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RACQ LifeFlight will build a new base maintenance facility at Brisbane’s Archerfield Airport.
The larger hangar, expected to begin work in July and be completed by early next year, will allow the aeromedical charity to double its current base maintenance capacity and will form the “epicentre” of the organisation’s engineering activities in Queensland.
According to LifeFlight’s head of aviation capability, Michael Richmond, the new facility will be a future-proof maintenance base that will allow the service to meet Queensland’s needs for years.
“The current base maintenance facility at Archerfield has been a fantastic home for many years, but increasing demand for our aeromedical services means we have outgrown it,” he said.
“This new purpose-built facility will ensure we have a site large enough to accommodate the growth of our LifeFlight fleet and, subsequently, the work of our skilled engineers who perform significant maintenance activities daily, including fleet management tasks and major aircraft inspections.”
Archerfield Airport’s general manager, Rod Parry, said the airport is ideally located for emergency services as it’s 11km from the Brisbane CBD and close to major hospitals. He added the new LifeFlight base would be Archerfield’s biggest-ever hangar complex.
“With the recent completion of Project AIM (Airside Infrastructure Modernisation), Archerfield offers outstanding facilities for aeromedical and general aviation, flight training, and maintenance, repair and overhaul operations,” he said.
“Queenslanders know that if they get into trouble, there’s a world-class rescue fleet standing by to help. We look forward to working with LifeFlight to construct the facility that will keep those aircraft in the air and saving lives for many years to come.”
As reported by Australian Aviation in 2019, Archerfield’s Project AIM poured $17.5 million into overhauling its infrastructure and making it a destination of choice for general aviation.
Operator Archerfield Airport Corporation (AAC) has managed the airport, which is on Commonwealth land, since its privatisation in June 1998.
AAC holds a 99-year ground lease on the site, which boasts four runways (two asphalt, two grass) under Class D airspace, with tower services on site daily.
Since taking over, AAC has injected more than $38 million into the repair, restoration and renewal of the Archerfield facilities, including refurbishment of the terminal building; development of a key aeromedical/emergency services hub for South East Queensland through provision of a base for both LifeFlight and the police air wing Polair; and other general improvements including an award-winning Airspace Optimisation Project in 2017.
