organization partner for coastal and sea rescue operations.
• Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) New ZealandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment corporation partner providing injury compensation and funding for accident-related emergency response.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Market position

Strengths4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/search-and-rescue-services

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Search & Rescue Services