Queensland based RACQ CareFlight Rescue has taken delivery of a pair of custom built Bell 412 helicopter simulators.
The simulators, built by Flight Simulators Asia Pacific in consultation with CareFlight, are specifically configured for air-medical evacuation missions and feature a full dual cockpit and instrumentation as well as additional observer seats.
CareFlight said the simulators, based at Gold Coast and Toowoomba, would be used for 150 hours of annual training. That “means a huge cost saving for CareFlight in fuel and maintenance as well as not having to take the helicopter offline for training,” Jeremy Ovens, CareFlight’s head of aviation, said.
Ovens said the simulators would also help CareFlight raise revenues by attracting trainees from around the world.
The non-profit rescue operation raised more than $150,000 over the past year to pay for the simulators.
