iscover
The first of the upgraded helicopters, VH-LF3, touched down in Mount Isa this week, with LifeFlight chief executive Ashley van de Velde saying the AW139 is the perfect search and rescue aircraft to cover the long distances in the region.
The NSW Ambulance Aeromedical Rescue Helicopter service, operated by Toll since 2017, has flown over 24,000 critical care missions with its fleet of eight Leonardo AW139 helicopters, and performs more than 2,500 patient missions per year.
The aircraft, which will perform missions for Ambulance Tasmania and Tasmania Police, are expected to enter service from late 2027, and will be based in Hobart. It comes as StarFlight prepares to take over the state’s EMS contract from existing provider Rotor-Lift.
Rotor-Lift, which has operated the Westpac rescue and Ambulance Tasmania helicopters in the state for around 25 years, said it was blindsided by the Tasmanian government’s decision to award a $354 million, 12-year contract to interstate operator StarFlight.
StarFlight, a joint venture between Fox Group Holdings and LifeFlight Australia, will begin Tasmanian services on 12 January 2026, taking over from current contractor Rotor-Lift Aviation, which has provided aeromedical and search-and-rescue flights in the state for almost 25 years.
The organisation, based in Queensland, assisted 8,497 people in the 2024-25 financial year, up 3.9 per cent on its previous record last year. This translates to one patient every 62 minutes across its medical teams, helicopter and jet fleets.
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