Rotor-Lift, which last year lost a lucrative Tasmanian emergency medical services contract to StarFlight, put its AOC up for sale late last year, with the page indicating expressions of interest were due by Christmas Day. It is as yet unknown if there has been any interest.
In April 2018, experienced pilot Philip O’Driscoll crashed his helicopter, a Bell UH-1H registered VH-HUE, during a lifting operation to move a large drill-rig in NSW’s Snowy Mountains.
The company, which will replace Rotor-Lift for aerial EMS in the state starting 12 January, says that most of its advertised pilot, air crew officer, and aircraft maintenance engineer positions have been filled by Rotor-Lift employees.
Under a $22.8 million investment over three years, the Sunshine Coast POLAIR base will be bolstered, with aerial operations to be extended into the Moreton Bay region. The base has seen 449 helicopter flights since January last year.
The Black Hawks, based in Gingin and commencing operations on 20 December, are the second of two pairs that will operate around the state. They join a firefighting fleet of 38, which also includes the Large Air Tanker, based in Busselton, and other rotary and fixed-wing aircraft.
Wright, who was in August convicted on two charges – involving asking the crash pilot to falsify flight records and lying to police to obstruct the investigation – was last week handed a 10-month sentence, suspended after five months, as well as a $5,000 fine.