A new helicopter pad for Evans Army Community Hospital on Fort Carson is replacing a temporary landing site on uneven ground that wasn’t easily identifiable for flight crews.

Col. Edward Mandril prioritized putting in the pad when he took command of the hospital in 2022, as an Army medical evacuation pilot, an Army news story said. It was finished in March and the curing process took an additional month. The base celebrated the new $90,000 pad in May, the Army said.

“This state-of-the-art helicopter pad represents a significant milestone in our commitment to providing top-notch health care and safe and effective medical evacuation to our military personnel, their Families, and our retirees,” said Mandril, in the story. “This helipad stands as a testament of our ongoing commitment to excellence, readiness, and the well-being of our military community.”

Most of the medical evacuation flights from Evans are civilian transport helicopters taking newborns to Denver for higher levels of care, said Gino Mattorano, a spokesman for the hospital. Over the last five years, the hospital has averaged 2 to 4 flights each month, he said, in an email.

The hospital had a helicopter pad prior to the War on Terror, but the area was removed to make room for Warrior Transition Battalions that helped those coming back from war with rehabilitation, the Army story said.

The helicopter pad was built almost entirely by Fort Carson units, which saved money on the project, Mattorano said. The 4th Engineer Battalion used the project as a training event and completed the surveying, heavy equipment and concrete work.