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.

Both mainline Qantas pilots and Jetstar pilots are required to be clean-shaven on duty, with Qantas recently looking to extend this mandate to regional arm QantasLink; pilots, however, have criticised the move, which cites a study conducted for Qantas by consultancy firm QinetiQ.

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.

While government travellers have been barred from accruing frequent-flyer points since 2010, they are still allowed to gain status credits from official travel, which Virgin Australia says should be dispensed with as it creates an uneven playing field between itself and Qantas.