THREE helicopters operated by Midlands Air Ambulance have been grounded by their operator Bond Air Services.

The decision was taken by Bond after after a warning light came on in an aircraft in another part of the country.

It is the same model which crashed on to The Clutha bar in Glasgow, killing nine people.

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman said: “Clearly safety is our number one priority and will be guided by the operator of the aircraft.

“As a service we still have access to two air ambulances; those operated by Warwickshire and Northampton Air Ambulance and Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance so we have no concerns about patients being put at risk by this situation.

“In addition, the crews that would have been flying today will respond on land vehicles as they would if the weather had stopped the helicopters flying.

“We are hoping for an update later today on when the situation is likely to be resolved.”