NSW approves funding for new air ambulance bases
The funds, worth A$158.8 million (US$103.15 million), will support an expansion of NSW Ambulance’s emergency air medical network
The government of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) has announced A$158.8 million in funding to support the construction of three new air ambulance bases.
The funding was announced as part of the 2025–2026 budget, and builds on a total of A$126.6 million previously committed by the NSW Government.
The new helicopter bases will be built in Moruya, Port Macquarie, and Wagga Wagga, and will be used to provide emergency care to rural and remote communities.
They will be integrated into the existing NSW Ambulance air medical network of 12 helicopters and six bases, located in Bankstown (Sydney), Belmont (Newcastle), Lismore, Orange, Tamworth, and Wollongong, as well as six fixed-wing aircraft based at Mascot (Sydney).
“NSW Ambulance helicopter operations clinicians attend more than 4,200 incidents every year,” said Dr Dominic Morgan, Chief Executive at NSW Ambulance. “The new helicopter bases mean a NSW Ambulance helicopter will be able to fly to the majority of towns across the state within 60 minutes.”
Air ambulance provider CareFlight announced the expansion of its base in Newcastle, NSW earlier this year.
Oliver Cuenca
Oliver Cuenca is a Junior Editor at AirMed&Rescue. He was previously a News and Features Journalist for the rail magazine IRJ until 2021, and studied MA Magazine Journalism at Cardiff University. His favourite helicopter is the AW169 – the workhorse of the UK air ambulance sector! He also led the creation of Waypoint: The AirMed&Rescue podcast, serving as its Production Editor and co-host.