Our Bases
Bairnsdale RFDS Road Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Bairnsdale is one of these bases.
Bankstown RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state and, in some instances, beyond. Bankstown is one of our NSW bases.
Bendigo RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Bendigo is one of these bases.
Brisbane RFDS Base
The RFDS Brisbane Base commenced operations out of Queensland Ambulance's Terminal at Brisbane Airport, on 3 July 1995, with the current base location commencing operations next door in 1998.
The Base is exclusively an emergency aeromedical base, providing retrieval and inter-hospital transfers. The terminal facilitates receipt of patients transported to Brisbane by the RFDS, as well as receipt of patients transported by other aeromedical providers such as Queensland and NSW Ambulance Services. Clinical coordination is provided by Queensland Health employed doctors and aircraft tasking by RSQ.
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Dubbo RFDS Base
Dubbo Base, established in 1999, offers a range health services as well as being a top tourism attraction in the area.
Dubbo is home to The Outback Oral Health
and Treatment (TOOTH) program, serving the remote communities of Collarenebri,
Bourke, Lightning Ridge and Goodooga.
Dubbo conducts inter-hospital transfers,
the coordination of flights for the Rural Aerial Health Service (RAHS), as well
as emergency retrievals.
Echuca RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Echuca is one of these bases.
Essendon RFDS Base
The Essendon Base began operations in September 1998 as part of a contract with Air Ambulance Victoria to provide pilots, aircraft and engineering services. When that contract ended in 2011 the RFDS Southeast Section established a Non-Emergency Patient Transfer Service (NEPTS) for the people of Victoria.
Essendon RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Essendon is one of these bases.
Horsham RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Horsham is one of these bases.
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Jandakot RFDS Base
The Jandakot base was established in 1964 and is located at Jandakot Airport, the second busiest airport in the Southern Hemisphere. Jandakot is the primary transfer base in WA, with administrative offices, state wide coordination centre, training facilities for nurses, doctors and pilots, an engineering hangar and patient transfer facilities. As the primary transfer base, Jandakot receives patients from all over the state, and performs patient repatriation to remote locations around WA.
Kyneton RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Kyneton is one of these bases.
Launceston RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state and, in some instances, beyond. Launceston are our Tasmanian base.
Mildura RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Mildura is one of these bases.
Mitcham RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Mildura is one of these bases.
Morwell RFDS Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Morwell is one of these bases.
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Darwin RFDS Base
Darwin Base commenced operations in December 2017. The new purpose-built facility enables the RFDS to fulfil its strategic goal of providing the finest care through the entire north-south corridor of the Northern Territory and South Australia. The Base provides 24-hour emergency evacuations and inter-hospital transfers in addition to regular charter services to NT Health for the transport of health professionals delivering remote fly-in clinics throughout the Top End.
Richmond Head Office
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state.
Sale RFDS Base / Office
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Sale is one of these bases.
Shepparton RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Shepparton is one of these bases.
Stawell RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Stawell is one of these bases.
Tamworth RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state and, in some instances, beyond. Tamworth is one of our NSW bases.
Taree RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state and, in some instances, beyond. Taree is one of our NSW bases.
Wangaratta RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Wangaratta is one of these bases.
Warragul RFDS Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Warragul is one of these bases.
Warrnambool RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Warrnambool is one of these bases.
Wodonga RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Wodonga is one of these bases.
Wonthaggi RFDS Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state. Wonthaggi is one of these bases.
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Alice Springs RFDS Base
The Alice Springs Base provides 24-hour emergency evacuations and inter-hospital transfers by our team of Pilots, Flight Nurses and Engineers. It serves an area of approximately 1.25 million square kilometres from Marla in northern South Australia to Elliot and Barkly Tableland in the Northern Territory, and beyond the border regions of Western Australia and Queensland. Crews also provide regular charter services to NT Health for the transport of health professionals working throughout Central Australia. The Mental Health Services Rural & Remote Areas Program delivered by RFDS mental health clinicians is also based in Alice Springs.
Alice Springs is also home to our award-winning RFDS Alice Springs Tourist Facility, which in recent years has undergone a major redevelopment to enhance its presence and improve the tourist experience for locals and visitors from all over the world. The RFDS Alice Springs Base also benefits from the Bill and Dawn Prior Village of 13 townhouses used as accommodation for staff and visiting clinicians.
Bankstown RFDS Base
The RFDS base at Bankstown began operations in July 1994.
Bankstown Base is the home of the Rural Aerial Health Service (RAHS) which the RFDS operates on behalf of NSW Health. While administration and coordination of RAHS flights takes place at the Dubbo Base, the majority of flights are made from Bankstown.
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Broome RFDS Base
The Broome facilities were established in 2016 and are the first new facilities in Western Australia in 50 years. The facilities are located at the Broome International Airport on Gus Winckel Drive. The demand for our services has steadily increased over the past five years in the Kimberley region, and the Broome facilities will ensure that we can continue to meet the increasing and changing patient demand for our aero medical services in the north of our state. With two hangars, a state of the art patient treatment centre and administrative offices our Broome facilities are in place to bolster our capability and increase efficiency.
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Kalgoorlie RFDS Base
The Kalgoorlie Base was
established in 1937. Located at the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport in the
Goldfields, 596km from Perth, the Kalgoorlie Base maintains an administration
office, a visitor centre and hangar facilities. The base conducts regular tours
for tourists and visitors and runs a busy operation servicing the goldfields
and beyond.
Kalgoorlie operates emergency transfers to Kalgoorlie District Hospital, inter hospital transfers to Perth, health clinics from Kalgoorlie to Eucla along the Eyre Highway and fundraising, tours and merchandise at the visitor centre and shop.
Launceston RFDS Base
Launceston Base began operations in 1997. Our initial flight carried a critically ill baby from Wynyard, Tasmania to Essendon for surgery at a Melbourne children's hospital.
Today Launceston base is the home of aeromedical operations serving Tasmania and the Bass Strait Island communities. We deliver aeromedical services for Ambulance Tasmania, they provide medical staff and we provide pilots, engineers and our aircraft.
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Meekatharra RFDS Base
The Meekatharra base was
established in 1945 and is located 760km from Perth at the Meekatharra Airport.
The base was built in Perth and transported to Meekatharra where it was installed
adjacent to the RFDS hangar facilities at the airport.
The base conducts emergency transfers to Meekatharra District Hospital, inter hospital transfers to Perth and fortnightly primary health clinics in the Mid West and Gascoyne regions.
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Port Augusta RFDS Base
RFDS Central Operations’ state-of-the-art Operations Communications Centre is located at Port Augusta Base, from which our Operations Coordinators receive emergency calls, plan and assign all 24-hour emergency retrieval and inter-hospital transfer flights from Adelaide, Alice Springs, Port Augusta and Darwin, whilst also providing after-hours back up for the Broken Hill Base (operated by South Eastern Section).
The Port Augusta Base is headquarters of the RFDS Primary Health Care Service which serves an area of 840,000 square kilometres, providing comprehensive primary health care services to residents in the Far West and North West regions of SA. Services include 24-hour tele-health consultations, remote fly-in primary health care clinics offering specialist chronic disease, mental health, oral health, maternal health, breast cancer and community health nurses/clinicians.
In addition to our core of Doctors, Pilots, Flight Nurses, Engineers and Operations Coordinators, our Aboriginal Health Coordinator, Community Health Nurses, Lifestyle Advisor, Dentist and Dental Hygienist are based in Port Augusta enabling them to focus on serving people in isolated communities.
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Port Hedland RFDS Base
The Port Hedland base was established in 1935. Located at the Port Hedland Airport in the Pilbara, 1,700km from Perth, this base operates emergency transfers to Hedland Health Campus; inter hospital transfers to Perth and primary health clinics to the Pilbara regions.
Wollongong RFDS Road Transport Base
RFDS Victoria operates several key services with mobile patient care road vehicles, from a number of bases located across the state and, in some instances, beyond. Wollongong is one of our NSW bases.
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29th July 1917, the accident of stockman Jim Darcy causes a chain of events that eventually leads to the founding of the Flying Doctor Service in Australia. For more information on the founding of the RFDS, read more here.
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The monument commemorates the Reverend John Flynn (1880-1951), founder of the Australian Inland Mission and the Flying Doctor Service. The monument is opposite where he was born. The monument was erected by local residents, the council of Bet Bet and the Australian Inland Mission. It consists of a 12-foot column of brick construction, a local stone wall and a propeller. The propeller was supplied by Australian National Airlines.
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In honour of the extraordinary efforts and achievements of Australia’s early pioneers, the Cloncurry John Flynn Place Museum pays tribute to Reverend John Flynn and his team for their dedication and success in overcoming isolation and bringing communication education, and health to remote Australia. The museum takes you on a journey following in Flynn’s footsteps from conception, birth; and legacy of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, born in Cloncurry, 1928 to improve the quality of life for rural Australians.
Flynn’s vision took him on a lifelong adventure connecting him with the likes of genius innovators like Alfred Traeger, the inventive genius who “gave voice to the outback” with his pedal radio’s, veteran pilots; hardened nurses and everyday heroes living in the harshest and remote conditions in the Country. The Museum commemorates the committed men and women who dedicated their lives to the dream.
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The John Flynn's Memorial Historical Reserve is the resting place for the ashes of the Reverend John Flynn, founder of the Flying Doctor Service and the Australian Inland Mission.
The grave is on a low hill at the foot of the MacDonnell Ranges. The plaque expresses a lifetime achievement in just a few lines "His vision encompassed the continent". He established the Australian Inland Mission and founded the Royal Flying Doctor Service. He brought to lonely places a spiritual ministry and spread a mantle of safety over them by medicine and the radio.’
Click here to know more about John Reverend Flynn.
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The monument which is a representation of her Mooney aircraft commemorates pilot and nurse Robin Miller Dicks who was known as "The Sugar Bird Lady."
Robin Miller (1940 - 1975), known as "The Sugarbird Lady", was an Australian aviatrix and nurse. The name "The Sugarbird Lady" was given to her by outback Aboriginal children during her work combatting polio. She died of cancer at the age of 35. In 1973 she married Harold Dicks, the director of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, and became Robin Miller Dicks. After her death, Dicks set up an AUD$50,000 memorial foundation to help nurses get flying licences. Robin Miller Dicks was the daughter of writer and historian Dame Mary Durack and pioneer aviator Horrie Miller OBE.
Want to get a deeper insight into the challenges that exist for those that live, work and travel in the bush? Listen to our Flying Doctor Podcast to know more about the role we play in servicing rural communities.
