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{{Short description|Aeromedical organisation in Australia}}
{{redirect|RFDS}}
{{tone|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox organization
| name                     = Royal Flying Doctor Service
| image                    = Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia logo.svg
| abbreviation             = RFDS
| predecessor              = [[Australian Inland Mission|AIM Aerial Medical Service]]
| established              = {{start date and age|df=yes|1928|05|15}}
| founder                  = [[John Flynn (minister)|John Flynn]]
| founding_location        = [[Cloncurry]], [[Queensland]], Australia
| type                     = [[Nonprofit organization|Not-for-profit organisation]]
| status                   = Charity
| headquarters             = [[Canberra]], Australia
| region_served            = Australia
| services                 = {{Indented plainlist|
* [[Aeromedical retrieval]]
* [[Primary care]]
}}
| leader_title             = National Board Chair
| leader_name              = Tracey Hayes
| leader_title2            = National Deputy Chair
| leader_name2             = John O'Donnell
| affiliations             = Six autonomous regional divisions and a national office
| website                  = {{URL|flyingdoctor.org.au}}
}}
{{Use Australian English|date=June 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}

The '''Royal Flying Doctor Service''' ('''RFDS'''), commonly known as the '''Flying Doctor''', is an [[Aeromedical retrieval|aeromedical retrieval service]] in [[Australia]]. It is a [[non-profit organisation]] that provides urgent and emergency medical transport for patients in rural and remote areas of Australia who require transfer to a higher level of care (such as a [[tertiary referral hospital]]). RFDS also provides [[primary health care]] services such as [[general practice]], [[mental health]] and [[Allied health professions|allied health]] to remote communities who would otherwise have limited access. The RFDS comprises six autonomous regional organisations (such as the RFDS [[Queensland]] Section) and a federation office in [[Canberra]].

==History==
[[File:Whittaker_035_J.jpg|thumb|The Flying Doctor at Connellan's airstrip in Alice Springs (Mparntwe), c.1960s]]

==="Mantle of safety"===
[[File:Air ambulance QANTAS Brisbane 1931.jpg|thumb|left| One of the [[De Havilland DH.50]]'s flown by [[Qantas]], doing ambulance work, delivering a patient to [[Brisbane]] in 1931.]]
[[John Flynn (minister)|John Flynn]] had worked in rural and remote areas of [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]] and was commissioned by the [[Presbyterian Church]] to look at the needs of people living in the [[outback]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Thomson Dwyer |first=Saadia |date=2015-05-28 |title=Royal Flying Doctors |url=https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/royal-flying-doctors |access-date=2023-09-25 |website=State Library of Queensland |language=en |archive-date=25 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925170638/https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/royal-flying-doctors |url-status=live }}</ref> His report to the Presbyterian Assembly in 1912 resulted in the establishment of the [[Australian Inland Mission]] (AIM),<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Simpson|first1=George|title=Medical Services in Inland Australia|journal=[[Medical Journal of Australia]]|date=12 November 1927|volume=2|issue=20 |pages=697–700|doi=10.5694/j.1326-5377.1927.tb142869.x }}</ref> of which he was appointed Superintendent. In 1928, he formed the AIM Aerial Medical Service,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Vickers|first1=Allan|title=Australian Aerial Medical Services|journal=[[BMJ|British Medical Journal]]|date=1 February 1936|issue=Suppl|pages=47–50}}</ref> a one-year experiment based in [[Cloncurry]], [[Queensland]]. This experiment later became The Royal Flying Doctor Service.

Flynn's [[missionary]] work involved the establishment of hospitals in [[the bush|bush]] communities, but this did not help those who lived far from any major community. In his public speaking he would often retell the tragic circumstances that had befallen several bush settlers. The fate of Jimmy Darcy, in 1917, was one of these stories.

==== Jimmy Darcy ====
:Darcy was a stockman at [[Ruby Plains Station|Ruby Plains]], a remote [[cattle station]] in [[Western Australia]]. After being found injured with a ruptured bladder by some friends, he was transported over 30 miles (12 hours), to the nearest town, [[Halls Creek]]. Here, Darcy was met by FW Tuckett, the Postmaster, and the only man in the settlement trained in first aid. Tuckett said there was nothing he could reliably do for injuries so serious, and tried unsuccessfully to contact doctors at [[Wyndham, Western Australia|Wyndham]], and then [[Derby, Western Australia|Derby]], by telegraph. He eventually got through to a doctor in [[Perth]]. Through communication by [[morse code]], Dr. Holland guided Tuckett through two rather messy bladder operations using the only sharp instrument available, a [[pen knife]]. Due to the total absence of any medical facilities, Darcy had been operated on strapped to the Post Office counter, having first been made insensible with whisky. Holland then travelled 10 days to Halls Creek on a boat for cattle transport, a Model T Ford, a [[horse-drawn carriage]], and even on foot, only to find that Darcy had died the day before. The operations had been successful, but the stockman had died from an undiagnosed case of [[malaria]] and a ruptured [[abscess]] in his [[vermiform appendix|appendix]].
It was from stories such as this that Flynn, and his following at the AIM, became inspired to develop a route of communications that could solve the problem of remoteness, but no feasible technology seemed apparent. THE RADFS

===Flight and radio: the fusion of two fledgling technologies===
[[File:Dowling_006.jpg|thumb| AIM [Aerial Medical Service] AMS radio, Alice Springs]]
Victorian pilot Lieutenant (John) Clifford Peel had heard Flynn's public speeches, and on being shipped out to France for [[World War I]] in 1917, sent Flynn a letter explaining how he had seen a missionary doctor visiting isolated patients using a plane. Assisted by costing estimates by Peel, Flynn immediately took the idea of using aircraft to begin his idea, and published Peel's idea in the church's newsletter. Peel [[Killed in action|died in combat]] in September 1918, probably not even knowing the impact he had in the creation of an Australian icon.<ref name=peel>{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Neil |title=Lt. John Clifford Peel, Australian Flying Corps |publisher=3 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps and Royal Australian Air Force |url=http://www.3squadron.org.au/subpages/peel.htm |access-date=27 June 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820110511/http://www.3squadron.org.au/subpages/peel.htm |archive-date=20 August 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

Along with motorised flight, another new technology was being developed that could replace the complicated means of communication by telegraph. Together with [[Alfred Traeger]], Flynn began experiments with radio in the mid-1920s to enable remote outposts to contact a centralised medical base. The [[pedal radio]] was the first result of this collaboration. These were distributed gradually to [[Station (Australian agriculture)|station]]s, [[Mission (Christian)|mission]]s and other human residences around [[Cloncurry]], the base site for a 50-watt [[transmitter]].

Experimental aerial medical services commenced in 1926 and an injured miner was transported by air from [[Mount Isa]] to Cloncurry in November 1927.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/21189888|title=FLYÏNG DOCTORS. INLAND MISSION. CLONCURRY AS A BASE.|publisher=[[The Courier-Mail|The Brisbane Courier]]|date=2 November 1927|page=11|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808155655/http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/21189888|archive-date=8 August 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

By 1928, Flynn had gathered sufficient funds through [[fundraising]] activities to launch the experiment of the AMS on 15 May. Its supporters included industrialist [[Hugh Victor McKay|HV McKay]], medical doctor [[George Simpson (doctor)|George Simpson]] and [[Hudson Fysh]], one of the founders of [[Qantas]]. Qantas supplied the first aircraft to the fledgling organisation, VH-UER a [[De Havilland DH.50]], dubbed "Victory". On 17 May 1928,<ref name=rfd-avi-hist /> two days after inception, the service's first official flight piloted by [[Arthur Herbert Affleck|Arthur Affleck]] departed from Cloncurry, 85 miles to [[Julia Creek, Queensland|Julia Creek]] in [[Central Queensland]], where the plane was met by over 100 people at the [[airstrip]]. Qantas charged two shillings per mile for use of the Victory during the first year of the project.<ref name=rfd-avi-hist />

Anna Maria Flynn, first female paramedic in Alice Springs 1980s. (Not related to John Flynn)

===Current operations===
[[File:Dowling_007.jpg|thumb|AIM Aerial Medical Service Building, Alice Springs]]
[[Image:Flyingdocs-as.jpg|thumb|right|Dispatch service building, [[Alice Springs]]]]
Within the first year of operations, the service flew approximately 20,000 miles in 50 flights, becoming the first comprehensive air ambulance service in the world.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Langford|first1=Stephen|title=The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia. Its Foundation and Early Development|journal=Medical Journal of Australia|date=4 July 1994|volume=161|issue=1|pages=91–94|doi=10.5694/j.1326-5377.1994.tb127334.x |pmid=7832837 |s2cid=6466299 }}</ref> The service persisted through difficult first years, dealing with postwar Australia and the [[Great Depression]] of the 1930s. During its first few decades the service relied heavily on community fundraising, volunteer support and donations. Nowadays, the service is supported by the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments, but still relies heavily on fundraising and donations from the community to purchase and medically equip its aircraft, and to finance other major capital initiatives. Until the 1960s the service predominantly hired aircraft, pilots and service technicians from contractors. After this point, the service moved on to purchasing its own equipment and employing its own pilots and mechanics.

In 1932, the success from its operations in Cloncurry, and the increasing public awareness to this vital rural service, resulted in a push for a national network of flying doctors, hopefully with sponsorship from the government. In 1934 this was realised with the new Australian Aerial Medical Service opening up "Sections" across the nation. Bases were set up in Wyndham, [[Port Hedland]], [[Kalgoorlie]], [[Broken Hill]], [[Alice Springs]] and [[Meekatharra]]. The Queensland experiment was expanded with two additional bases opening in [[Charters Towers]] and [[Charleville, Queensland|Charleville]]. An official Federal Council for the organisation was formed in 1936. In 1937, Dr [[Jean White (physician)|Jean White]] became the first female flying doctor in Australia, and the world, when she started work at [[Normanton, Queensland|Normanton]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article130965208 |title=First woman flying doctor |newspaper=[[The News (Adelaide)|The News]] |volume=XXIX |issue=4,373 |location=South Australia |date=29 July 1937 |access-date=20 January 2018 |page=1 |via=National Library of Australia |archive-date=12 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240612050209/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130965208 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1942 the service was again renamed as the Flying Doctor Service, with Royal being bestowed upon the service in 1955. On 22 October 1958, [[Holden]] car manufacturers donated its 500,000th vehicle to the service in [[Melbourne]].

Sister Myra Blanch was one of the first nurses, known as "Flying Sisters", to join the service. She was key in the [[New South Wales]] Section operations during the 1940s and 50s, even though Flying Nurses didn't actually become regular until the 1960s. Many patient transports are conducted with an RFDS nurse and pilot only on board. Nurses have been responsible for many innovations to the service, including an addition to the RFDS medical chest to incorporate a "body chart" (1951). The chart was an anatomical representation of a human being, with areas clearly numbered. With such a chart, a remote doctor can ask the patient "where is the pain felt?" and receive a comprehensible reply. The medicines contained in the chest are similarly numbered for ease in communicating medical instructions.

[[Image:RFDS emergency landing strip sign.jpg|thumb|A sign on the [[Eyre Highway]] indicating that an RFDS emergency airstrip is ahead. There are three such strips on the highway.]]
The service is still heavily reliant on community support for funding, particularly through events such as the [[Simpson Desert Bike Challenge]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=About Us – Simpson Desert Bike Challenge|url=http://desertchallenge.org/about-us/|access-date=2021-04-29|language=en-US|archive-date=15 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210615023225/http://desertchallenge.org/about-us/|url-status=live}}</ref> and is well respected across the country as an organisation that has contributed much to rural, regional and remote communities.<ref name="LE2015">{{cite book|url=https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/the-leading-edge-innovation-technology-and-people-in-australias-royal-flying-doctor-service|title=The Leading Edge. Innovation, technology and people in Australia's Royal Flying Doctor Service|date=2015|publisher=University of Western Australia Publishing|isbn=9781742588148|location=Perth|last1=Langford|first1=Stephen|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729224636/https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/the-leading-edge-innovation-technology-and-people-in-australias-royal-flying-doctor-service|archive-date=29 July 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Its services include:<ref name=fds-health>{{cite web |title=RFDS Your Health – Health Services |url=http://yourhealth.flyingdoctor.org.au/health-services/ |publisher=flyingdoctor.org.au |access-date=9 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130206203520/http://yourhealth.flyingdoctor.org.au/health-services/ |archive-date=6 February 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

* Emergency - primary aeromedical response to accident or illness
* Emergency - secondary aeromedical evacuation and medical retrieval services
* Non-Emergency Transport - by aeromedical and road ambulances
* Telehealth - 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, medical consultation services by radio, telephone or video call
* Primary health care clinics - the transportation of [[general practitioner]]s, nurses and allied health professionals for regular clinical visits to remote areas (often a circuit visiting several communities and/or stations). Clinics include general practice, nurse-led child and maternal health, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, Rural Women's GP Service, mental health, dental services, allied health and medical specialists.
* Consultation, communication, and support for rural and remote doctors across Australia
* Inter-hospital transfer of patients
* Education and training opportunities and midwifery scholarships<ref name=rfd-profs>{{cite web |title=RFDS Health Professionals website |url=http://healthprofessionals.flyingdoctor.org.au/education--training/ |publisher=flyingdoctor.org.au |access-date=9 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130211050411/http://healthprofessionals.flyingdoctor.org.au/education--training/ |archive-date=11 February 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

The service also uses not just aircraft but also [[four-wheel drive]]s and other utility land vehicles to aid in transportation and communications.

===Organisation===
The RFDS is made up of seven legal entities: RFDS of Australia (federation office), Central Operations, Queensland Section, South Eastern Section, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Operations. The RFDS operates in a federated structure and each of the seven entities has its own Board and Management. Each entity operates independently, both financially and operationally.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/about-the-rfds/governance/|title=RFDS governance|publisher=Royal Flying Doctor Service|access-date=21 September 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180319091413/https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/about-the-rfds/governance/|archive-date=19 March 2018}}</ref>

The Flying Doctor operates from numerous bases, health services and other facilities (including marketing, fundraising and public relations as well as the national office) across Australia.<ref name=rfd-about>{{cite web|title=RFDS About Us|url=https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/about-the-rfds/our-bases/|publisher=flyingdoctor.org.au|access-date=19 April 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231626/https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/about-the-rfds/our-bases/|archive-date=3 March 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

RFDS bases are operated by:
*Central Operations - with bases at [[Adelaide Airport]], [[Alice Springs Airport]] and [[Port Augusta Airport]], and health services at [[Andamooka, South Australia|Andamooka]], [[Marla, South Australia|Marla]] and [[Marree, South Australia|Marree]].<ref name=rfd-about/>
*South Eastern Section - [[Broken Hill]], [[New South Wales]]; [[Dubbo]], New South Wales; [[Launceston, Tasmania]]; [[Essendon Airport]]; and [[Sydney Airport]] and [[Bankstown Airport]] in Sydney.
*Victoria Operations - bases across the state, including [[Essendon Airport]]; and a fleet of more than 100 road ambulances operating from more than 20 rural and regional bases. The Victorian Section office is in [[Richmond, Victoria|Richmond]], an inner eastern suburb of Melbourne.
*Queensland Section - [[Brisbane Airport]], [[Bundaberg Airport]], [[Cairns Airport]], [[Roma Airport]], [[Charleville, Queensland|Charleville]], [[Longreach]], [[Mount Isa]], [[Rockhampton]] and [[Townsville Airport]]
*Western Operations - [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome]], [[Kalgoorlie]], [[Meekatharra]], [[Perth]]'s [[Jandakot Airport]], and [[Port Hedland]]. The Rio Tinto LifeFlight Pilatus PC-24 jets are located in Broome and Jandakot.
[[File:RFDS hangar.jpg|thumb|Royal Flying Doctor Service hangar, [[Broken Hill]], New South Wales]]

Bases at [[Carnarvon, Western Australia|Carnarvon]], [[Geraldton]], [[Derby, Western Australia|Derby]], and [[Wyndham, Western Australia|Wyndham]] have closed, while the original base at [[Cloncurry, Queensland|Cloncurry]] was moved to [[Mount Isa]] in 1965 and the early base at Charters Towers moved to [[Cairns]] in 1972. The most recent new base was opened in [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome]] in 2016.

===Aircraft===
The first aircraft operated by the "Aerial Medical Service" in 1928 was a [[de Havilland DH.50]] hired from the fledgling [[Qantas]]. It was replaced in 1934 by a [[de Havilland Fox Moth|DH.83 Fox Moth]].<ref name=rfd-avi-hist>{{cite web|title=RFDS Aviation History and Early Aircraft|url=http://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/Aviation/Aviation-History-and-Early-Aircraft/|publisher=flyingdoctor.org.au|access-date=9 January 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130129035918/http://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/Aviation/Aviation-History-and-Early-Aircraft/|archive-date=29 January 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="Aviationtime-line">{{cite web |title=Aviation time-line |url=http://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/index.cfm?MenuID=222 |website=Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050720220551/http://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/index.cfm?MenuID=222 |archive-date=20 July 2005 |date=2005}}</ref>

During the 1930s and 1940s the fleet consisted of a mix of de Havilland [[de Havilland DH.50|DH.50s]], [[de Havilland Fox Moth|DH.83 Fox Moths]], [[de Havilland Dragon|DH.84 Dragons]], [[de Havilland Dove|DH.104 Doves]] and the [[de Havilland Australia DHA-3 Drover]].

From the 1950s to 1970s, the fleet included the [[Beechcraft Baron]], [[Beechcraft Travel Air]], [[Beechcraft Queen Air]], [[Beechcraft Duke]], [[Cessna 180]], [[Cessna 182]], [[Cessna 421]], [[Piper Cherokee]] and [[Piper PA-31 Navajo]].

Aircraft were provided by contractors until the 1960s. Subsequently, the RFDS owned its own aircraft and employed its own pilots and engineers.

In the late 1960s the NSW Section operated two British built [[Beagle B.206]] Mk2<ref>[https://www.goodall.com.au/photographs/beagle/beagles.html]</ref> until replaced in the late 70s when the RFDS base at Broken Hill operated the Australian-made [[GAF Nomad]].

From the 1980s to the 2000s, the fleet included the [[Cessna 404 Titan|Cessna 404]] and [[Cessna 441]].<ref name="LE2015" />

For a time in the mid-2000s the aeromedical evacuation aircraft used were either the [[Pilatus PC-12]] or the [[Beechcraft Super King Air|Beechcraft King Air 200 series]]. The internal configuration of these two aircraft varies in the different RFDS sections. Typically they are configured with two rear-facing seats which look onto two stretchers. In some aircraft, one stretcher can be removed quickly and two seats slipped into place instead.

The PC-12, PC-24 and King Air are pressurised and so can safely transport patients who would not otherwise tolerate the decreased air pressure in a non-pressurised aircraft. The internal cabin pressure can be maintained throughout the flight at that of sea level. This is important for patients critically sensitive to pressure changes. Also, pressurised aircraft can fly at high enough altitude to be above turbulent weather. This is of great benefit in providing an environment safe for the patient and staff, and also limits complications of aeromedical transport such as [[motion sickness]] and exacerbation of injuries such as unstable fractures.

In October 2009 the standardisation on the two aircraft types ended when two [[Cessna 208 Caravan|Cessna 208B Grand Caravans]] and a [[Hawker 800]]XP<ref name=rfd-rio-flight>{{cite web|url=http://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/Rio-Tinto-Life-Flight-.html|title=Rio Tinto Life Flight|publisher=Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia|access-date=1 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216120452/http://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/Rio-Tinto-Life-Flight-.html|archive-date=16 February 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Langford|first1=Stephen|title=The first medical jet aircraft for the Royal Flying Doctor Service|journal=Medical Journal of Australia|date=7 December 2009|volume=191|issue=11|pages=609–610|doi=10.5694/j.1326-5377.2009.tb03346.x |pmid=20028278 |s2cid=28219864 |url=https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2009/191/11/first-medical-jet-aircraft-royal-flying-doctor-service|access-date=21 December 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412002030/https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2009/191/11/first-medical-jet-aircraft-royal-flying-doctor-service|archive-date=12 April 2012|df=dmy-all|url-access=subscription}}</ref> joined the fleet.
[[File:Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia Central Operations (VH-FGS) Pilatus PC-12-45 at Wagga Wagga Airport.jpg|thumb|[[Pilatus PC-12|Pilatus PC-12-45]] ]]
[[File:Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (Western Operations) (VH-NWO) Pilatus PC-24 "Ningaloo", operating as FD626J, taxiing at Wagga Wagga Airport.jpg|thumb|[[Pilatus PC-24]]]]
{| class="wikitable"
|+Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia fleet (as of March 2023)
!Aircraft 
!In service
!Patients
!Crew (including pilots)
!Notes
|-
|[[Eurocopter EC145|Airbus EC145]]
|2
|2 (1 stretcher)
|3
|
|-
|[[Beechcraft-200|Beechcraft B200]]
|17
|5 (2 stretchers)
|3
|
|-
|[[Beechcraft-200|Beechcraft B200C]]
|13
|5 (2 stretchers)
|3
|
|-
|[[Beechcraft Super King Air|Beechcraft B300C]]
|10
|5 (2 stretchers)
|3
|
|-
|[[Pilatus PC-12]]
|35
|5 (2 stretchers)
|3
|
|-
|[[Pilatus PC-24]]
|4
|5 (3 stretchers)
|
|
|-
|'''Total'''
|'''81'''
|
|
|
|}
The South Eastern Section operates 18 King Airs (B200, B200C, B300C); The Queensland Section operates 20 King Airs (B200, B200C, B300C) and 3 PC-12s; The Western Operations operates 16 PC-12s and 3 PC-24; and Central Operations operates 19 PC-12 and 2 PC-24.<ref name="rfd-anrep-2015/16">{{cite book|url=https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/assets/annual_report/file/RN021_Annual_Report_D201.pdf|title=RFDS Annual Report 2015/16|date=30 June 2016|publisher=RFDS of Australia|location=Sydney, Australia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170413131150/https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/assets/annual_report/file/RN021_Annual_Report_D201.pdf|archive-date=13 April 2017|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
[[File:RFDS Airbus EC145 on Royal Perth Hospital.jpg|thumb|[[Eurocopter EC145|Airbus EC145]] ]]
By 2021, the RFDS had received their 4 [[Pilatus PC-24]] jets, replacing their [[Hawker 800|Hawker 800XP]] jet. They are based at [[Jandakot Airport]] and [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome]] in WA and [[Adelaide]] SA. The PC-24 can fit 3 stretcher beds and two seated patients. The aircraft can cruise at {{convert|45000|ft}} and halves the time of flight compared to the existing propeller driven fleet. The PC-24 can also operate out of paved and unpaved runways.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/news/world-first-aero-medical-jet-lands-wa/|title=World-first aero medical PC-24 jet lands in WA {{!}} Royal Flying Doctor Service|website=www.flyingdoctor.org.au|language=en|access-date=2019-03-21|archive-date=10 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190310134127/https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/news/world-first-aero-medical-jet-lands-wa/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2022, The Western Operations started operating its own helicopters. Two [[Eurocopter EC145|Airbus EC145]] were imported from Germany and reconfigured at [[Jandakot Airport]] into hospital retrieval platforms. The aircraft are operated single pilot IFR with NVIS (NVG). The service provides retrievals up to {{convert|200|km}} from Perth, landing in sports ovals or helipads. Patients are then flown directly to rooftop helipads located on all the major hospitals in Perth.

===Medical retrieval equipment===
The RFDS uses a wide range of contemporary emergency medical equipment to provide aeromedical retrieval services.<ref name="LE2015" /> These include transport [[medical ventilator|ventilators]], [[intensive care medicine|critical care]] monitors, [[intravenous therapy|infusion]] devices, [[point-of-care testing]], portable [[medical ultrasonography|diagnostic ultrasound]] and a range of other [[splint (medicine)|splints]] and devices.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/wa/clinical/aeromedical-retrieval/our-retrieval-service/retrieval-equipment/|title=Retrieval Equipment|publisher=Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia|access-date=14 June 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160402021527/https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/wa/clinical/aeromedical-retrieval/our-retrieval-service/retrieval-equipment/|archive-date=2 April 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

===Statistics===
[[Image:Jandakot Memorial SMC 2006.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Memorial to RFDS pilot, [[Robin Miller (nurse)|Robin Miller Dicks]], the "Sugarbird Lady" at [[Jandakot Airport]]]]

According to the RFDS of Australia 2015/16 Annual Report<ref name="rfd-anrep-2015/16"/> the service owns 67 aircraft, and operates 23 bases with 1,225 employees.

Each day, on average, the service:
* travels 73,554 kilometres by air
* performs 211 landings
* has 800 patient contacts (includes patients at clinics, patient transports and telehealth)
* transports 177 patients (includes primary evacuations, inter-hospital transfer, transports from clinics, repatriations and road transports by Victoria Mobile Patient Care Service)
* conducts 254 [[telehealth]] sessions.

===School of the Air===

The [[School of the Air]], which links outback students with centralised teachers, until recently used the same radio equipment as the RFDS. This has been superseded with the availability of internet services.

== Notable people ==
Notable people associated with the RFDS include:
<!-- List is alphabetic by surname -->

* [[Arthur Affleck]], first pilot<ref>{{Cite Australian Dictionary of Biography|id2=affleck-arthur-herbert-9314|title=
Arthur Herbert Affleck (1903–1966)|last=Knight|first=Ken G.|year=1993|volume=13|access-date=14 April 2018|url-status=dead|url=http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/affleck-arthur-herbert-9314|archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20140728203549/http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/affleck-arthur-herbert-9314|archive-date=28 July 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
* [[Marie Bashir]], former NSW Governor, official patron<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flyingdoctors.org.au/patrons.html|title=Royal Flying Doctors SE - Patrons|publisher=Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180413125306/http://www.flyingdoctors.org.au/patrons.html|archive-date=13 April 2018|url-status=live|access-date=14 April 2018|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
* [[Clyde Fenton]], first doctor in the Northern Territory, also a pilot
* [[John Flynn (minister)|John Flynn]], founder<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flyingdoctors.org.au/reverend-john-flynn.html|title=Royal Flying Doctors - Reverend John Flinn|publisher=Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091025115842/http://www.flyingdoctors.org.au/Reverend-John-Flynn.html|archive-date=25 October 2009|url-status=live|access-date=14 April 2018|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
* [[Wylie Gibbs]], doctor
* [[Macarthur Job]], pilot
* [[Silva McLeod]], Tonga's first woman pilot, flew for the RFDS
* [[Robin Miller (nurse)|Robin Miller]], nurse/pilot, "The Sugarbird Lady" 
* [[John Grieve Woods]], doctor

== Cultural references ==
*The service was depicted in the 1936 film ''The Flying Doctor''<ref name="fly">{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|date=26 September 2025|access-date=26 September 2025|title=Forgotten Australian Films: The Flying Doctor|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-australian-films-the-flying-doctor/}}</ref>
* The RFDS was the subject of the TV drama series ''[[The Flying Doctors]]''. The series followed the lives of an RFDS crew based in a fictional township called "Coopers Crossing" (set in the real-life town of [[Minyip]] in north-western rural [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]]) and the members of the local population that they served.<ref name="tfd-tv-series">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088519/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1|title=The Flying Doctors (TV Series 1986–1994)|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database]]|access-date=9 January 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180414032841/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088519/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1|archive-date=14 April 2018|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.mailtimes.com.au/story/5045747/the-flying-doctors-25-years-on-minyip-residents-share-their-memories-video/|title=The Flying Doctors 25 years on: Minyip residents share their memories|work=Wimmera Mail-Times|date=9 November 2017|first=Carly|last=Werner|access-date=11 March 2020|archive-date=12 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200412043028/https://www.mailtimes.com.au/story/5045747/the-flying-doctors-25-years-on-minyip-residents-share-their-memories-video/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* ''[[RFDS (TV series)|RFDS: Royal Flying Doctor Service]]'' is an Australian drama television series which centres around the lives of workers for the Royal Flying Doctors Service. It commenced airing on the Seven Network in 2021.
* In the 1950s the RFDS featured in a BBC Radio series ''The Flying Doctor'', which became well known for the catchphrase "Flying Doctor calling Wollumboola Base". A television show of [[The Flying Doctor (TV series)|the same title]] based on this radio series and starring [[Richard Denning]] ran on the British [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] network for one season (1959–60).<ref name="fd-uk-tv">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052467/|title=The Flying Doctor (TV Series 1959– )|publisher=Internet Movie Database|access-date=22 March 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024052754/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052467/|archive-date=24 October 2012|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="fly"/>
* At the closing of [[Charlie Drake]]'s humorous song "[[My Boomerang Won't Come Back]]", it is implied that the narrator accidentally downs a Flying Doctor plane with his [[boomerang]].
*The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia is featured in the outback map of the video game ''[[Flight Control (video game)|Flight Control]]''.<ref name="pcgame">{{cite web|url=http://justanothermobilemonday.com/Wordpress/2009/09/11/firemint-honors-australias-royal-flying-doctor-service-with-flight-control-update/<|title=Firemint Honors Australia's Royal Flying Doctor Service With Flight Control Update|date=11 September 2009|publisher=just another mobile monday|access-date=14 May 2012}}</ref>
*The British space rock group [[Hawklords]] released a song called "Flying Doctor" on their album ''[[25 Years On]]'' (1978). It describes an Australian flying doctor who has a drug cabinet key.
* In the television series ''[[Thomas & Friends]]'', Season 22 introduces Isla, a plane in service to the RFDS, who is good friends with Shane, the Australian engine Thomas first met back in the special ''[[Thomas & Friends: The Great Race]]''. The episode "Cyclone Thomas" has Isla shown flying to various medical emergencies with her on-board doctor, Dr. Claire, and attempting to help evacuate residents from a town threatened by a [[hurricane]].
* [[Air Hawk and the Flying Doctors]] was a long-running cartoon that featured the service.

== Heritage listings ==
The [[First Australian Inland Mission Hospital, Birdsville|First]] and [[Second Australian Inland Mission Hospital, Birdsville|Second Australian Inland Mission Hospitals]] in [[Birdsville]] are listed on the [[Queensland Heritage Register]].<ref name="qhr">{{cite QHR|15234|Royal Hotel/Australian Inland Mission Hospital (former)|600459|access-date=1 August 2014}}</ref><ref name="qhr2">{{cite QHR|28739|Australian Inland Mission Hospital (former)|602635|access-date=1 August 2014}}</ref>

In 2009 as part of the [[Q150]] celebrations, the Royal Flying Doctor Service was announced as one of the [[Q150 Icons]] of Queensland for its role as an iconic "innovation and invention".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://statements.qld.gov.au/statement/id/64301|title=PREMIER UNVEILS QUEENSLAND'S 150 ICONS|last=Bligh|first=Anna|author-link=Anna Bligh|date=10 June 2009|publisher=[[Queensland Government]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170524033717/http://statements.qld.gov.au/statement/id/64301|archive-date=24 May 2017|url-status=live|access-date=24 May 2017}}</ref>

In 2011 the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (Queensland Section) was inducted into the [[Queensland Business Leaders Hall of Fame]] in recognition of its contribution to rural health and rural community building in Australia.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://leaders.slq.qld.gov.au/inductees/royal-flying-doctor-service-of-australia-queensland-section/|title=Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (Queensland Section)|website=Queensland Business Leaders Hall of Fame|access-date=13 September 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170816150016/http://leaders.slq.qld.gov.au/inductees/royal-flying-doctor-service-of-australia-queensland-section/|archive-date=16 August 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[Emergency Medical Retrieval Service]] (similar service in [[Scotland]])
*[[Emergency medical services in Australia]]
*[[Air medical services]]

==References==

{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

*Ross J ed. (1999) ''Chronicle of the 20th century'', Viking, Ringwood, Victoria, {{ISBN|0-670-88606-8}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikivoyage}}
* {{Official website}}
* [http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an11408153 Australian Inland Mission collection]&nbsp;– digitised images from the National Library of Australia
* [http://www.antiqueradio.com/traeger_pedal_07-99.html The Pedal Radio]
* [http://hiddenjourneys.co.uk/Audio%20Slideshows.aspx#level_5 Audio slideshow: Outback Australia- The royal flying doctor service.] Carl bridge, head of the Menzies Centre for Australian studies at [[King's College London School of Medicine]], outlines the history of this service.
* [https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/the-leading-edge-innovation-technology-and-people-in-australias-royal-flying-doctor-service University of WA Publishing – book, contemporary history of the RFDS]
* [https://onesearch.slq.qld.gov.au/permalink/61SLQ_INST/tqqf2h/alma99183896820802061 Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) digital story and oral history: Queensland Business Leaders Hall of Fame 2011], [[State Library of Queensland]]
* [https://leaders.slq.qld.gov.au/inductees/royal-flying-doctor-service-queensland-section Queensland Business Leaders Hall of Fame]

{{Regional Aviation Association of Australia}}
{{Australian Ambulance Services}}

[[Category:Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia| ]]
[[Category:Regional Aviation Association of Australia]]
[[Category:Air ambulance services in Australia]]
[[Category:Medical and health organisations based in Australia]]
[[Category:Health charities in Australia]]
[[Category:1928 establishments in Australia]]
[[Category:Organisations based in Australia with royal patronage]]
[[Category:Queensland Greats]]
[[Category:National Rural Health Alliance organisations]]
[[Category:Aviation organisations based in Australia]]
[[Category:Australian outback]]
[[Category:Rural culture in Oceania]]