AN ELDERLY woman in an air ambulance had to be flown miles away for treatment after pranksters glued the gates of a helipad in Cheltenham shut.

The woman, believed to be in her 90s, was airlifted Cheltenham General Hospital from the Evesham area after she collapsed yesterday morning. THURS

But when the emergency helicopter from West Midlands Air Ambulance landed at the designated helipad in Sandford Park they found someone had squirted superglue into the lock, operated by a digital keypad and they could not get the patient through.

The pensioner, believed to be from a village near the Worcestershire town, was airlifted following a serious medical emergency.

A spokesman from the air ambulance has hit out at the cruel pranksters for the stunt which left the woman unable to receive the emergency treatment she needed at the hospital.

He said: "The air ambulance landed for around two minutes before diverting to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital so the patient could receive treatment without any further delay.

"Her treatment was only delayed for around 10 minutes but any unnecessary delays in a patient receiving emergency care at hospital can have potentially serious or even tragic consequences."

A spokesman from Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said the helipad and lock were checked regularly to ensure access at all times.

"But in this case we were unable to open the lock due to circumstances entirely beyond our control," she said.

"This has never happened before."

She added: "We were slightly surprised.

"The gate is quite clearly marked that it is used by the air ambulance."

Staff were unable to chop through the lock with boltcutters and the helicopter had to be diverted to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

According to the hospital spokesman, the detour did not affect the patient's condition.

But the trick could have been more serious if the patient was airlifted from a road accident.

She said because it was a public area, it could be anyone who had committed the act.

Gloucestershire police said they had not been informed of the incident.

The West Midlands Air Ambulance Charity is responsible for funding and operating three helipcopters serving Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire.

The organisation is regarded as one of the longest established and busiest Air Ambulance operators in the UK.