Follow the hospital with wings on it's sight saving journey:
Follow the new plane through its pioneering design, build and launch as it becomes the next generation Flying Eye Hospital.
Currently
The hospital modules are undergoing endurance testing before they can be loaded onto the new plane.
March 2013
The interior of the Flying Eye Hospital modules nears completion as the walls, ceiling and lighting are all fitted. Here you can see MMIC engineers inside the Operating Room, and the view from the L’Occitane Patient Care and Laser Room through to the Operating Room.
It is now time to install the internal hospital equipment, cabinetry and appliances such as the cameras and computers which will make this a state-of the-art teaching facility.
The cutting edge equipment will allow for two-way communication between the Operating Room and the Classroom, meaning trainees can talk directly with the surgeon performing the procedure. A monitor in the Operating Room will allow the surgeon to view what’s being shown in the Classroom and give instructions to make precise adjustments to the pan/tilt/zoom of the image to improve the view for local medical professionals in attendance.
February 2013
The current DC-10 Flying Eye Hospital meets the new MD-10 aircraft for the first time, as it checks in for maintenance in Victorville, California.
December 2012
All the modules have now been constructed. Here we see the outside of the modules. The space running down the left side is where the power cables and heating ventilation and air conditioning system will run through-out the modules.
Inside the modules the countertops and cabinets are mocked-up; but the walls, doors, door windows and floor power outlets have been installed.
The bespoke generators, which are used to independently power the plane when in hospital mode, have been built and delivered to MMIC in Vermont.
A specialised ‘Rigid Cargo Barrier’ has been constructed to hold the hospital modules in place behind the classroom at the front of the plane. A door has been incorporated to allow allowing access between the two areas.
July 2012
Aircraft modifications are progressing onboard the MD-10 aircraft in California. Modifications include strengthening the cargo aircraft to support the hospital modules as well as accept passenger components such as windows, doors, lavatories and seats.
May 2012
The hospital module manufacturers, MMIC, began by constructing a mock-up of the new plane. Allowing ORBIS staff to ‘tour’ the plane and provide feedback on the design of the future hospital.
March 2012
Our engineers from MMIC, send key staff to see the ORBIS Flying Eye Hospital in action: They travelled to Indonesia and Vietnam giving them direct insight in how to improve the next generation Flying Eye Hospital’s design.
“It’s still a good a hospital, but [the MD-10] is going to be a better hospital in a new aircraft”
– David Covell, Project Engineer on visiting the existing DC-10.
January 2012
FedEx donate an MD-10 as part of their on-going support of ORBIS. Before work begins to transform this cargo plane into the next generation Flying Eye Hospital, an extensive maintenance check is carried out in Venice, Italy then it is flys to the US where it will be refitted and constructed into a hospital.
2011
Due to the increasing difficulty of sustaining pilots and maintenance for our current, DC-10 Flying Eye Hospital, ORBIS will upgrade to a next generation Flying Eye Hospital!
FedEx will generously donate an MD-10 cargo plane. This new plane boasts a digital cockpit meaning only two pilots are needed to fly the plane, it expands ORBIS’s flight range from 4,000 miles to 6,000 miles, enjoys better fuel efficiency, significantly reducing costs.
The cargo plane has given rise to a pioneering approach to the construction of the hospital component; a modular design which can be loaded onto the plane like cargo containers. This allows a more efficient construction process as easy maintenance and upgrades.
