The donation will help create the first national network of air ambulances by funding an extra seven helicopters for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

A network has not existed until now because there are some areas which do not have air ambulance cover.

The government says all eight existing air ambulance schemes in England rely on charitable funding to meet the cost of the aircraft.

Scotland's two air ambulance helicopters, which are funded by the Scottish Health Board, will be offered �450,000 over three years to extend their daylight flying hours.

The AA hopes its donation, announced on Thursday, will plug the gaps and help save lives.

About 3,600 people a year are killed in road traffic accidents in the UK.

"The air ambulance is an obvious life-saver," said an AA spokesman.

"They can get operate in a 50-mile radius and get a person to hospital within 10 minutes. An ordinary ambulance on a crowded road would not be able to get there as quickly."

Road accidents

The AA's donation will be made over three years to the National Association of Air Ambulance Services charity (NAAAS).

New aircraft will be painted in the AA's corporate yellow and feature its logo on the side and base of vehicles.

The AA spokesman said: "We are very conscious that, as a motoring organisation, we get involved in road safety issues and that the majority of trips made by air ambulances are to help people at the roadside who have been involved in road traffic accidents."

He added that other European motoring organisations had also invested in their national services.

The AA will also be urging its members to donate money to the NAAAS.

The spokesman said there were some obvious gaps in the UK service at the moment, in the Thames Valley and Lancashire areas.

The first new air ambulances it is contributing to will cover these areas and will begin work in the next few weeks.

The government says the AA sponsorship will cover only part of the cost.

"Helicopter air ambulance schemes will remain reliant on local public support if they are to continue," it said in a statement.

Nigel Webb of the NAAS said he had been working for 10 years to improve the air ambulance service.

The charity, which was set up in 1997 to fund raise on a national basis, now has the job of ensuring that more money is raised to ensure the future of the new aircraft.

David Hill, Chief Executive of the Lancashire Ambulance Service, welcomed the news of an air ambulance for the North West.

It will serve a population of more than seven million people living in a region which stretches from Cheshire to Cumbria.

Mr Hill said many areas of the region were difficult for normal ambulances to access, particularly the Lake District and Pennine areas, and there were also many motorways which could become gridlocked because of accidents.

"The advantages an air ambulance can bring in quickly bringing paramedic help to seriously injured patients and getting them to specialist hospital care in the shortest time is critical to chances of a full recovery," he said, adding that the helicopters also helped transfer patients between hospitals.

Partnership

Health Minister Baroness Hayman also welcomed the AA's sponsorship, saying: "This kind of partnership often makes it possible to develop and sustain many innovative projects that are not prime candidates for mainstream NHS funding."

Nine air ambulances currently cover eight areas of England: Cornwall, Devon, Essex, Kent, Lincolnshire/Nottinghamshire, London, Northumbria and West Midlands.