The RFDS in WA

What we do

Patient care is at the centre of everything we do at the Royal Flying Doctor Service Western Operations. We continually review and strive to improve the effectiveness and quality of our services. We welcome feedback from our patients and respect their privacy.

A patient arrives on the Rio Tinto Life Flight Jet

Emergency & Retrieval in WA

The RFDS delivers over 8,000 emergency aero medical retrievals and inter hospital transfers every year.

Our 24/7 state-wide Coordination Centre in action

Telehealth in WA

RFDS practitioners provide 24 hour a day telephone based medical consultation services to those living, working and travelling in remote and rural Western Australia.

Medical Chests in WA

The RFDS in Western Australia manages approximately 500 medical chests containing a range of pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical items for emergency treatment, pain relief and preparation for evacuation.

Flight Nursing in WA

RFDS flight nurses are dual qualified as Registered Nurses and Midwives, with significant post graduate experience and qualifications in areas such as critical care, emergency department, paediatrics or neonates.

Dental Services in WA

In keeping with its philosophy to provide health care to those living in rural and remote locations across WA, the RFDS coordinate two dental programs providing services to rural and remote locations, including Wiluna, Warburton, Mingenew, Morawa and Perenjori.

Rural & Remote General Practice Clinics in WA

The RFDS in Western Australia provides fly-in, fly-out General Practice health care to people living in rural and remote areas across the state, with over 350 GP clinic sessions and 850 facilitated clinic sessions each year.

Jandakot RFDS Base

Address

3 Eagle Drive
Jandakot WA 6164

Telephone

08 9417 6300

Fax

08 9417 6309

Email

westops@rfdswa.com.au

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.

Broome RFDS Base

Address

Gus Winckel Drive
Broome WA 6725

Telephone

08 9157 1100

Fax

08 9157 1101

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.

Kalgoorlie RFDS Base

Address

Kalgoorlie-Boulder Airport
Kalgoorlie WA 6430

Telephone

08 9000 2140

Fax

08 9000 2141

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.

Meekatharra RFDS Base

Address

Meekatharra Airport
Meekatharra WA 6642

Telephone

08 9947 3180

Fax

08 9981 1601

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.

Port Hedland RFDS Base

Address

Waldron Road
Port Hedland WA 6721

Telephone

08 9148 1160

Fax

08 9148 1172

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.

Jimmy Darcy Grave

Address

Old Halls Creek
Pioneer Cemetery. RFDS Memorial.

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.

Kalgoorlie Visitor Centre

Address

Kalgoorlie Boulder Visitor Centre
316 Hannan Street, Kalgoorlie

Telephone

08 9021 1966

Email

visitors@kalgoorlietourism.com

Kalgoorlie Boulder Visitor Centre (KBVC) is the largest, fully accredited, not-for-profit Visitor Centre in the Goldfields. It is the hub and gateway for tourists and visitors to the greater outback region. The Kalgoorlie Boulder Visitor Centre has an area dedicated to the rich history of the RFDS in WA.

Sugar Bird Lady Monument

Address

Eagle Drive, Jandakot Airport
Jandakot, 6164

Email

info@monumentaustralia.org.au

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.

Beagle Bay Primary Health Clinic

The RFDS provides a comprehensive range of healthcare services at a range of locations including rural towns, remote stations, mines, oil fields, national parks and island resorts. The services are delivered by multidisciplinary teams including: general practitioners; nurses; Allied Health professionals; and other health personnel including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers, and health promotion and community development officers.

Bidyadanga Primary Health Clinic

Broome Dental Clinic

Many people living in WA's vast and remote regions do not have access to a regular dental service.

Recognising the important link between oral health and overall health, the RFDS delivers a free dental service to people faced with geographical and/or socioeconomic barriers.
The RFDS dental health team in WA reaches patients in the Goldfields, Midwest and Kimberley regions to provide vital oral health education, screening and treatment.
Dental health services are provided via a purpose-built dental van and fly-in fly-out clinics and are funded by the Commonwealth Government, Remote Area Dental Service (RADS) and corporate partner Karara Mining.

Cosmo Newberry Primary Health Clinic

Cotton Creek Primary Health Clinic

Cue Primary Health Clinic

Denham Primary Health Clinic

Derby Dental Clinic

Djugerari Primary Health Clinic

Djugerari Psychology Service

Eucla Primary Health Clinic

Gibb River Primary Health Clinic

Halls Creek Dental Clinic

Kadjina Primary Health Clinic

Kadjina Psychology Service

Kalumbaru Primary Health Clinic

Koorabye Primary Health Clinic

Koorabye Psychology Service

Kununurra Dental Clinic

Lake Varley Primary Health Clinic

Lombadina Primary Health Clinic

Marble Bar Primary Health Clinic

Meekatharra Psychology Service

Menzies Primary Health Clinic

Mingenew Dental Clinic

Morawa Dental Clinic

Newman Dental Clinic

Nookanbah Psychology Service

Nullagine Primary Health Clinic

One Arm Point Primary Health Clinic

Payne's Find Primary Health Clinic

Perenjori Dental Clinic

Sandstone Primary Health Clinic

Transline/Eyre Highway Primary Health Clinics

Useless Loop Primary Health Clinic

Warburton Dental Clinic

Warmun Primary Health Clinic

Wiluna Dental Clinic

Yakanarra Primary Health Clinic

Yakanarra Psychology Service

Yalgoo Primary Health Clinic

Yandeyarra Primary Health Clinic

Our Fleet

Pilatus PC-12

The RFDS in WA has 16 Pilatus PC-12 aircraft, with a bespoke aero medical fitout, transforming the planes into flying critical care units. The current fleet of PC-12 aircraft in WA flew a total of 7,634,000 kilometres, and made 15,886 landings in the last year alone.

Rio Tinto LifeFlight PC-24 jet

WA has 2 Rio Tinto LifeFlight PC-24 jet aircraft, the Pilatus PC-24 jets were re-purposed with state-of-the-art aero medical fit out that serves as an in-flight emergency ward. It has capacity for three stretchered patients and two medical teams, can fly at a top speed of 815kms per hour.