WILTSHIRE Air Ambulance is priceless. You never think you will need them – I was one of those people,” said Shaun Fleming.

Shaun was airlifted by Wiltshire Air Ambulance after he fell 11 feet from a ladder while pruning a conifer tree at home in Maunsell Way, Wroughton, near Swindon, on 28 September 2014.

Shaun, 58, suffered fractured shoulder blades, hip socket and a minor skull fracture in the fall. The air ambulance paramedics suspected Shaun might have significant injuries and therefore needed to be taken to the major trauma centre at Southmead Hospital, Bristol.

Shaun was given pain relief and a binder was put on his pelvis to keep it in place before he was flown to Southmead Hospital in 16 minutes. The journey by road would have taken over an hour.

Shaun, a painter and decorator, was in hospital for two weeks and had an operation to repair his hip. He was off work for four months.

He said: “I’m so grateful for the care the Wiltshire Air Ambulance crew gave me. They got me to hospital safely without further complications. I’m extremely lucky.”

Before his accident Shaun, an experienced runner, had planned to run the Bath Half Marathon in March 2015 for the charity, but the event came too soon for him. Instead, Shaun, who is married with two grown up children, attended the event as a volunteer with WAA. Being there made him determined to run it the following year which he did in a time of 1:48:18 and he smashed his sponsorship target of £200 by raising £727.50.

He will be pounding the streets of Bath again for the charity by running the 2017 Half Marathon in March followed a month later by the London Marathon.

Shaun added: “I love running and to raise money for Wiltshire Air Ambulance is fantastic. It’s an essential emergency service. The speed of the helicopter means it is able to get to all parts of Wiltshire within 11 minutes and can transport patients to hospital very quickly, as I know from personal experience.”