RAAF opens deep maintenance and modification facility at Edinburgh

Delivered on time and on budget, the facility will enable long-term, deep maintenance of the RAAF’s P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft to be performed in Australia.

The 240 metre-long building has been designed to accommodate and support not just the P-8A Poseidon, but a range of other RAAF platforms and includes a four‑bay hangar capacity suitable for Boeing 737‑derivative aircraft, aircraft docking systems to provide full aircraft access for deep maintenance and modification, workshops to support structural, mechanical, avionics and mission‑system maintenance and modifications; secure systems and infrastructure to support sustainment and upgrade activities for sensitive equipment; and logistics and support workspaces to enable long‑duration maintenance events.

“This facility is a critical investment in Australia’s ability to maintain and sustain key capabilities for our Defence Force here at home,” according to Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles.

“By embedding deep maintenance and upgrade work for the P-8A Poseidon fleet in Australia, we are strengthening sovereign capability, improving force readiness, and reducing reliance on overseas sustainment, exactly as set out in the National Defence Strategy.

“Just as importantly, this facility will support a skilled defence workforce and a resilient defence industrial base in South Australia, ensuring our Defence capability and Australian industry can continue to grow together.”

The Royal New Zealand Air Force will also maintain and repair its P-8A fleet at the South Australian facility from 2028.

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Construction of the Deep Maintenance and Modification Facility over the last two years created around 450 jobs, and more than half of the structural steel used was from South Australia’s Whyalla Steelworks.

“The opening of this huge new defence aircraft maintenance facility in South Australia is a major milestone for Australia’s defence sustainment capability,” according to Premier of South Australia, Peter Malinauskas.

“It is going to create important long-term careers right here in South Australia in the highly technical field of aero skills.

“Students at The Heights Technical College will graduate not only with their high school certificate and an in-demand trade qualification – they will be able to walk straight into a highly-skilled career in aero skills at this new facility.”

The P-8A Poseidon is the cornerstone of Australia’s anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, and search and rescue capability.

In March 2025, Defence signed a $291 million support contract with Boeing Defence Australia to deliver upgrades to the P-8A Poseidon fleet, including an improved combat system, enhanced anti‑submarine warfare capability, and upgraded satellite communications to improve integration across the Australian Defence Force.

The new facility is also set to become the workplace for students from the SA government’s new technical college, The Heights Technical College, where Boeing has signed on as an employer partner.

More than 20 students are now studying aero skills to become aircraft maintenance technicians and engineers, the first course of its kind in the state.