The Royal Flying Doctor Service announces two new aeromedical helicopters to its fleet

This has never been seen before in its 93-year-long history, and is an opportunity only made possible by Fortescue Metals Group (FMG). These helicopters have been specifically designed to adjust their purpose depending on the mission – such as search and rescue, firefighting, medical evacuations, or even police and federal roles, and the Royal Flying Doctor Service WA (RFDS WA) now finds itself in possession of two of them.

The RFDS WA can proudly introduce two new EC-145 helicopters to their collection, allowing them to further the level of care available for their patients in critical conditions. In addition to this, a recent partnership with Purple allows for strategic communications to be provided, further assisting this crucial service offered to Western Australians who’re travelling, working, and living in remote communities.

The helicopters are the most efficient mode of transport for hospital transfers, with the Chief Executive Officer for the RFDS WA, Rebecca Tomkinson, remarking on the benefits they will provide to the service.

Rebecca said “The helicopters will enable many patients to get a faster journey to hospital. In what has been the busiest year in our history, having additional capability in our fleet is vitally important to our life-saving service.”

Since the beginning of the recent Purple partnership with the RFDS WA, we have been providing strategic communication support to aid in ensuring the state has access to emergency aeromedical and healthcare services to those in rural and remote locations. The new helicopters will provide an unmeasurable advantage to the RFDS WA and will forever alter the way the service operates by boosting its capabilities.

“It is my absolute privilege to be part of the Royal Flying Doctor Service in WA as we take this new and exciting step forward and I would sincerely like to thank Fortescue for their support, without which this new service wouldn’t be possible,” Tomkinson has said.

RFDS WA doctors and flight nurses, along with specialised pilots, are now encountering a new set of comprehensive training curriculums to be able to properly care for patients who will be transferred by these new helicopters, and whilst the assets will not be integrated into the RFDS WA until early 2022, already they are being introduced to regional centres as part of a series of operational flight readiness before Christmas.

Digital Senior Consultant at Purple and creator of the launch video (as shown above), Robyn Poole, commented on the beneficial relationship between RFDS and FMG.

“RFDS WA has many great partnerships, but this one with FMG is particularly notable, as they’ve been given the opportunity to add helicopters to their existing fleet,” she said.

“As their preferred PR partner, Purple has been working closely with the RFDS WA team to develop content to share their stories and accomplishments throughout 2021. We look forward to continuing this great relationship – helping to tell the incredible stories of the people who work for and need their service.”

Purple strives to help the Royal Flying Doctor Service WA spread the incredible family and personal stories that derive from this service with the rest of Australia, and it’s a privilege to be able to work alongside them and help promote the incredible work they’ve been doing for all Australians.

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