Wintersports fans who break a leg on the Austrian ski slopes this winter will no longer go home on a gipsvlucht or ‘plaster cast flight’, public broadcaster NOS reported on Friday.

The flights, operated by Austrian Tyrol Air Ambulance between Innsbrück and Rotterdam airport, were started in the early 1980s. Over the years the number of flights carrying hapless skiers has been falling and the service is no longer viable, NOS said.

Some 50 people used the service last year. The arrival of the first gipsvlucht was a winter television news staple.

People who come a cropper in Austria will now have to rely on transport by ambulance, taxi, or regular plane service.