The first 85 years

********And today, fly-in clinics and radio consultations leave nobody without access to medical help.**********

Since its inception, the RFDS has progressively upgraded through 13 ever-more capable piston aircraft and the Nomad. The locally-built DH Drover, after a checkered start was, largely due to RFDS and TAA developments, vastly improved with wing, flap and tail modifications and 25 per cent more powerful Lycoming 0-360 engines. Recertification of the aircraft required putting the aircraft into a spin at 10,000′ – an impressive sight. Many TAA first officers did remote postings with the RFDS – earning them great command experience.

The Beech King Air, however, marked a capability turning point and were later joined by PC-12s and Cessna 208 Caravans to meet the specific needs of regional demands. The King Airs and PC-12s can operate from unprepared strips, the norm on station properties and at some mining sites. The Caravans, while not used for medevacs, can use tiny strips to conduct fly-in clinics.

Importantly, the King Air and later the PC-12 ushered in pressurisation. The ability to fly above much of the weather in a controlled cabin environment has offered important medical advantages. The cabin pressure can often be kept at ground-level with the rate of pressure change controlled according to the needs of the patient –an essential asset in some critical cases.

In 2009 the RFDS added a Hawker 800XP jet to cover the vast distances in Western Australia. The aircraft also conducts medevacs from Christmas Island. To meet the growing costs of the fleet, the RFDS has secured vast government and private sector support. The Hawker 800XP, for example, is appropriately registered VH-RIO for the support given by Rio Tinto.

The RFDS’s ongoing fleet roll-over program covering the entire fleet out to about 2035 would be the envy of some of the wobbly defence procurement programs.

Alongside the aircraft, onboard medical equipment continually develops. Three of the latest King Airs based at Brisbane, Rockhampton and Townsville are bariatric-capable, recognising the demands of diving and underwater construction accidents.

The conversion of a King Air into a flying intensive care unit (ICU) is a complex task. In a modification that takes around 8,000 hours, a large fuselage section near the air-stair on the rear left side is cut out and a larger door installed. The aircraft also undergoes a significant interior refit. The PC-12, with its large aft cargo door able to load litters, requires less effort to introduce into service. Noteworthy is that the internal fittings of all RFDS aircraft are compatible with the road ambulances they work with.

It is a far cry from the days when in less remote areas the RFDS operated regional aircraft of the day including Ansons, Hudsons or Herons, which were often used for inter-hospital transfers. Their cramped cabins and narrow doors made life challenging, as did the simple availability of aircraft during emergencies. In one instance an earthquake victim from Papua New Guinea with spine fractures was wrapped in a banana leaf splint and lashed to the external stores rack of a Bell helicopter for a terrifying 45-minute medevac to Madang – purely of necessity.

But nothing stands still. This year has seen administrative change and a much higher level staff training. New CASA standards for King Air operations saw a full-motion CAE flight simulator commissioned in Melbourne. Training for medical crews was similarly upgraded, using a PC-12 cabin converted to a unique medical simulator.

Last year the RFDS radio/telehealth service assisted 88,530 people while the fly-in clinics treated 144,496 more. Some 5,756 urgent medevacs and repatriations were conducted and 31,872 contracted inter-hospital transfers were flown. The fleet logged 80,986 hours.

Caption: Many of the nation’s aerodromes now have no air service, but RFDS can use them all. Stretches of road converted to emergency landing areas have been provided at strategic remote locations.