The Queensland government has signed a $288 million, 12-year deal with defence, aviation and critical services firm Babcock to provide emergency helicopter services for the Torres Strait and Northern Cape York Peninsula.
- Palaszczuk Government to invest $288 million in emergency helicopter services for the Torres Strait and Northern Cape.
- Babcock Australasia won the tender to provide emergency helicopter services for the region.
- Queensland Ambulance Service and Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service will provide 24/7 coverage of a doctor and paramedic dedicated to the aircraft, with Babcock supplying pilots, aircrew and aircraft engineers.
Torres Strait and Northern Cape York Peninsula communities will have greater access to aeromedical emergency healthcare thanks to a $288 million investment by the Palaszczuk Government.
These communities are among the most remote and difficult to access in Queensland and are highly reliant on the availability and responsiveness of emergency helicopter services.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk today announced the $288 million investment would boost the Queensland Ambulance Service’s capabilities to provide emergency health care to the Torres Strait and Northern Peninsula region with the addition of two multi-mission Leonardo AW139 helicopters with increased speed, range and operational capability.
The contract to provide the service has been awarded to Babcock, which already has a 15-year relationship with the Queensland Government.
Two AW139 helicopters will arrive in 2024, with the services expected to be operational by the second half of that year.
The choppers replace two Bell 412 helicopters currently servicing the region.
They will be stationed at Horn Island, where the current base will be upgraded to include staff accommodation and a patient holding facility.
Local artists have been engaged to design the artwork for the new helicopters to ensure they are representative of the local communities they will serve.
Other new helicopters ready to be delivered.