A WEST Devon woman needing assistance over the weekend became Devon Air Ambulance's 16,000th rescue mission.

The charity was called to Broadwoodkelly on Saturday to rescue a woman who had fallen and needed hospital treatment.

The 12-minute journey to take the woman from Broadwoodkelly to the North Devon District Hospital by helicopter, could have taken anything up to an hour by land ambulance.

The charity has been running since its first rescue mission 18 years ago, and uses two helicopters across the county.